SWEDEN

Expert assessment

It is not entirely clear which three bodies this statement is referring to. By the "Authority," this likely means the Radio and Television Authority (Myndigheten för Radio och TV)118 which replaced the Radio and TV Bureau (Radio- och TV-verket) in August 2010.119 The "body overseeing communication" most probably refers to the Swedish Broadcasting Commission, a separate body within the Radio and Television Authority that oversees content-related complaints against broadcasters.120 It is accurate to say that for both the Radio and Television Authority and the Swedish Broadcasting Commission, the cabinet of ministers jointly appoint members to both bodies—although it is not accurate to claim that these bodies "under government control." Despite being appointed by the government, both of the Radio and Television Authority and Swedish Broadcasting Commission have a good deal of de facto independence and operate free from political influence. In the case of the Swedish Broadcasting Commission in particular, the members are not political appointees or political loyalists but rather senior judges and experts.

The Radio and Television Authority and Swedish Broadcasting Commission are responsible for regulating TV and radio broadcasting, on-demand television, and teletext, under the revised Radio and Television Act of 2010. The Radio and Television Authority monitors broadcasters' compliance with licensing and technical provisions of the law and the Swedish Broadcasting Commission deals with monitoring compliance to content-based regulations. A key part of the work of the Swedish Broadcasting Commission is dealing with complaints against Swedish broadcasters from the public. The Commission can also launch investigation into breach of content regulations ex officio. Both bodies also work in cooperation with the Chancellor of Justice in handling content-based breaches to the Radio and Television Act.121 The Swedish Consumer Agency is a state body that oversees advertising regulations and standards in broadcasting. In addition, the print and online press are governed by the self-governing Press Council and the Swedish Press Ombudsman, and public broadcasting is regulated by three separate boards for each of the three public service stations.

The Radio and Television Authority was established by the revised Radio and Television Act in August 2010. It is a regulatory body under the Ministry of Culture, exercising laws decided by the Swedish Parliament. It is composed a director general and up to five members, all appointed by the cabinet of ministers without a formal nomination process. The director general serves six-year terms, indefinitely renewable; the other five members serve three-year terms which are renewable. The director general is required to be a lawyer with judicial experience. There are no particular criteria or requirements for the remaining members. Members cannot be recalled after they are appointed and nor can the director general; new members and/or a new director general can only be appointed if they voluntarily leave their post or in the case of their death.

The Radio and Television Authority's duties include making "decisions on permits, fees and registration of and for radio, TV and electronic media outlets as applicable, and to monitor radio and TV broadcasts, pay-per-view and teletext, and to make decisions on proof of publication according to the Fundamental Law of Freedom of Expression."122 The Authority is responsible for monitoring broadcasters' compliance with the Radio and Television Act, but any decisions it makes involving constitutional issues—for instance, breaches to the Freedom of the Press Law, which governs the print press, and/or the Fundamental Law of Freedom of Expression, which regulates broadcast and digital media (including, in some cases, online press)—are enforced by the Office of the Chancellor of Justice.123 Other decisions by the Radio and Television Authority can be appealed to the Stockholm Administrative Court.

The Broadcasting Commission is composed of a chairperson and six additional members, also appointed by the cabinet of ministers without a formal nomination process. The Radio and Television Act stipulates that the chairperson and vice-chairperson must be active or former permanent judges.124 There are no professional criteria or requirements in the law for the remaining members, but in practice most have been experts with broad experience in societal issues, culture and media. Often members are academic researchers and senior representatives of cultural institutions or NGOs (e.g. the Swedish Film Institute, The National Opera, the Swedish Red Cross) rather than political appointees. In addition, three replacement members are appointed to serve as members for any of the five media experts in their absence. These replacement members are also media experts, serving three-year terms. Appointment terms are staggered and renewable. Members cannot be recalled by the government; they remain in office until their term expires, or until they voluntarily leave or in the case of their death.

