Journalists' Row Reignites Romanian Debate on Media Freedom

A public row between a Romanian TV presenter and the management of his news channel over [lack of] coverage of a corruption investigation linked to broadcasters has reignited a debate in Romania about media freedom, self censorship and over whether intelligence services infiltrate news organizations.

The editor-in-chief of Digi 24 news channel, Cosmin Prelipceanu, has publicly threatened the host of the station's daily late night TV show with a lawsuit after the latter accused the news station of ignoring the indictment of several senior representatives of RCS-RDS telecom, the group that owns the station.

The National Anti-corruotion Directorate, DNA, indicted RCS-RDS vice-president Ioan Bendei, RCS's cable operator manager, Alexandru Oprea, and the former head of the Romanian Professional Football League Mitica Dragomir, at the beginning of the month for bribery and money-laundering. 

The investigation started after the RCS acquired the broadcasting rights over Romania's football League I.

Dragos Patraru, anchor of "The State of The Nation" daily show, on Monday night accused his own employer of deliberately ignoring the topic.

"You don't run away from the topic, you attack it, you put it on the table, you look at it from every angle. Because this is what you, the press, should do ... You don't get a salary to shut up, but to work," he said.  

"You serve the public, it's for them that you search for the truth, not for media institutions, just for the public," he added.

"Sure, there is the alternative, which shows that the press card is just a cover and then yes, you don't answer to the public, but to ....," he concluded, clearly referring to an ongoing debate over whether the intelligence services use journalists to spy...