On Tuesday, an agreement on “media and communications” was signed between Albania and Turkey during the visit of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama to Turkey. The media Cooperation Protocol, inked by Alfred Peza, the head of Albanian Public Television (RTSH), and Zahid Sobaci, head of Turkish public television (TRT), has raised concerns among experts.
They caution that this new media cooperation agreement may potentially strengthen Turkish government propaganda within the Albanian media landscape. The agreement marks a significant step in the bilateral relations between the two countries, specifically in the realm of media collaboration. The implications of this accord on the media landscape and information dissemination in Albania are yet to be fully understood, but experts suggest that it warrants careful observation and analysis in the coming months.
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“This protocol aims to further improve cooperation between the two televisions. Specifically, participants will acquire the rights to broadcast radio-television programs for free or against a fee for a certain license period, or exchange programs free of charge,” RTSH said in a press release.
“The two television stations will … [also] participate, mutually and according to their possibilities and abilities, in radio and TV festivals, competitions and cultural performances in each other’s countries,” it added.
Abdullah Sencer Gozubenli, an expert on Balkan politics from Abo Akademi University in Finland, expressed concerns regarding the recently signed media cooperation agreement between Albania and Turkey. He suggests that the agreement might lead to the exportation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s propaganda to Albania through the Turkish public television, TRT.
“We have previously seen this in North Macedonia when a TV channel, MRT 4, aired TRT shows, especially news on world politics. This allowed North Macedonia’s [ethnic] Turks to see the world through the lenses of Erdogan’s political Islamist ideology. This means a direct political ideology export,” Gozubenli said.
“Both public broadcasters, especially Turkey’s TRT, are not ordinary public broadcasters. Instead they are the propaganda tools of the [two] governments,” Gozubenli said.
He highlights criticism faced by Albania’s RTSH, particularly regarding the appointment of its head, Alfred Peza, and questions about its objectivity.
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The OSCE/ODHIR report on Albania’s local elections in 2019 raised such concerns. “RTSH remains partially dependent on state funding. Dependence on the state budget and politicization of RTSH management raise concerns about the impartiality of the public broadcaster,” the report said.
“TRT is a propaganda tool that is instrumented by an Islamist regime [led by Erdogan] in which media freedoms suffer greatly,” Gozubenli said.
TRT, a pivotal tool for Erdogan’s 22-year rule in Turkey, holds significance both domestically and internationally, broadcasting in multiple languages, including Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian, Albanian, Macedonian, and Bulgarian. In 2022, TRT expanded its reach with TRT Balkan, focusing on the Balkan region in regional languages and English.
Prior to the Albanian agreement, Turkey had signed a similar accord with Serbia in 2022.
Blerjana Bino from Safe Journalist Albania points out a lack of transparency in the Turkey-Albania agreement, raising questions about its public benefits.
“The statute of RTSH determines … that the Governing Council should approve the strategy for the development of RTSH and the relations of RTSH with third parties inside and outside the country,” Bino noted. “It is not clear if this cooperation agreement has been approved by the RTSH Governing Council,” Bino told BIRN.
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She agreed about the risk of “amplifying propaganda or strategic communication for political and geopolitical purposes of foreign actors, such as Turkey”.
“The key is what kind of productions will be sent to Albania and what their content will be. There are significant concerns that they will be politically motivated programmes. Societies in the Balkans, especially Muslims, are being polarised as pro or anti Erdogan and in this situation an important Erdoganist apparatus enters the game,” Gozubenli underlined.
In the 2023 press freedom index by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Albania secured the 96th position, whereas Turkey was placed in the 165th position.
“Authoritarianism is gaining ground in Turkey, challenging media pluralism. All possible means are used to undermine critics,” RSF said.
The European Commission’s latest report on Albania’s progress towards EU accession revealed a lack of advancement in terms of media freedom. The report said that “no progress” had been made in this crucial aspect.