Saudi Press Agency (SPA) is the official news agency in Saudi Arabia.
Media assets
News agency: SPA
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
SPA is run by the Ministry of Media. The agency has operated as an “independent” company since 2012. Nevertheless, the word “independent” in the company statute doesn’t mean much as the Board of Directors at SPA is chaired by the minister of media and its composition includes mostly government officials.
Source of funding and budget
SPA is fully funded by the Saudi government, according to journalists covering Saudi Arabia.
Editorial independence
SPA is known to be an official organ of the Saudi authorities. The agency has no freedom when it comes to the editorial line and is obliged to carry at any moment editorial content from the Saudi government (including announcements, press releases, etc.). SPA is also used by authorities to influence the editorial content available in other media, the agency providing these media with guidance on what stories to be run.
No domestic statute and no independent assessment or oversight mechanism to validate the editorial independence of SPA have been identified.
August 2023