3. Public Service Media

The public service mission of the LRT is laid down in Art 3 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on the Lithuanian National Radio and Television (hereinafter referred to as the LRT Law):

"The LRT must collect and publish information about Lithuania and the world, introduce the public to the cultural diversity of Europe and the world, the foundations of modern civilization, consolidate the independence and democracy of the Republic of Lithuania, create, foster and protect national cultural values, develop tolerance and humanism, the culture of cooperation, thinking and language, enhance public morality and civic responsibility, raise the country’s ecological awareness. Diverse opinions and convictions must be reflected in radio and television programmes produced and/or disseminated (or broadcast) by the LRT (hereinafter: ‘LRT programmes’), and on the LRT website. Individuals with diverse perspectives shall have the right to participate in LRT programmes and on the LRT website and to express their views. LRT programmes and the LRT website must respect human dignity and rights, may not violate the principles of morality and ethics."

The LRT Law

https://e-seimas.lrs.lt/portal/legalAct/lt/TAD/TAIS.31934/asr

The LRT is the successor of the rights and duties of the Lithuanian Radio and Television, founded by the Parliament (Seimas) of the Republic of Lithuania. Therefore, the Seimas is considered as the founder. There may not be any other stakeholders of the LRT. The functions of the general meeting of the LRT shall be assigned to the LRT Council.

According to Art 19 of the LRT Law, the LRT is funded with the appropriations of the state budget, revenues from sales of programmes, sponsorship announcements, publishing as well as sponsorship and revenues from commercial and economic activities.

Public funds constituted 96.7% of income in 2021

According to the doctrine of the Constitutional Court of Lithuania, editorial independence means the right of public service broadcasters to determine the content, time, persons participating in their programmes freely and without external intervention, within the limits established by law or certain rules; editorial independence means that no external entity (public or private) may interfere in the day-to-day activities of the public service broadcaster; editorial independence is inextricably linked to the institutional autonomy, i.e. the right to freely organise and administer activities within the limits established by law or by certain rules (in particular rules relating to their management and supervisory bodies).

The LRT Law defines the main elements and procedures of governance, including management structures and the funding model, which provide for organisational and financial conditions for the public service broadcaster to carry out its mission independently.

The bodies of the LRT shall be the Council and the Director General. The Director General who heads and represents the LRT is appointed and released by the Council through a public competition procedure for a 5-year term and is accountable to the Council.

The duties of the Director General are not compatible with the elected or appointed positions in the Parliament (Seimas), Government, Radio and Television Commission of Lithuania and positions of political (personal) trust civil service.

Persons having employment relationships with radio and television broadcasters as well as the managers and/or participants of radio and/or television broadcasters and of the information society media (legal persons), members of the management bodies, and the members of the Council must immediately resign from office after their appointment as Director General. Auditors or employees of the audit firms who are participating and/or participated in the audit of the LRT, if less than two years have elapsed since the audit, may not be elected as Director General.

The Director General of the LRT may not work in a business, commerce or any other establishment, enterprise or organisation, nor may he receive any remuneration other than the salary fixed for his position as well as the remuneration for his research and pedagogical work and royalties for creative activities.

The Council represents the public interest. The Council must act for the benefit of the LRT and society as a whole and complies with laws, the Statutes of the LRT and other legal acts. The LRT Law stipulates that the Council shall be composed of 12 members (prominent figures in society, science and culture) appointed for a 6-year term by different institutions: by the President of Lithuania, the Seimas (two of the Council members are proposed by the opposition parliamentary groups); the Research Council of Lithuania, the Lithuanian Education Council, the Lithuanian Association of Artists and the Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference.

The current principle of forming the LRT Council does not allow the appointing institutions to appoint Council members for their own term of office and thus, protects LRT from the political influence of the ruling parliamentary majority. An LRT Council member may not be revoked before the expiry of his/her term of office except in the cases provided by the Law.

If a person appointed as a member of the Council is a member of a political party or political organisation, he/she must suspend his/her membership therein for the period of his/her membership in the Council.

The following persons may not be members of the Council: Members of the Seimas, the Government, the Radio and Television Commission of Lithuania, civil servants of political (personal) confidence, the Director General, Deputy Director General or any other employee of the LRT, persons having employment relationships with radio and/or television broadcasters, managers and/or participants of radio and/or television broadcasters and of the information society media (legal persons), members of the management bodies, auditors or employees of audit firms who are participating and/or participated in the audit of the LRT, if less than two years have elapsed since the audit.

The LRT Law sets the funding model for the LRT. It stipulates that the amount of the LRT's allocation from the state budget each year is equal to 1% of the personal income tax revenue and 1.3 % of the excise duty revenues of the state budget and municipal budgets received the year before the last. The level of appropriations allocated to the LRT shall not be lower than the state budget allocations granted to the LRT in 2019.

This funding model, where the budget is directly linked to the taxes collected by the State and is automatically calculated as a fixed share of the collected taxes, has been in place since 2015 and ensures LRT’s independence not only from political influence but also from the economic lobbying by advertisers. The LRT is not allowed to air commercial advertising.