The Council acts for the benefit and in the interests of the public as a whole, and not for the benefit and interests of a particular organisation that appointed a member to the Council.
The Council comprises twelve members prominent in social, scientific and cultural fields, appointed for a six-year term. Four members are appointed by the President of the Republic of Lithuania, four by the Seimas (two are chosen from the candidates put forth by the opposition in the parliament), while the Lithuanian Science Council, the Lithuanian Education Council, the Lithuanian Creative Artists Association and the Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference delegate one member each.
With a new version of the Law on the National Radio and Television, which entered into force in January 2021, the competencies of the LRT Council have been strengthened.
In addition, three committees, namely Audit and Risk Management, Procurement and Investment Policy, and Content, have been established under the LRT Council to ensure high quality and diverse analysis of the issues arising in the Council’s activities and to obtain conclusions and expert recommendations.
The Council forms the strategy of the LRT programming and LRT website, supervises the implementation of the LRT’s mission, approves the annual income and spending by LRT administration, as well as deals with the other issues within the Council capacity as envisaged by LRT by-laws.
The Council is currently chaired by Eugenijus Valatka, with Prof. Irena Vaišvilaitė as Vice-Chair“.