Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA)

The Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA) is the official news agency in Albania.


Media assets

News agency: Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA)

State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)


Ownership and governance

ATA is owned by the state, being officially subordinated to the Prime Minister’s Office. Its management is appointed by the government. A former director of ATA, Armela Krasniqi, appointed in 2017, served for the government before her job at ATA. In 2021, she was replaced by the Council of Ministers with Valbona Zhupa who has less connections with the government, having worked with various media outlets, including ATA.

Source of funding and budget

ATA is fully funded by the government, according to data from the agency. According to an ATA report, the agency received a government stipend of ALL 59.5m (nearly US$ 500,000) in 2023.

Editorial independence

ATA is known as an official agency of the government. RSF described it as “a propaganda tool.” However, the agency has not been influential in the Albanian media in recent years.

No statute and no independent mechanism of assessment and oversight to validate the editorial independence of ATA have been identified.

October 2023