Press Outlets and the TTPA: What Newsrooms Need to Know

Source regulation: EU Regulation 2024/900 (Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising)
Relevant articles: Art. 1(2), Art. 3(2), Art. 11, Art. 12
Relevant recitals: Recital 29, Recital 50

The Short Version

Press outlets are largely protected from TTPA obligations as long as they stick to editorial work. The moment a third party pays to place, promote, or distribute political content through their outlet, the protection ends. At that point, the outlet becomes a publisher of political advertising with concrete legal obligations.

The Editorial Exemption

Article 1(2) of EU Regulation 2024/900 says:

Political opinions and other editorial content, regardless of the medium through which they are expressed, that are subject to editorial responsibility shall not be considered to be political advertising unless specific payment or other remuneration is provided for, or in connection with, their preparation, placement, promotion, publication, delivery or dissemination by third parties.

In plain language: editorial content is exempt. Full stop. But the exemption disappears when money (or any other form of remuneration) from a third party enters the picture.

Recital 29 confirms this was intentional. The regulation explicitly states it should not affect editorial freedom of the media.

What Qualifies as Editorial Content

There is no exhaustive list in the regulation, but the logic is consistent: if the newsroom decides the content and no outside party is paying to place or distribute it, it is editorial content.

Concrete examples confirmed by the Commission Guidelines:

• A journalist interviews a politician about their policy positions. Editorial content. Not political advertising. (Commission Guidelines Example 16)
• A news outlet runs an opinion column about an upcoming election. Editorial content. Not political advertising.
• A newspaper publishes an editorial endorsing a candidate. Editorial content. Not political advertising.
• A news outlet runs an opinion forum where citizens and politicians can post their views. The posts themselves are private, unpaid expressions of opinion. Not political advertising. (Commission Guidelines Example 17)

When the Exemption Stops Applying

The editorial exemption breaks down the moment a third party provides payment or any other form of remuneration for the content. This includes:

• Cash payments
• Benefits in kind
• Free advertising in exchange for coverage
• Any other economic advantage

Example: A political party pays a newspaper to feature one of its opinion pieces prominently in the opinion section. The party is the sponsor. The newspaper is a provider of political advertising services and a publisher of political advertising. Transparency obligations apply.

Example: A party buys a full-page ad in a print newspaper. Standard political advertising. The newspaper is a publisher. Transparency obligations apply.

Example: A party pays for native advertising formatted to look like a news article. Political advertising. The newspaper is a publisher. Transparency obligations apply.

What Happens After Republication

Recital 29 contains one important nuance. Even content that started as exempt editorial content can lose that status later.

However, when such political opinions are subsequently promoted, published or disseminated by providers of political advertising services, they could be considered to be political advertising.

So: a politician gives a freely arranged interview to a newspaper. The interview is editorial content, and the newspaper has no TTPA obligations for publishing it.

Then a political party takes that interview, pays to promote it on social media, and targets it at specific voter groups. At that point, the promoted version is political advertising. The party is the sponsor. The social media platform is the publisher.

The original editorial exemption covered the newspaper. It does not transfer to the promoted distribution of the same content by a third party.

Publisher Obligations: What They Are

If a press outlet does publish political advertising (paid political ads, sponsored political content, native political advertising), it carries the standard TTPA publisher obligations under Article 11 and Article 12.

Each political advertisement must be clearly labelled with:

• A statement that it is a political advertisement
• The identity of the sponsor
• A link to a transparency notice

The transparency notice must include information on who funded the content, what election or process it relates to, the value of the service provided, and whether targeting techniques were used.

The sponsor or the upstream provider of political advertising services is responsible for transmitting this information to the publisher (Art. 10). The publisher is responsible for ensuring the label and notice are complete and accurate (Art. 11).

The Opinion Forum Edge Case

A newsroom that runs an open opinion forum is not a publisher of political advertising just because politicians post in it. As long as those posts are unpaid and private expressions of opinion, the editorial exemption covers the situation.

The line is crossed when a political actor pays to have their content placed, featured, or promoted within the forum. At that point, the newsroom becomes a publisher. The political actor becomes the sponsor.

Summary Table

One Thing Newsrooms Often Miss

The exemption covers editorial content under editorial responsibility. The moment a political actor or third party controls the message, even partially, the editorial framing does not hold. A paid-for political interview where the party controls the questions and answers is not editorial content, regardless of how it is formatted or where it is published.

If there is any form of remuneration from a third party connected to political content, the safe assumption is that TTPA obligations apply.

This article explains what EU Regulation 2024/900 says and what it means in practice. It is not legal advice. For specific legal questions, consult a qualified legal professional.

References: EU Regulation 2024/900, Art. 1(2), Art. 3(2), Art. 10, Art. 11, Art. 12. Recital 29, Recital 50. Commission Guidelines Examples 16, 17.