Coimisiún na Meán seeks views on future of broadcast moratorium for elections and referendums

Public consultation sets out possible options for future of moratorium

Coimisiún na Meán has today (07.08.24) opened a public consultation on the future of the broadcast moratorium. The moratorium currently prohibits discussion of election or referendum issues on broadcast media from 2pm on the day preceding the election or referendum until the polls close on voting day.

The moratorium does not apply to other types of media, such as print or online, and the legislation does not allow for these types of media to be included in any moratorium.

Coimisiún na Meán is putting forward five main options for consideration:

1. Keeping the moratorium as it is
2. Amending the duration of the moratorium
3. Changing the types of broadcast coverage included under the moratorium
4. Reframing the obligation on broadcasters as a positive obligation to exercise particular care on issues related to elections or referendums
5. Abolishing the moratorium entirely.

This public consultation is part of Coimisiún na Meán’s on-going review of the broadcast moratorium, which has included engagement with broadcasters and political parties, as well as public opinion research. An Coimisiún intends to conclude the review, including making any changes required to the moratorium, by the end of October 2024.

The moratorium was first included in broadcasting guidelines for the 1997 Presidential Election, a time when TV and radio were the main sources of news. Its original purposes were to allow voters a period of reflection before casting their votes, and to guard against voters being presented with new information or misinformation at the last minute when it was too late for it to be properly evaluated or discussed. With the growth in usage of online sources of news, there needs to be a re-evaluation of whether the moratorium is useful.

Coimisiún na Meán Broadcasting and Video-On-Demand Commissioner, Aoife MacEvilly, said: “Now is the right time to consider if changes are needed to the broadcasting moratorium for coverage of referendums and elections. Wherever people find their news, it is important that they can find relevant, informed, and impartial reporting that they trust. We know that more and more people are going online for their news, whether that’s to a news website or to social media, but, broadcasters are still an important source of news about elections for many people.

We are looking forward to hearing the public’s views on the moratorium and we intend to make a decision on continuing, changing or removing the moratorium by the end of October”.

The public consultation is now open. The closing date for submissions is Wednesday, 4 September 2024.