Lisbon, Oct. 8, 2024 (Lusa) - Portugal's government is on Tuesday to present a Media Action Plan that includes new legislation for the sector and a new public service concession contract for public broadcaster RTP, as well as strengthening the independence of the Lusa news agency and creating incentives for the sector.

The plan is to be presented at a conference on ‘The future of the media’ organised in Lisbon by members of the Private Media Platform (PMP), to be attended by the prime minister and the minister for parliamentary affairs, who has the media brief.

According to the document, to which Lusa has had access, the plan is divided into four axes - regulation of the sector, public service concessions (RTP and Lusa), incentives for the sector and combating disinformation and media literacy - each of which includes various measures that will be monitored and accounted for by the Mission Structure (#PortugalMediaLab) created by the government in August.

The creation of a Media Code, an updating of the Press Law and the Regional Press Statute (which date back to 1988), the Radio, Television and Audiovisual Services Law and the Media Transparency Law and Registration Decree are among measures proposed in the plan, which the government wants to see implemented in the first half of 2025.

For RTP, the gradual elimination of commercial advertising by 2027 - to be replaced by "spaces to promote cultural events and initiatives" - is the biggest novelty in the plan, which also foresees the revision of the public service concession contract in order to "modernise" and "differentiate" public television from other channels.

A reorganisation programme is also planned, with a voluntary redundancy plan (for up to 250 workers), greater synergies with Lusa (though without any merger of companies or newsrooms) and the creation of a fact-checking platform.

As for Lusa (which is already 95.86% state-owned), the government intends to complete its total takeover and, at the same time, strengthen its independence by creating a new governance model, namely the creation of a supervisory board with a multi-sector composition, and implementing a technological and digital modernisation programme and more human resources.

Reducing the cost of Lusa's services for media outlets is also seen in the plan as one way of helping the sector. 

Increased responsibility in the cultural field and in combating disinformation and strengthening media literacy are other tasks that the government envisages for the public agency.

In the chapter on incentives for the sector in general, the government recognises that it is necessary to carry out a study of the journalism market and evaluate the current regime, while promoting the integration of digital platforms and promoting technological modernisation.

In this chapter, special attention is paid to artificial intelligence (AI), with support for training journalists in this area and the drafting of a white paper on AI applied to journalism.

Support for the distribution of periodicals in areas of low population density and ensuring their distribution throughout the country, support for business training and the valorisation of local radio stations are also provided for in the plan.

The last axis of the plan, on combating disinformation and media literacy, provides for the state to subsidise digital subscriptions to media outlets by 50% and offer them to secondary school students. A new National Media Literacy Plan and mdia literacies pilot project, which consists of the adoption of a compulsory subject in secondary education to promote skills in this area among students, are also being launched.

With this plan, the government says it intends to "pragmatically resolve the structural problems of the sector, without unnecessary disruption or any ideological motivations."

According to the document, the magnitude and variety of the challenges facing the sector and even the exercise of journalists' activities have prompted the government to intervene to “lay the foundations for a new media policy” - as it considers this area to be “absolutely critical to the health of our democracy and our society.”

LM/ARO // ARO.

Lusa