Assessments of the current media situation in Serbia

Professor at the Faculty of Political Science, Miroljub Radojkovic, expects the Press Council to achieve results in regulation of the media scene in Serbia since its members are highly competent. The Press Council will improve the media scene in Serbia, but it will have difficulties eliminating the political scandals in the press, says Radojkovic. A professor from the Institute of Social Science, Jovanka Matic, is of the opinion that the Press Council is currently the only effective, quick and efficient means of regulating the content in the print media in the country.
(Danas, 31.10.2011)

Serbia had never had such a high level of freedom and democracy, said the Prime Minister of Serbia, Mirko Cvetkovic, at the opening of the South Eastern European Mediation Forum (SEEMF) in Belgrade. He said that censorship and pressure on the media were not being tolerated anymore, and emphasized that greater openness of the media proved that Serbia was advancing. In this sense, the Government adopted the Strategy of Development of the Public Information System Until 2016 based on standards and regulations accepted by democratic countries, said Cvetkovic.
(RTS, NUNS, 03.11.2011)

Participants of the Fifth Media Forum "Media Pluralism and Media Business in South, East and Central Europe" exchanged their opinions and shared their experiences related to survival of the media and advancement of the media scene in the digital age and amid challenges posed by the Internet. The discussion also centered around the relationship between private media outlets and public service broadcasters financed from the state budget. At the same time, most of the participants were of the opinion that journalism was dominated by tabloids.
(Pravda, NUNS, 04.11.2011)

The state is the only monopoly in the media scene in Serbia since it has sole ownership in around 100 media outlets and a share in certain number of other influential media outlets, said Goran Cetinic, an independent media consultant, at the South East Europe Media Forum. Out of 1052 officially registered media outlets, 862 are privately-owned, 90 are owned by the state, while non-governmental organizations own 50 media outlets. At the same time, national minorities, institutions and political parties own 38, nine and two media outlets, respectively. "What is characteristic for Serbia is a resistance against the foreign capital in the media", said Cetinic. Arne König, the president of the European Federation of Journalists, pointed out that today's media companies were mostly owned by large conglomerates that value profit above everything else, and that "many journalists suffer because of media owners' decisions".
(Danas, NUNS, 04.11.2011)

"I am highly skeptical about the possibility of survival of the Public Service Broadcaster in the following 10 years", warned the general director of Radio-Television Serbia, Aleksandar Tijanic. In his opinion, measured on the basis of available intelligence, knowledge and money, Serbia only has enough journalists to support one public service broadcaster, a weekly magazine, two daily newspapers and several radio stations. He said that nobody should expect the Public Service Broadcaster to operate successfully in a country without functional economy, health care or education system, and that "complaints voiced by public service broadcasters in Central and South Europe have become overwhelming".
(Kurir, NUNS, 04.11.2011)

Economy is a limiting factor for the media and it is most directly reflected in its poor content which affects the very essence of journalism – this is the conclusion reached by the participants of the panel entitled "The Media Struggle Against the Economic Crisis". "What is needed is significant investment aimed at achieving higher professionalism. The state should issue licenses only in accordance with clear criteria, since the media have a very significant role in the economic development of the country", said Petar Puncev, a media expert from Sofia. A representative of TV B92, Veran Matic, reminded that the struggle to attract advertisers and penetrate the market was a part of everyday life for the new media, which are often in a disadvantageous position. The advertising market was still very limited, said Matic.
(Dnevnik, NUNS, 04.11.2011)

Participants of the South Eastern European Mediation Forum (SEEMF), held in Belgrade, concluded that the media was facing the financial crisis, political pressure and technological challenges and that their success was dependent on their ability to adapt to these challenges.
(RTV, NUNS, 03.11.2011)

The war crimes prosecutor, Vladimir Vukcevic, announced that a research on the responsibility of the media for war crimes would soon be presented to the public. Youth was also engaged in the project entitled "Justice and War Crimes". "The project on responsibility of the media for war crimes will be presented in the following month", said Vukcevic.
(NUNS, 31.10.2011, Pravda, Alo!, 01.11.2011)

"We are concerned about the media situation in Serbia, especially in a pre-election year, with the political pressure on the media becoming stronger and more prominent," said the president of the European Journalists Association, Paolo Magagnotti. He added that Serbia was in a situation that was more or less similar to all other countries in the Balkans.
(Danas, 05.11.2011)

According to unofficial media reports, a renowned journalists, editor and news host, Branka Nevistic, has left TV Prva because she was "prevented from reporting on current events in a professional manner". "This is what happens when you don't want to become a tool of political parties. Journalism in our country is a serious crisis and the dignity of journalists is facing increasing challenges. We journalists have a responsibility to resist pressure and work in the interest of the public and the truth", she said.
(www.pulsonline.rs, UNS, 09.11.2011)

