After Lībietis's resignation, Latvian Radio News to be temporarily led by Zane Eniņa

Latvia's Public Broadcaster (LSM) has confirmed that following Uģis Lībietis's departure as head of Latvian Radio's News Service, his duties will temporarily be carried out by the service's chief editor, Zane Eniņa. LSM representatives confirmed this to the LETA news agency.

Lībietis decided to resign after taking responsibility for the radio news service's performance during last weekend's storm. On Monday, LSM reviewed how it had informed the public following disruptions caused by the storm and concluded that, although coverage across digital platforms, television and radio had been broad and continuous, radio news coverage had not been satisfactory.

Apology to listeners

Ieva Aile, an LSM board member responsible for programme and service development, apologized to listeners in a statement for the mistakes made. She said the crisis had exposed shortcomings both in coordinating the response and in the speed of decisions about changes to the Latvian Radio 1 schedule, noting that on Sunday radio had been the only source of information for many residents.

LSM urgently convened its crisis management group to assess how all of its media platforms had performed during the storm. Although some staff were left unable to communicate due to disrupted connections, LSM managed to mobilize additional personnel relatively quickly, drawing in colleagues who normally work in other content areas and regions.

The review found a need to improve internal communication, coordination and proactive preparation for various crisis scenarios, as well as to agree on decision-making procedures for situations where a key link in the chain is missing, for example due to communication disruptions. The full scale of the situation, including the number of residents left without electricity and communications, only became clear gradually over the course of the day.

On Sunday, additional news bulletins were added — Latvian Radio 1's "Labrīt" programme carried updates every half hour, Latvian Television prepared two special news broadcasts, and evening radio and television news bulletins were extended. The Council for Electronic Mass Media has ordered LSM to submit, by August 26, an assessment of how it ensured operational continuity during the storm.