CPJ, partners call on Latvia to reconsider proposed ban of Russian-language content on public service media

The Committee to Protect Journalists joined six other press freedom groups on Friday in calling on Latvia’s government to reconsider their proposal to ban the broadcast of Russian language content on Latvian public service media, and to launch an open debate in the interests of safeguarding media freedom. The groups say they are “extremely concerned” the new proposal will end Russian speakers’ access to “credible and fact-checked information, leaving them exposed to disinformation, fake news, and propaganda.”

On September 28, the Latvian parliament approved the “National Security Concept,” a government-backed policy planning document. It states that all “content created by public media must only be in Latvian and languages belonging to the European cultural space” from January 1, 2026. The move would essentially prohibit Latvian TV and Latvian Radio from continuing to produce content in Russian.

Read the full statement here.