ATHENS, June 30: Since Greece’s government abruptly pulled the plug on state broadcaster ERT, the sprawling TV complex has turned into a unique experiment in self-rule where staff are working for free but with more passion than ever.
Under pressure from its international creditors to cut costs and reform the public sector, Greece’s fragile government shut down ERT and made its 2,700 employees redundant overnight.
Many will not return when a slimmed-down version of the broadcaster, which the government agreed to following a public outcry, eventually goes back on air.
But in the meantime, employees are going it alone and revelling in the spirit of independence and solidarity filling the studios and busy corridors of ERT’s headquarters in suburban Athens.
“There is continuous flow from the entire team here, and an emotional contribution from all,” Fanis Papathanassiou, an ERT foreign affairs journalist and anchorman said.
“Not just journalists but producers, editors, assistants, technicians, makeup staff: everyone is here, helping to put this product on the air,” he told AFP.
News bulletins are on at an unchanged pace of five times daily and the intervening hours are filled with guest interviews, documentaries and support concerts by a variety of artists.
The building is clean — cleaner than before, staff note — the control room is bustling and staff take turns at the entrance to guard what the government calls an unlawful “occupation” of public property.
“We call this operational self-management,” Papathanassiou countered.
A committee of journalists oversees day-to-day business, from assigning shifts, to preparing newscasts and inviting talk show guests.
Rogue ERT broadcasts have continued with support from the European Broadcasting Union despite a digital blackout on ERT’s frequencies by the government.
“For the past 18 days, we have shown what public radio and television is all about,” said Chryssa Roumeliotis, a political journalist and news presenter.
On June 11, police were dispatched to Mount Hymettus above Athens to silence ERT’s signal after the government enacted an emergency law to shut down the company.
The conservative-led government of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said it was the only way to reform ERT after successive efforts had been thwarted by the company’s powerful union. (Agencies)
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