Six charges, all relating to breaches of advertising regulations, were issued last year by the broadcasting watchdog, but none of them resulted in fines or a suspension in broadcasting.
Instead, the television stations involved – State broadcaster TVM, Net TV, One TV and F Living – were given a written warning.
All the cases happened within the first three months of 2016, as all the programmes in question were aired between January 22 and March 5, 2016.
Details on administrative offences in 2016 emerge from the Broadcasting Authority annual report recently tabled in Parliament.
Four of the six warnings were issued on “surreptitious advertising and undue prominence for product placement without payment”
By law the authority may opt for a written warning, order the offender to suspend broadcasting for a period of time, or impose a penalty including the possibility of a suspended fine of up to €34,950.
Last year, four of the six warnings were issued on “surreptitious advertising and undue prominence for product placement without payment”.
The other two were related to excessive advertising content per hour of broadcasts, and lack of distinction between advertising and teleshopping from editorial content.
From the annual report it transpired that in 2016, 11 “programme complaints” were filed, six of which by the Nationalist Party against the State broadcaster. Alleanza Bidla filed two cases, and the Labour Party, the Commissioner for Children and UĦM Voice of the Workers, one each.
In most cases the complaints were deemed as unjustified and not upheld. One of the few exceptions had to do with the broadcasting of promotional spots on the new Electrogas power plant on TVM.
The PN complained that the spots delved into political controversy and consequently there was an obligation to air divergent views.
In its decision, the BA upheld the complaint and ordered the State broadcaster to air 10 minutes of “informative spots” over a period of seven days.
Another complaint upheld by the authority was that related to Alfred Sant’s call for Konrad Mizzi’s resignation in the wake of the Panama Papers revelations in April 2016.
At the time the PN had protested against TVM’s decision not to give any coverage to Dr Sant’s statement in its news bulletin.
Though the authority concluded that such comments should have been reported, it felt that it was not fitting to order a remedy.