The official state media company in Ecuador, previously known as Empresa Pública Medios Públicos de Comunicación del Ecuador-Medios Públicos EP, now operates as Empresa Pública de Comunicación del Ecuador EP after a decree by President Lenin Moreno in September 2020. In 2021, the company rebranded to Comunica EP and now operates the television station Ecuador TV, the radio broadcaster Pública FM, and the news portal of the newspaper El Telégrafo, which was in print until the summer of 2020.
In the past, during Rafael Correa’s administration, the state directly controlled El Telégrafo and El Tiempo newspapers, RTVE Ecuador (which included Ecuador TV, Pública FM, and the Andes Ecuador Agency; the latter stopped operating in 2018), La Cadena Ecuatoriana de Television (TC Television), the Pacific Teledos Television Company (Gamavisión), the National Assembly of Ecuador (Legislative TV), and the Educa channel (run by the Ministry of Education). However, following the changes introduced by Moreno, the state media laid off most of their staff and merged them into a newly created group that is currently undergoing a significant reform process.
Media assets
Television: Ecuador TV
Radio: Publica FM
Publishing: El Telegrafo
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
President Lenin Moreno established the company on 26th September 2020 through Executive Decree 1160, which dissolved the previous entity (Empresa Pública Medios Públicos de Comunicación del Ecuador-Medios Públicos EP) along with nearly all state media that had been operating before. Under the management of this new national media group, Ecuador TV (a television station), Pública FM (a radio broadcaster), and El Telégrafo (a digital newspaper that had also been in print for decades) were retained.
In accordance with Article 315 of the Ecuadorian Constitution, the State is authorized to establish public companies to provide various services. The country’s Organic Law of Public Companies outlines that these entities are established through a presidential decree. Additionally, the law specifies in Article 6 that public companies, including those responsible for state media, must have a board of directors and a General Manager.
Article 78 of the Organic Law of Communication defines state media companies as legal entities with their own assets under public law. They have budgetary, financial, economic, administrative and management autonomy. These companies are destined to operate in strategic sectors, provide public services, promote the sustainable use of natural resources or public goods, and generally engage in economic activities in line with the State’s objectives.
Per Article 5 of the 1160 decree, the board of directors should consist of the following members:
a) The head of the Presidency’s General Secretariat for Communication or his/her permanent delegate;
b) The president of the board of directors of the Public Companies Coordinating Company or his permanent delegate; and
c) A delegate from the presidency of the republic.
In March 2023, Samia Tacle, an economist, was appointed General Director of Comunica EP.
Source of funding and budget
After a significant period of restructuring and reform, Comunica EP had a budget of US$ 2.8m in 2022, an increase of over US$ 1m compared to the previous year, according to a company report. Around US$ 1.59m was provided as a subsidy from the government budget, with the remainder coming from the company’s own revenues.
In 2023, Comunica EP’s budget increased to US$ 5.66m, according to a company report. The company generated some US$ 1.52m through its activities.
Editorial independence
The Ecuadorian public service media group is directly controlled by the president of the republic, and its editorial content is known to support the government. Former president Lenin Moreno was not criticized in the past, and most of the journalists hired during Rafael Correa’s administration were fired from the company’s media outlets.
According to a content analysis conducted for this report, Ecuador’s public media outlets showed bias toward former President Moreno, highlighting his activities while underreporting any negative aspects. The company’s staff was reduced during Moreno’s presidency, but government control over editorial content remained unchanged. This control continued even after the election of President Guillermo Lasso. Since then, the media company has been undergoing significant reform, resulting in the dismissal of thousands of employees.
In November 2022, a significant milestone was reached with the adoption of a new Communications Law. This law replaces the previous “gag law” signed by former president Rafael Correa. One of the key achievements of this new law, which was promoted and signed by Lasso, is the removal of legal provisions allowing for “prior censorship.” While this represents an important development, we have not yet reclassified Comunica EP from the State-Controlled (SC) category in our matrix. We need to gather more evidence to ascertain whether journalists at the outlets operated by Comunica EP can practice their profession independently. The latest academic literature on the topic indicates that the company’s reliance on government funding limits its editorial freedom.
The 1160 decree serves as the legal foundation for the newly formed organization responsible for overseeing all public media outlets in Ecuador. The previous media company, now undergoing liquidation, had an Organic Statute outlining its functions and operational procedures. Additionally, the organization had a code of ethics. However, none of these documents explicitly guaranteed the editorial independence of the organization’s media channels.
No independent assessment or oversight mechanism to validate the editorial independence of Empresa Pública Medios Públicos de Comunicación del Ecuador has been identified during the research for this report.
August 2024