Edmonds Apsalons elected as new public media ombudsman

The new inspector is scheduled to take up his duties on August 1.

The first law enforcement officer of Latvian public media, a professor at Riga Stradins University, has announced Anda Rozucarne The duties of the Ombudsman were performed from March 2022 to July 2024, but these were interrupted due to Rožukalne’s decision to use the opportunity to carry out an important research project outside Latvia.

The SEPLP unanimously approved the decision to appoint Apsolon, who received the highest score in the competition for the ombudsman position and discussed his candidacy with the Public Media Ethics Commission.

Chairman of the South East Powerworkers Party Janice Sixness Importantly, the newly elected Ombudsman has both a respected academic career and practical experience in the field of communications. Cisnes added: “Over the course of the race, the candidates have demonstrated an ability to delve deeply into media ethics issues and a deep understanding of the role and importance of public media in a democratic society.”

Apsalons is one of the leading experts in the field of communication theory in Latvia, an interpersonal communication expert with more than 15 years of practical experience in adult education, and a PhD in philosophy from the University of Bremen and the University of Latvia. He is the author of the books “Logic of Language Use” (2012), “Communication Competence: How to Talk and Build Relationships” (2013) and “Constructive Communication: Conversation Skills” (2023).

Assolons expressed confidence that his professional abilities and deep belief in the vital role of public media in strengthening democracy, freedom of expression and a sense of belonging among Latvian citizens will make it possible for public electronic media to achieve independence and accountability in Latvia before the public and will improve the quality of their operations.

He believes that the public media ombudsman must adhere to three regulatory principles in his work – independence, initiative, and the promotion of constructive cooperation between the three interest groups that influence the operation of public media – the public, public media employees and representatives of the state executive.

To date, Apsalons has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of SIA “Occam Consulting”, performed duties as Associate Professor and Senate Chairman of the Latvian Academy of Culture, and worked and consulted in various media, including as Development Director of Joint Stock Company “Diena”.

The Tender Committee evaluated applicants for the Ombudsman position in three rounds. In the first round, six candidates were evaluated, and the three highest-rated candidates were nominated for the second round. Members of the SEPLP Jānis Siksnis were members of the Competition Committee. Sanita Upley-Yageman and Jānis Eglitis, as well as Skaidrite Lasmane, who was appointed by the Latvian Media Ethics Committee with observer and advisory rights.

According to the law, the People’s Party of the Autonomous Region elects the Ombudsman for a term of five years. The Public Media Ombudsman monitors whether the services provided by public electronic media comply with the statutory public media operation purposes, to ensure the effective and open management, independence, accountability to the public of public electronic media and to improve the quality of their operations.

The Ombudsman also monitors the compliance of the public media with the Fundamental Principles of Public Electronic Media Operation, the Code of Ethics of Public Electronic Media and the Editorial Guidelines established by law. Likewise, the Ombudsman, on his own initiative or on the basis of individual submissions, issues opinions on the compliance of public electronic media programmes and services with the aforementioned documents.

The Ombudsman’s duties also include promoting media literacy among the public and maintaining personal contact with the public, as well as advising public media, upon request, on issues related to their code of ethics and editorial guidelines. The Ombudsman publishes a report on his work at least once a year on the SEPLP website and in public electronic media.