The Concept of the independence of the national public broadcaster as developed by the Constitutional Court of Lithuania
ENThe populist ideas upheld by politicians of some democratic states in the 21st century have with ever increasing frequency turned against institutions consolidating and protecting democracy, among them courts and the media. In the adjudication of constitutional justice cases, constitutional review institutions are increasingly facing the striving by politicians to undermine the principles of democracy through the attempts to limit the independence of constitutional institutions and exert influence on their activity and decisions. It is not infrequently that, following elections, the parliamentary majority under populist slogans seeks to influence the independence of constitutional institutions by setting up various control authorities and proposing new organisational or financial models restricting the autonomy (independence) of constitutional institutions. While developing, specifically in its rulings of 21 December 2006 and 16 May 2019,1 the constitutional doctrine in relation to the national public broadcaster, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania (hereinafter referred to as the Constitutional Court) dealt with similar issues. The article will, in greater detail discuss, the doctrine developed by the Constitutional Court in relation to the principle of the independence of the national public broadcaster, including the constitutional foundations of forming ad hoc investigation commissions as parliamentary control institutions.
