SECTOR 2 2.4 The editorial independence of print media published by a public authority is protected adequately against undue political interference. La Nation is the print media that is published daily by the public authority in Benin. It is therefore not an independent body because of political interference from time to time even if it cannot be referred to as “undue” interference. One often notices real cases of interference when seeking explanation or when the head of the paper is asked to answer questions on issues they have published, e.g. the publication of an important interview held by a coalition of civil society groups of the opinion that the LEPI1 was no longer relevant for the 2011 elections. Provisions are however supposed to have been made for the protection of editorial independence in selecting the director of La Nation. he name of the person who is nominated for this post should be one of those on the list that HAAC proposes. One of the panelists is however of the opinion that editorial independence is an integral component of a paper that aims at public service. Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: 1.6 (2007 = 1.7 ; 2009 =1.1) 1 Permanent Electronic Voter’s Register AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER BENIN 2011 91