site.bta"Public Service Media Are Defence Line against Disinformation," Bulgarian National Radio Director Says

"Public service media are among the mainstays of democratic societies, and their mission is more important than ever in the age of disinformation," Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) Director General Milen Mitev said on Tuesday at the opening ceremony of the Public Broadcasters International (PBI) Conference, which is taking place in Sofia.

Mitev said that at first sight public service media seem stable: they are large organizations, with long history and rich archives that form an important part of national culture. A closer scrutiny, however, reveals a different picture. 

"Journalism has never ran into more serious challenges than today. To reach our audience, we already rely on our main competitors: the large online platforms. They are so powerful that we cannot operate without them and become dependent on them," the BNR Director General pointed out.

He emphasized that the imminent changes entailed by the growth of artificial intelligence raise even more serious issues about the future of journalism and keeping the public informed. "Do we want verified and credible information, or do we prefer to live in a comfortable bubble with select content created to please us?" Mitev asked. 

In his opinion, public service media cannot be used as an offensive tool but are a "wonderful line of defence against disinformation, manipulation and lies".

Mitev also discussed the financial pressure under which public service media come in many countries.

"Cost cutting and journalists' redundancy often lead to the closure of programme services and erosion of the media public value. The pressure does not come because people mistrust us but because of the wrong impression that we are too big to fail," he went on to say. "Now more than ever before we need confidence and stable financing so as to keep abreast of technological and social advancement," the BNR Director General concluded.

The Bulgarian National Radio is hosting the annual Public Broadcaster International Conference (October 20-22, 2025), which is taking place in Sofia for the first time. This year's conference is mottoed "Making the Case for Public Service Broadcasters". The agenda includes fundamental topics like freedom of speech, independence, crises and funding of public service media, as well as topical cases like reaching out to young audiences.