Latvia, Markets and Companies

LETA's predecessor, Latopress, was founded on March 4, 1919, when Prime Minister of the Latvian Interim Government Karlis Ulmanis issued a decree on the establishment of a Latvian press office. The Latvian Telegraph Agency, LETA, was established after Latopress was reorganized on May 5, 1920.

Today, on the day of its anniversary, LETA will offer the possibility to gain one month free access to its news services for all visitors, who will register at the website "www.leta.lv", LETA's marketing specialist Kate Mazane informs.

"We would like to make this day a celebration not only to ourselves, but to all people who value and are in need of information," said LETA Chairman of the Board Martins Barkans.

At around 2 p.m. today, celebration of the jubilee will start by unveiling a plaque dedicated to the LETA's first director and the agency's founder Rihards Berzins (1888-1942), also a popular author and a socially active person, at the building at 10 Palasta Street in Riga's Old Town.

"Rihards Berzins' contribution to the state and media development in Latvia is invaluable as thanks to him the rest of the world found about about events in Latvia, whilst Latvian media gained access to latest information from western countries," Barkans underlines.

Thanks to Berzins, LETA became a recognized news agency not only in Latvia but elsewhere in Europe. In 1921, Berzins signed an agreement with a group of the world's leading agencies, spearheaded by Reuters (Reuters Limited), Havasa (Agence Havasa) and Volfa (Continental – Telegraphen Bureau). The access to Western telegraph news marked the beginning of a new era in the Latvian press.

Before unveiling the plaque, Barkans and former Director of LETA Aivars Baumanis will address participants of the event with speeches. Actor Juris Lisners will make a presentation of Berzins' life story.

As reported, ahead of the jubilee, last year LETA started researching and analyzing the history of Latvia's first news agency. A new section has been launched on the LETA website – "LETA-90", which is being constantly supplemented with historic materials from archives and the printed media of that time, video interviews with former and current LETA employees, as well as the most interesting LETA news and picture galleries.

The new section offers interviews, as well as video and audio interviews with former LETA employees: the former Director Aivars Baumanis, News Editor Valentina Lasmane, photographers Ilmars Znotins and Uldis Paze, and others.

LETA will continue celebrating its 90th anniversary with various projects throughout the year.