The Broadcasting Commission was previously a separate entity, but since 2010 it is now an autonomous department within the Radio and Television Authority. The Commission monitors through post-broadcast review of TV, radio and on-demand TV programming for compliance with content and programme-related conditions of the Radio and Television Act.125 If it finds that a broadcast or a provided service contains portrayals of violence or pornographic images in violation of Chapter 5 Sections 2 or 3 of that Act, the Commission can notify the Chancellor of Justice. The Broadcasting Commission, like the Radio and Television Authority, does not have the remit to investigate or monitor breaches of the Freedom of the Press Law or Fundamental Law of Freedom of Expression; that is the sole remit of the Chancellor of Justice.

Although appointed by the government, both of these bodies are considered to be independent, and most observers would agree, apolitical. However, the fact that conservative governments tend to appoint conservative directors (in all cases, not just specific to the media regulatory bodies) and social democratic governments tend to appoint social democratic directors has been debated but has never been a major political issue.

117 "Reply to the criticisms expressed by the international media against the Media Act," Ministry Of Public Administration And Justice, January 3, 2011, available at: http://www.kormany.hu/en/ministry-of-public-administration-and-justice/news/reply-to-the-criticism-of-the-international-media.
118 See the Radio and Television Authority (Myndigheten för Radio och TV ) website available at: http://www.radioochtv.se/.
119 The Radio and Television Authority was created by the Radio and Television Act. SFS No. 2010:696, available in Swedish at: http://www.radioochtv.se/Documents/Styrdokument/Radio%20and%20Television%20Act.pdf; see also "The New Swedish Authority for Radio and TV," Michael Plogell and Erik Ullberg," IRIS 2010-8:1/45, available at: http://merlin.obs.coe.int/iris/2010/8/article45.en.html.
120 The Swedish Broadcasting Commission (Granskningsnämnden ) was previously a separate entity, but in August 2010 was brought under the Radio and Television Authority, using the same name. The Swedish Broadcasting Commission still has a separate Board and makes its decisions independently of the Board of the Radio and Television Authority. The new Radio and Television Act (SFS No. 2010:696), Chapter 16(2) also establishes that the Broadcasting Commission has a separate mandate and remit; see Swedish Broadcasting Commission available at: http://www.radioochtv.se/Om-myndigheten/Organisation/Granskningsnamnden-for-radio-och-tv/, and also the Radio and Television Act. SFS No. 2010:696, available in Swedish at: http://www.radioochtv.se/Documents/Styrdokument/Radio%20and%20Television%20Act.pdf.
121 According to Chapter 16(1) of the Radio and Television Act (SFS No. 2010:696), the Chancellor of Justice also "monitors through post-broadcast review whether programmes that have been broadcast on TV or provided through on-demand TV contain portrayals of violence or pornographic images in violation of Chapter 5. Sections 2 or 3 of the Radio and Television Act." Available in Swedish at: http://www.radioochtv.se/Documents/Styrdokument/Radio%20and%20Television%20Act.pdf; http://www.radioochtv.se/Documents/Styrdokument/Radio%20and%20Television%20Act.pdf.
122 Author's translation from the Radio and Television Authority website, available at: http://www.radioochtv.se/Om-myndigheten/.
123 See "Common provisions," Review by the Chancellor of Justice, Radio and Television Act, SFS No. 2010:696 http://www.radioochtv.se/Documents/Styrdokument/Radio%20and%20Television%20Act.pdf. Registration for online press is often voluntary; see Chapter 3 in this report for more information regarding the regulations for online press in Sweden.
124 Chapter 16(14) of the Radio and Television Act, SFS No. 2010:696 http://www.radioochtv.se/Documents/Styrdokument/Radio%20and%20Television%20Act.pdf.
125 Chapter 16(2) of the Radio and Television Act, SFS No. 2010:696 http://www.radioochtv.se/Documents/Styrdokument/Radio%20and%20Television%20Act.pdf.