Junts's Tv in Bankruptcy Proceedings

The Collapse of 8TV, the Catalan Private Channel That Openly Supported Junts, Is Confirmed. The channel's executives haven't been able to turn things around and the company has filed for bankruptcy. Now, journalists and commentators aligned with Waterloo will have to look for work.

The channel had bet on figures like Eduard Pujol, a former heavyweight of Junts, Pilar Rahola, the star of the pro-independence movement, and Vicent Sanchís, former director of TV3. The channel's goal was to reach a 4% audience share. It never surpassed 1%.

Group Statement

Faced with the debacle, director Nicola Pedrazzoli and his partner Borja García Nieto gave themselves a three-month window to revive the project. But the insolvency of 8TV and the rest of the frequencies have doomed the business group to bankruptcy. Its leaders have issued a statement explaining the situation.

They state that "the lack of recurring income" coincided with "the sustainable and inevitable decline" of television consumption in general. According to them, this has led to a "shift in advertising investments by major agencies and brands," with "a drop of more than 400 million euros in recent years."

Hidden Advertising

Moreover, they complain about the monopoly of audience measurement, which "harms lower-audience televisions." The channel had already made cuts, laying off presenters and reducing the cost of its products. It created new formats to desperately attract viewers, like a First Dates with naked contestants.

Nothing has worked, and the channel is also in the midst of a conflict with the Consell de l'Audiovisual de Catalunya (CAC) over hidden advertising. They accuse 8TV of promoting a brand during a broadcast without indicating it was a commercial segment. The channel now faces a fine of at least 12,000 euros.

8TV and the Parties

8TV wanted to become the new channel of the pro-independence movement. According to Pedrazzoli, it is a "solid" and "austere" project full of "professionals," which nevertheless never received the expected reception. "No private media outlet in Catalonia is or will be viable," he warned.

The channel desperately sought to align with parties to obtain subsidies, but it didn't succeed. It even tried to become Trias's channel in Barcelona, but Collboni thwarted its plans. Neither Junts ever believed in the project, nor did ERC give it any attention.