The state and the media

The Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS) and the Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS) announced their intention to carefully monitor the local media scene on the eve of the election campaign because of clear indications that certain political parties were exerting additional pressure on the media and their editorial policy. They demand that in all media outlets that are directly or indirectly managed by the state all the executives in senior positions be appointed only after consultations with members of media outlets' editorial offices, and that the state immediately begin withdrawing from the media scene in accordance with the Media Strategy.
(Fonet, 31.10.2011, Pravda, NUNS, 01.11.2011)

The state should not continue financing media companies; instead, it should finance the public interest, which is that citizens receive information in a timely and professional manner – this is the conclusion reached by the participants of the round table "The Media Strategy – Future Steps".
(Politika, Danas, UNS, 07.11.2011)

Public Service Broadcasters

The general director of Radio-Television Serbia (RTS), Aleksandar Tijanic, said that the public service broadcaster needed around 100 million euros annually for everyday operations, while the currently available sum amounted to 75 million. He pointed out that the state collected 23-25 million euros in the form of fees, VAT and numerous taxes each year. Tijanic said that it was difficult to expect that the collection of the TV fee could exceed the current year's 37% in a country whose population faced poverty.
(Blic, 04.11.2011. Dnevnik, Alo, Pravda, 05.11.2011)

Radio-Television Serbia says that it has received around 17,000 applications in response to its public announcement of a contest for one hundred professional positions aimed at young professionals. More than 9,000 candidates will take the test of general culture.
(Fonet, 07.11.2011)

Threats, attacks and legal proceedings against journalists; media trials

The Section of Sport Journalists of the City of Nis publicly protested the fact that none of the media companies from Nis were informed about the visit of the representatives of the Football Association of Serbia.
(Juzne vesti 28.10.2011)

Serbian police arrested three senior executives of TV Raj from Pozarevac. They are suspected of attempting to defraud the insurance company "Delta Generali" of three million euros for allegedly stolen equipment. The investigation established that the equipment had never been acquired nor installed in the station.
(Blic, NUNS, 27.10.2011)

General Vlado Trifunovic will receive damages in the amount of 500,000 dinars from Politika daily newspaper instead of the previously ordered two million, decided the Court of Appeals. The newspaper will pay for damaging the honor and reputation of the general of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) during the nineties. "While deciding on the amount of damages, the Court of Appeals took into account the principle that the sum to be paid should not constitute an impermissible limitation of the freedom of the mass media. A larger amount would have constituted a limitation of the freedom of the press", says the Court's explanation.
(RTS, NUNS, 27.10.2011)

The Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS) demands that the police immediately identify the individuals who set on fire the car of the director and editor-in-chief of the weekly magazine Akter, Tihomir Trisic. UNS also demands that the police take all necessary measures to ensure Trisic's safety.
(UNS, 27.10.2011)

Press statement issued by the magazine Akter points out that the investigative team of the police in Novi Sad and the city public prosecutor refused to immediately visit the scene of the crime. Trisic is of the opinion that this "attack on the Akter magazine and himself proves that journalists in today's Serbia have become clay pigeons". The Head of the Office for Special Assignments, Bosko Pilipovic, denied the accusations and said that the investigators had immediately arrived to the scene of the crime.
(Dnevnik, Pravda, NUNS, Vecernje Novosti, 28.10.2011)

Rightist organization NSP "Nasi" demanded that Radio Free Europe (RSE) remove from its web page the "incorrect map of Serbia shown without Kosovo and Metohija" and called on its supporters and citizens to ask the radio station to remove the map, although the map in fact denotes the area of coverage of RSE. Responding to the organization's statement, the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia said that "its public move was not aimed only against RSE, but against the freedom of the media as well".
(Blic, NUNS, NDNV, 28.10.2011, Beta, Pravda, Danas, Dnevnik, 29.10.2011)

Correspondent of the daily newspaper Danas, Aleksandar Ivanisevic, is the latest example of Serbian journalists being sentenced for libel. He was sentenced by the First Primary Court in Belgrade to pay 60,000 dinars or to spend two months in prison for publishing a news about wounding of a citizen of Novi Sad in a shootout between drug dealers.
(Danas, NUNS, 02.11.2011)

The Court of Appeals in Belgrade increased by seven months the prison sentences of Milos Mladenovic and Danilo Zuza. The Court passed a sentence of one year of imprisonment for each of the attackers on the journalist of Vreme magazine, Teofil Pancic, which took place on 24 July 2010 in Belgrade. The Court of Appeals decided to accept the public prosecutor's complaint against the first-instance sentences which were below the legal minimum.
(Tanjug, Dnevnik, NUNS, 04.11.2011)

