Almost Two Years After LTV and LR Merger, LSM Staff Criticise the Board
Almost two years have passed since Latvian Television and Latvian Radio were merged into the public media organisation LSM. Employees are increasingly voicing dissatisfaction in public, and questions are being raised about whether the promised optimisation has happened.
Almost two years have passed since Latvian Television (LTV) and Latvian Radio (LR) were combined into a single public media organisation, LSM. Before the merger, the promises included more efficient management, streamlined processes and a more developed Latvian media landscape. Now the question is whether those promises have been fulfilled, or whether staff numbers have in fact grown while processes have become less transparent.
Growing dissatisfaction
In recent months LSM employees have turned against the management board in public several times. They have objected to the merging of the historic LR and LTV brands and to the dismissal of the head of the LR News Service. In an open letter to the public on 25 August, the LR News Service editorial team wrote that a merger alone is not enough to create a unified and well-run public media organisation.
On 21 October, LSM employees also sent an open letter to the Saeima, Latvia's parliament, calling for support for the media's independence. The letter drew public attention mainly because of the list of signatories, as many people asked what positions those employees hold.
Staff views
Aleksandrs Krasņitskis, the former editor-in-chief of the LSM+ portal, recalls that employees did not strongly resist the news of the merger and that nobody expected a major upheaval. He says some dissatisfaction with current developments can now be observed.
An employee of the LR Latvian-language editorial team, who asked to remain anonymous, said a gap has definitely formed between the board and staff. She said there are more employees now and that things promised at the start are delayed, adding that this may partly be stagnation.
