Search results : 237

On 17 April the long-awaited new decree on broadcasting came into force in the French-speaking Community of Belgium, replacing the old decree on the audio-visual sector dating back to 17 July 1987 and the decree of 24 July 1997 on the audio-visual regulatory body (Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel ­ CSA) and private radio broadcasting services in the French-speaking Community (see IRIS 1997-8: 14). The new decree encompasses all the legislation on the audio-visual sector in the French-speaking Community with the exception of the public-sector service (RTBF), which remains governed by the decree...

In December 2002, the Council of Ethics of the Belgian Association of Professional Journalists was replaced, in the Flemish Community, by the Raad voor de Journalistiek (Council for Journalism). Journalists, publishers and broadcasting organisations are represented in the new Council. 6 of the 18 members have been co-opted from among judges and academics. The Council is a self-regulatory body without any disciplinary power. Its decisions are made public and are intended to encourage compliance with journalistic ethics. The first case decided by the new Council for Journalism concerns an interview...

Tax shelter is a national tax incentive in favour of the production and creation of Belgian audiovisual works. The scheme was introduced into Belgian legislation by the outline law of 2 August 2002. This law incorporated into the Income Tax Code an Article 194(b) under which a company resident in Belgium participating in the financing of an approved audiovisual work may, under certain conditions and within certain limits, have the advantage of a tax exemption in respect of its taxable profits amounting to up to 150% of the amount invested. In return for this tax break, the law requires the production...

Since 1998 the Flemish Broadcasting Act has prohibited political advertising on radio and television (Article 80 para. 3 - see IRIS 1998-5: 13). The prohibition of political advertising on radio and television was integrated into the Flemish Broadcasting Act when the Flemish Parliament realised that the federal law on electoral propaganda and the financing of political parties did not provide for such a prohibition. Nor was the provision in Article 81, no.1 of the Flemish Broadcasting Act that forbids advertising with a political tendency an effective rule for banning political advertising on radio...

The RTBF (public-service radio and television service for the French-speaking Community in Belgium) has acquired a new management as a result of an original three-stage process, completed on 24 March. The first stage was the adoption on 19 December 2002 of a decree amending the decree of 14 July 1997 on the status of the RTBF. This latest decree made a number of specific changes to the 1997 decree, particularly as regards the role of the regional production centres, the composition of the board of directors, negotiation of the management contract and the appointment of the general administrator....