In many instances, responsibility for implementing any regulations on the media during election campaigns rests with the main electoral supervisory body itself. This is often seen as an appropriate solution if the electoral supervisory body has sufficient guarantees of independence - but also the expertise to conduct the specialized work of media regulation.
In France for many years the Commission national de controle de la campagne presidentielle (CNCCP) was responsible for regulating broadcasts in the presidential election campaigns. However, this responsibility shifted with the advent of privately-owned television stations. A new Commission national pour des communications et des libertes was set up to ensure a continuing public service content in private broadcasting and it was to this body that regulation of broadcasting passed. However, the CNCCP retained responsibility for regulating election campaigns in the print media.53
Malawi offers an extremely positive example of an electoral commission in a new democracy that, by an effective show of independence, was able to ensure that the different political parties and candidates received a fairer share of coverage from the government-controlled broadcaster. But it was able to do this not only through a display of political will, but also because it had established a specialized media sub-committee that had the experience and expertise to deal with the broadcasters (see Electoral Commission as Media Regulator - Malawi).
Using the electoral supervisory body may be a preferable option in a small country where a plethora of overlapping institutions is not an attractive or cost-effective choice. In Barbados, for example, it is the Electoral and Boundaries Commission, the body with overall responsibility for the election, that is also responsible for regulating media coverage. See Barbados: law on election broadcasting.
Nicaragua's 1987 Constitution established a Supreme Electoral Council as an independent branch of government - separate from the executive, legislature and judiciary. Its responsibility includes applying the mass media law during elections and administering a complaints procedure. It established a specialized Mass Media Department to deal with broadcasters, in particular trying to negotiate changes in practices that are the subject of complaints.54
