Romania's media beyond salvation

The international NGO for promoting press freedom, Reporters without Borders, complained in a report on the state of the Romanian media presented on Tuesday that the business sector and politics wield too much influence over the media. The weekly Revista 22 agrees, saying that media mogul "Sorin Ovidiu Vântu dreams of appointing ministers, replacing presidents and controlling the intelligence services and the judiciary. His media group uses all means at its disposal to keep tabs on his enemies. He smuggles in 'spies' to get hold of good information, puts the competition under pressure and makes huge profits. ... But the most arrogant of all media moguls is Dan Voiculescu, who even occupies a high-ranking post in the Senate. He uses his Intact group to pursue political rather than journalistic or economic goals. ... He wants to eliminate all the opponents who stand in the way of his privatisation plans. ... Another weapon used is to force companies to buy advertising, as an editor recently uncovered. ... As long as the mass media continue to be more political instruments than business enterprises they will remain beyond salvation."

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