Lithuania - November 2025

On 27 November, Parliament passed draft amendments in a first reading that media watchdogs say could weaken the independence of the national broadcaster, Lithuanian National Radio and Television (LRT), by making it easier for political actors to dismiss the Director General. The proposals, introduced by the Nemunas Dawn party, would lower the dismissal threshold to six out of twelve votes in the LRT Council, the broadcaster’s supervisory body, instead of the current eight. With civil society, the president and parliament appointing four posts each, the amendment changes the arithmetic, weakening safeguards against a politically motivated dismissal. The changes also remove requirements that dismissal is based on public interest. The broadcaster faces pressure from a planned budget freeze for the next three years. As a next step, Parliament will seek an expert review from an academic institution lasting up to 30 days, further to a request by opposition MPs. 

Sources: LRT (1), LRT (2), LRT (3),  Seimas (1), Seimas (2), National Audit Office, Lithuanian Journalists' Union