Meeting of the Media and Communications Committee... Here is What Was Announced

The Media and Communications Committee held a session today chaired by MP Ibrahim Al-Mousawi, attended by Minister of Information Attorney Paul Morcos and committee members. They discussed several files related to media, most notably a draft law aiming to compel institutions owned by the Lebanese state to place advertisements with official media outlets.

After the session, Al-Mousawi said: "The project was approved in the committee, stipulating the allocation of 5 percent of official institutions' advertisements to official media, with the possibility of raising this percentage later." He pointed out that "official media is suffering from a severe crisis today, while official government institutions place their advertisements in private entities and spend dedicated budgets on them." On another note, Al-Mousawi drew attention to "the sharp decline, vulgarity, and triviality in general public media discourse," considering that "the language used affects several levels, particularly the image of Lebanon, the general situation, culture, and ethics." He stated: "Communication in Lebanon has reached an unprecedented level of triviality and vulgarity, to the point where we hear harmful speech related to future generations and educational and cultural standards." He announced that "the committee will hold a session in the next phase dedicated to discussing general public media discourse, with the aim of issuing recommendations and appeals," emphasizing that "responsibility is a general national one, and everyone must feel their responsibility, because the repercussions of this matter are very serious for Lebanon." Al-Mousawi stressed that "responsibility also falls on the ministries of information, culture, and education," considering it "a collective responsibility that we must rise to meet." In response to a question, he indicated that "several parties have demanded adding amendments to the media law," noting that "the general atmosphere is positive," expressing hope to "make it better than it is today."