Public Broadcasting Services (PBS)

Public Broadcasting Services Limited is Malta’s state-owned public-service broadcaster. The company was established on 27 September 1991, taking over the operations of Xandir Malta; its institutional history therefore predates the company’s incorporation. Anna Bonett is non-executive Chairperson, Keith Chetcuti is Chief Executive Officer, and Engelbert Grech chairs the Editorial Board.

Media assets

Television: TVM, TVM+ and TVMsport+

Radio: Radju Malta, Radju Malta 2 and Magic Malta

Digital: TVMi, TVMnews.mt, TVMsport.mt and tvm.mt

Ownership and governance

PBS is wholly government-owned. The government appoints its Board of Directors and Editorial Board. The 2026 Media Pluralism Monitor continues to identify the appointment arrangements as a source of political influence.

The executive and chairing roles were separated in 2024. Following Mark Sammut’s departure as executive chairman, the government appointed Anna Bonett as non-executive Chairperson and Keith Chetcuti as Chief Executive, effective 1 October 2024, announced on 18 September. Sammut had been appointed in March 2021.

The Editorial Board remains separately constituted. A Government Gazette notice published on 27 February 2026 records Engelbert Grech as Chairperson, alongside Charles Flores and Reno Bugeja. Bugeja replaced Martin Fenech from 8 January 2026. The appointments run until 12 June 2028.

Owen Galea is Head of News. The Broadcasting Authority identifies him in that capacity in its May 2026 proceedings, alongside editor Charles Dalli and Chief Executive Keith Chetcuti. The position should therefore no longer be described as unfilled.

The appointment framework changed in August 2025. Legal Notice 175 of 2025, implementing provisions of the European Media Freedom Act, provides that:

• The public-service media chief executive must be selected competitively following an open call, published at least one month in advance, with public selection criteria
• Early dismissal of the chief executive or management-board members is subject to judicial review on both facts and law
• The Broadcasting Authority performs the monitoring function required by Article 5(4) of the European Media Freedom Act

Chetcuti’s appointment predates these provisions. The order does not introduce an equivalent open-competition procedure for appointing the Board.

Source of funding and budget

PBS combines government compensation for its public-service obligations with advertising and other commercial income.

The five-year public-service agreement, signed on 15 June 2025 and tabled in Parliament on 26 January 2026, specifies the following government payments.

Editorial independence

Constitutional safeguards and external oversight exist. Article 119 of the Constitution of Malta requires the Broadcasting Authority to safeguard due impartiality on political controversy and public policy, and fair allocation of broadcasting facilities and time between political parties. Article 118(8) protects the Authority from external direction when exercising that function. The Broadcasting Act also establishes requirements concerning accuracy and impartiality.

The Authority continues to adjudicate complaints against PBS. On 29 May 2026 it upheld a complaint concerning political material broadcast during the electoral silence period and ordered PBS to broadcast a summary of its decision. PBS attributed the incident to a technical fault. This establishes an enforceable oversight mechanism; the incident alone does not establish government direction of coverage.

Independent monitoring nevertheless identifies continuing political influence. The European Commission’s 2026 Rule of Law Report recognises progress from the 2025 legislation, while identifying unresolved shortcomings concerning board appointments, funding and editorial safeguards. It also records the Media Pluralism Monitor’s very high-risk assessment of public-service media independence, including concerns about political appointments and failures to cover matters of public interest.

The distribution of political coverage remains contested. Parliamentary figures reported in July 2026 recorded 532 recorded sound bites featuring government members and 66 featuring Opposition members in PBS news bulletins between June 2025 and May 2026. The minister responsible argued that most government appearances concerned official duties and that political discussion programmes provided additional balance. These counts do not measure total airtime, tone or the balance of the complete schedule.

AI and digital policy

Work on internal AI policies is documented. Following controversy over generative AI in Malta’s 2025 Junior Eurovision music video, the Malta Entertainment Industry and Arts Association, MEIA, reported that PBS had begun implementing internal policies on responsible AI use. PBS also agreed to collaborate with MEIA and Solidarjetà on guidelines addressing creative work and professional standards.

Operational use is also documented. An April 2026 announcement described a pilot introducing automatically generated Maltese subtitles for TVM news, with human checking and refinement between the 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. bulletins.

Classification rationale

PBS remains classified State-Controlled (SC).

It combines government ownership, government-appointed governing bodies and substantial direct public funding. These arrangements give the government significant institutional influence, but do not alone establish editorial control.

The classification rests on the continuing evidence of political influence over editorial practice, reflected in independent monitoring of appointments, coverage and accountability. The assessment acknowledges the Broadcasting Authority’s constitutional role, statutory impartiality requirements and the safeguards introduced in 2025.

September 2026