Remigijus Žemaitaitis, head of the Nemunas Dawn party in the ruling coalition, told an LRT journalist that he would no longer speak with the public broadcaster unless a remark by Conservative leader Laurynas Kasčiūnas was included in the broadcast. LRT’s Director General Monika Garbačiauskaitė-Budrienė described the move as a threat against the journalist.
“We view Žemaitaitis’ behaviour as an unacceptable threat against a journalist, reflecting a bias against LRT,” Garbačiauskaitė-Budrienė said in a comment to BNS.
“No politician should pressure the media over what it broadcasts. The independence of journalists is a key guarantee of democracy,” she added.
The LRT chief made the comments after Žemaitaitis told LRT journalist Žygintas Abromaitis on Thursday that he would not speak to the broadcaster again if a remark by Laurynas Kasčiūnas, chairman of the opposition Homeland Union–Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD) party, was not shown on the Panorama TV programme.
While Žemaitaitis was commenting on a proposal for sanctions against Russia and Belarus, Kasčiūnas, who was nearby, said: “This is nonsense.”
After the incident, Žemaitaitis told the journalist he hoped Kasčiūnas’ remark would not be cut from the broadcast, adding that it revealed “the Conservative leader’s lack of culture”.
“If you cut it and do not show it, I will never give you an interview again [...]. If it’s not shown today on Panorama, there are witnesses who saw and heard what Kasčiūnas said. So you probably understand what will happen?” Žemaitaitis told Abromaitis.
When asked what would happen, Žemaitaitis said he would request the recording and publish it on social media.
The journalist subsequently shared the incident, captured by colleagues from TV3, on Facebook.
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