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Belgian CSA issues positive assessment: PSB fulfilled public service mission

posted on 28 January, 2019   (public)

RTBF encouraged to diversify sports broadcasts and boost off-screen diversity

Further to Art. 136, 5° of the Coordinated Decree on audiovisual media services, the Belgian Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel (CSA) is responsible for delivering an opinion on how RTBF (the public service broadcaster in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation) implements the obligations provided for in its Management Contract. This opinion is based on the activity report that the public service broadcasters draws up each year in accordance with the procedures described in the decree of 14 July 1997 on RTBF's Statutes.

  • For 2017, the CSA considered that RTBF had fulfilled its specific missions entrusted by management contract, in particular with regard to own production, investments in independent production and in the Support Fund for radio creation, the accessibility of  programmes, web creation, broadcasting quotas, as well as its information and education missions. In these areas, the CSA notes that RTBF often exceeds the objectives set by the management contract.
  • However, the CSA encourages RTBF to diversify its offer of sports broadcasts and sports information programmes with a view to giving greater attention to less publicised sports, in particular sports played by women and sports played by people with disabilities (representing only 2.8% of broadcasts in 2017).
  • The CSA also suggests meeting with RTBF in early 2019 to start a dialogue on the assessment of the PSB's plans to promote gender equality and diversity within the staff. According to the regulator, efforts "are focused more on-screen than off-screen".

Source: Belgian CSA Website

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