New association aims to promote greater media diversity
A newly founded association called «Pro Idée Suisse» aims to promote media diversity in Switzerland from its base in Bern and to fight against the increasing centralization of the media in Zurich. A support committee made up of prominent figures is helping the cause.
The motto of the new association is to promote a diverse Swiss media landscape and a public service that takes account of the country's federalism.
The initiators can count on a prominent support committee: With Albert Rösti (SVP), Gerhard Pfister (CVP), Regula Rytz (Greens) and Martin Landolt (BDP), four Swiss party presidents are represented. Vice-President Beat Jans from the SP will be there, along with many other national and Bernese political celebrities. The association will campaign for its concerns at a political level and also raise awareness among the general public with targeted communication measures.
The board also includes two former SRG executives, Peter Salvisberg (former editor-in-chief of Schweizer Radio International/Swissinfo) and Markus Mugglin (former editorial director of "Echo der Zeit"). Bernese media lawyer Willi Egloff will also provide support and Béatrice Wertli, President of the CVP Canton of Bern and former Secretary General of the CVP Switzerland, will ensure contact with the political world. Discussions are underway with personalities from French-speaking Switzerland and Ticino. The founding of the association was prompted by the SRG's decision to cut staff at Radio Studio Bern.
For years, the SRG had the addition "Idée Suisse" in its name. "Our association name is the program and of course we want to remind the SRG of its tasks with its former name," says Peter Salvisberg. The SRG in particular must act in a federalist and not centralist manner. Markus Mugglin: "The concentration of media in Zurich is alarming for Switzerland, and we want to use our possibilities to counteract this".
This is an argument that SRG has repeatedly put forward: Political reporting is being stepped up in Bern. According to the two media professionals, this is "whitewashing": a look at the figures shows that this is by no means the case: SRF TV's parliamentary editorial team is to be given five new jobs. And a new 15-strong cross-language editorial team is to be created.
"On the other hand, 170 radio employees are being relocated from Bern to Zurich, which is almost the entire information department of Radio SRF," say the two former SRG executives. However, the association is not only concerned with saving the Bern radio studio, but also with the fundamental problem of media concentration, as media diversity is a guarantee for democracy. The association has published its concerns on the Proideesuisse.ch website.
