Montsame
Montsame, derived from Mongolyn Tsakhilgaany Medee (Mongolian Electronic News), stands as Mongolia’s state-owned news agency, founded in 1921. The agency publishes a suite of periodicals across diverse languages, including Mongolia Today (English seasonal magazine), Mongol Messenger (English weekly), as well as publications in Russian, Japanese, and Chinese.
Media assets
News agency: Montsame
State Media Matrix Typology
Ownership and governance
Montsame remains firmly under state control: its director is appointed directly by the Prime Minister. This governance structure was affirmed by local media professionals and journalists in interviews conducted for this report in May 2023, June 2024 and May 2025. Montsame’s general director is Sodontogos Erdenetsogt, a communications specialist and international affairs expert with a public service career.
Source of funding and budget
The agency’s operations are fully underwritten by allocations from the national budget, according to the same cohort of local experts. There is no publicly available information that addresses financial figures like revenue, income, or profit for recent years.
Editorial independence
Montsame is widely regarded as operating under tight government oversight. Editorial priorities are typically skewed toward coverage of official activities and policy initiatives. No domestic law or independent mechanism exists to formally affirm its editorial independence to date.
August 2025