| Welcome to the weekend issue of Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. Join us on Saturdays for deeper dives from our bureaus across Europe. MADRID — The Objetive website trumpeted a big scoop in April that a woman named Maria Begona Gomez Fernandez had received a government subsidy. The Spanish news outlet was quick to point out that this matched the full-name of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's wife, just as the media was full of stories about the first lady's business dealings. It quickly became clear, however, that the woman awarded the subsidy was a different Maria Begona Gomez Fernandez, not Sanchez's wife. The website, owned by a Venezuelan businesswoman, took several days to clarify this, and a judge eventually ordered a rectification. Even so, the article was one of several presented to a court as evidence by a pressure group with far-right links when it sought a criminal investigation against Sanchez's wife. A judge accepted the request and the probe is open. The government says Gomez has not done anything wrong.  Pedro Sanchez and his wife Begona Gomez in Madrid on June 19. Photographer: Juan Medina/AFP For Sanchez, the Objetive story is Exhibit A when he denounces what he calls a smear campaign against him by right-wing press, parties and judges. In turn, the opposition says Sanchez is simply hiding from the facts, attacking the press and using one erroneous article to discredit bigger questions. Either way, Sanchez is seizing the moment to push legislation he says is aimed at boosting transparency in media ownership and funding. His backers note that the Objetive's revenue comes in part from advertising by city and regional governments run by the People's Party, Spain's largest opposition party. The proposed law, approved by Sanchez's cabinet this week, will help fight fake news, he says, even as rivals accuse him of trying to crack down on critics. It's unclear whether the legislation will make it through Spain's highly fragmented parliament.  Pedro Sanchez delivers a speech on the draft media law at the Congress of Deputies in Madrid, on July 17. Photographer: Oscar del Pozo/AFP Backers say a new law is needed for Spain to adhere to the EU's new European Media Freedom Act, which aims to safeguard media independence and objectivity in the bloc. Sanchez has been personally involved for months in fleshing out the legislation, working with his inner circle and discussing it with a group of journalists. The Spanish law is focused on the obscure funding of many publications. The government's idea is that the competition authority will create a registry that will provide information publicly on ownership and advertising funding. Sanchez says that regional and city governments controlled by the conservative People's Party support partisan media outlets through discretionary state-spending on advertising. Sanchez's rivals point out that Sanchez's government, for its part, does the exact same thing. — Rodrigo Orihuela, Madrid bureau chief | 
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