State-owned TASS suspended from European news agency cooperation
State-owned Russian news agency TASS has been suspended from the news agency organization European Alliance of News Agencies with the organization saying TASS under the circumstances is unable to provide unbiased news, EANA informs on its website.
“Under the circumstances of the new media regulation enforced by the Russian government (Roskomnadzor), which is heavily restricting media freedom, the Board of EANA considers that TASS finds itself in violation of the purpose of EANA as it is laid out in the Statutes of the Alliance, not being able to provide unbiased news, which stand at the core of EANA’s mission statement.”
“Having this in mind, and also the request from members to expel TASS from EANA, the Board, as the executive body of the Alliance, has unanimously decided to immediately suspend TASS from EANA, until a General Assembly will decide, according to the Statutes, whether TASS should be excluded from our Alliance”, the statement says.
EANA is a forum for cooperation and exchange of information and experiences among European news agencies. It comprises privately and publicly owned news agencies from 32 European countries, like the french AFP, the Press Association (PA Media) from U.K., but also Turkey’s Anadolu and Ajerbajtzan’s Azertac. EANA was founded in 1956 by West European news agencies, as well as Anadolu Agency (Turkey) and Tanjug (Yugoslavia). In 1970, agencies behind the “iron curtain” were invited to join. EANA’s predecessor Agences Alliées was founded in 1924 and was active until World War II when the activities were discontinued.
EANA says its “aim is to secure that member news agencies can work as providers of unbiased news. EANA supports the principles of freedom of the press and shall strive to facilitate for member news agencies to work in accordance with these principles.”
At the same time, Reuters reported that the website of TASS was hacked on Monday to display an anti-war message:
“We urge you to stop this madness, do not send your sons and husbands to certain death,” the message read. “Putin is forcing us to lie and is putting us in danger…It’s not our war, let’s stop him!”
Shortly afterward, the website was up and running with the fake message removed.
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