Media and Elections

Finland

ME037

Question:	What are the criteria for allocating free broadcast time and/or free printed advertisement space to political parties?
Answer(s):	c. Based on result of previous election
Comments:	Section 10 (1) State authorities and the State or an organisation or a body governed by the State must treat all political parties equally and following uniform criteria. (2) Oy Yleisradio Ab (Finnish Broadcasting Company) may, when it applies the provisions in subsection 1, take into account aspects relating to public service programming. (653/1992) "Overall, the media concentrated coverage on the parties represented in the outgoing parliament. YLE’s campaign-related TV and radio broadcasts provided significant airtime in electoral debates and interviews for representatives from the eight parliamentary parties" --There is ultimately not a lot of information in the legal framework on the allocation of free broadcast time--
Source:	Act 10/1969 on Political Parties as amended, Section 10 https://www.finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset/1969/en19690010_19920653.pdf OSCE/ODIHR NEEDS assessment mission report - Parliamentary Elections in Finland (17 April 2011): http://www.osce.org/odihr/75599 (2012)
Verified:	2019/04/02

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ME059

Question:	Are televised debates between candidates or party representatives normally conducted?
Answer(s):	a. Yes, in presidential elections b. Yes, in legislative elections
Comments:	"The legislation does not envisage official campaign period. All political parties met with by the ODIHR NAM intend to campaign actively, including through online and social media, as well as to participate in debates organized by the public broadcaster." (OSCE/ODIHR 2019) "There are no legal regulations on the media coverage of the presidential campaign and media are largely self-regulated. The YLE’s operations are governed by the 1993 Act on Yleisradio Oy which requires the public broadcaster to “support democracy and everyone’s opportunity to participate by providing a wide variety of information, opinions and debates as well as opportunities to interact.” (OSCE/ODIHR 2018)
Source:	OSCE/ODIHR Needs Assesment Mission Report, Republic of Finland, Parliamentary Elections, 14 April 2019 OSCE/ODIHR Needs Assessment Mission Report, Republic of Finland Presidential Election, 28 January 2018 https://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/finland/359301?download=true OSCE/ODIHR NEEDS assessment mission report - Parliamentary Elections in Finland (17 April 2011): http://www.osce.org/odihr/75599 (2012)
Verified:	2019/04/02

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ME062

Question:	What is the blackout period, if any, during which results of pre-election opinion polls may not be released to the public?
Answer:	h. Not applicable
Comments:	There is no legal regulation of the media coverage of the campaign, no campaign silence period, no conditions for publishing opinion polls, and no rules concerning paid advertising in the media. In practice, however, the broadcast and print media appear to follow good practices for election coverage in the above-mentioned areas, based on self-regulation mechanisms, including a ban on publicizing opinion polls on the eve of the elections, an end to campaign coverage on election day, and respect for equal treatment of the parties in setting the conditions for paid advertising in the media.
Source:	OSCE/ODIHR NEEDS assessment mission report - Parliamentary Elections in Finland (17 April 2011): p. 15 http://www.osce.org/odihr/75599 (2012)
Verified:	2019/04/02

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ME080

Question:	Is there a maximum amount that a political party is permitted to spend on paid advertising during a campaign period?
Answer:	b. No
Comments:	The legislation does not impose expenditure ceilings on either parties or candidates. Local media and OSCE/ODIHR EAM interlocutors estimated that each of the major parties spent 11.5 million EUR on the 2011 campaign, and that most candidates spent extensively from their own personal resources with many of the more well-known candidates spending over 10,000 EUR and as much as 50,000 EUR.31 The level of spending was said to be about the same as in the 2007 parliamentary election.32
Source:	OSCE/ODIHR NEEDS assessment mission report - Parliamentary Elections in Finland (17 April 2011): p. 12 http://www.osce.org/odihr/75599 (2012)
Verified:	2018/03/16

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