Swiss voters on Sunday rejected a proposal that would see public broadcasters lose taxpayer funding, following a campaign that stirred debate about the media’s role in fostering national unity
Should the public fund media?
The “No Billag” initiative—a reference to the Billag firm that collects the media licensing fee—divided Switzerland on political and generational lines. Led by the youth wing of the libertarian Free Democratic Party (PLR), No Billag’s proponents sought to portray the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SSR) as an unfairly dominant and outdated relic
News in four languages
SSR, which received about 1.2 billion Swiss francs from the license fee last year—or three quarters of its budget—delivers news in the country’s four official languages: German, French, Italian and Romansch. Many credit it for guaranteeing that all Swiss residents receive information of crucial public interest in all four languages, along with a range of opinion and analysis
But No Billag’s proponents argued that freeing taxpayers of the 451 Swiss francs would unlock new economic potential, create a more competitive media sector and ultimately foster more choice, according to AFP. Switzerland’s largest party, the nationalist and anti-migrant Swiss People’s Party, supported the initiative
Athletes and filmmakers support public media
A broad political coalition along with prominent athletes, filmmakers and even the chief executive of top Swiss bank UBS, Sergio Ermotti, came out in defence of public media. The mobilisation was “exceptional” for Switzerland, said a political scientist who noted apathy is often the only clear winner during votes
Voting four times a year
Sunday’s poll is part of Switzerland’s direct democracy system, where proposed initiatives face a national vote four times a year. The campaigns are often muted in politically tepid Switzerland, but sometimes—as with No Billag—temperatures rise