"This is an important and major step forward, not because I am interested in personal satisfaction, but because it leads towards basic establishment of social justice", said Pancic in response to the decision by Court of Appeals. He emphasized that the message sent by the Court was of crucial importance, and added that the previous first-instance sentences had sent "an extremely negative message that every bully was free to do anything they wanted with impunity".
(BETA, Blic, Dnevnik, NUNS, 04.11.2011)

The Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS) demanded that the police immediately identify those who threatened the journalists of the Alo! magazine while they photographed the car belonging to mufti Muamer Zukorlic. The magazine's journalists said that Zukorlic's security had tried to push their car off the road and that one of members of the security team had threatened to shoot if they continue taking photographs. The threats issued by the mufti Zukorlic's security team were reported to the police and the investigative prosecutor, who immediately ordered that the person who made threats be found and investigated for possession of weapons.
(UNS, 30.11.2011, Pravda, Alo!, Dnevnik, Politika, Blic, 31.10.2011)

The representative of the state capital in the News Center "Kula", Djordjo Bojanic, has been removed from his position. Employees in "Kula", which owns Radio Kula and the local newspaper Kulska Komuna, are surprised by the Privatization Agency's decision and consider it to have a political background. They have contacted the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS), the Journalists Association of Serbia (UNS) and the Independent Journalists' Association of Vojvodina (NDNV) with the aim to protect journalists from political pressure.
(Fonet, 31.10.2011, Dnevnik, NUNS, 01.11.2011)

The Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS) supports the employees of the News Center "Kula" and demands that the Privatization Agency annul the decision to appoint a third person as a temporary representative of the capital instead of a journalist employed in the company, contrary to the wishes of the editorial office. The decision will additionally burden the limited budget of the media outlet whose privatization had already been annulled. UNS demands that the director of the Privatization Agency, Vladislav Cvetkovic, meet with the journalists from "Kula" and representatives of the UNS and change the decision as soon as possible.
(UNS, NUNS, 05.11.2011)

Photographer from the Vojvodina section of the Press newspaper, Branko Stojanovic, was attacked while attempting to photograph the funeral of Jovo Martic in Stari Ledinci. Martic was killed by a hand grenade thrown at him and policeman, Sinisa Hrnjez, by his son Srecko. The photographer was prevented from taking a picture of the funeral by a man who identified himself as a cousin of the Martic family, demanding him to delete all photographs.
(Press, NUNS, 03.11.2011)

Private security team hired by the management of the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade to prevent the blockade of students' activities insulted and threatened the journalist from Pravda daily newspaper.
(UNS, 03.11.2011, Pravda, NUNS, 04.11.2011)

The Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS) condemns the physical attack on the correspondent for Radio-Television Vojvodina from Subotica, Rada Stajic, and cameraman Slobodan Gabric. They were physically attacked in Bajmok by Nikola Uzelac, whom they had tried to interview. The RTV team was making a report on unsolved murders in Bajmok and the disappearance of Uzelac's daughter and her boyfriend. The UNS demands that the police investigate the incident and that the perpetrator be prosecuted.
(UNS, Dnevnik, 05.11.2011, Vecernje novosti, Press, Kurir, 06.11.2011)

Press statement issued by the editorial office of online magazine e-Novine: "The editor-in-chief of e-Novine was informed that he was being sued by Jelenko Micovic Filaret. Later in the day, the director of the magazine was summoned by the First Primary Court in Belgrade and is required to show up in the Court on 6 December. No explanation as to why! Who has filed charges against us? We don't know! What does the document say? It doesn't explain anything except that we must come to court on 6 December. The show must go on!
(e-Novine, 07.11.2011)

The Deputy Mayor of the city of Cacak, Sasa Obradovic, from the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS), said at a press conference held last week that the ruling coalition in city had decided to sue journalists from Blic, Press and B92 because of their reports on the reduction of city population by 12,000 inhabitants. However, the newspaper Cacanske learned that the first (incorrect) estimation of the number of inhabitants had been published by the Census Committee of the City of Cacak on the basis of 80 percent of data.
(Cacanske novine, UNS, 07.11.2011)

Recording of the programme "Magazine IN" on TV Pink was marred by verbal conflict between the leader of the political party United Serbia, Dragan Markovic Palma, and a gay activist, Predrag Azdejkovic. According to Azdejkovic, Markovic began insulting him before the show, after which Azdejkovic left the TV Pink building. Dragan Markovic said that he was the victim.
(Pravda, 08.11.2011)

The editor-in-chief of the gay magazine Optimist, Predrag Azdejkovic, is preparing a lawsuit against TV Pink for libel and deception of the public because it had not reported about the physical assault against him by Dragan Markovic Palma during the recording of the TV show "Magazine IN".
(Pravda, NUNS, UNS, 09.11.2011)

After the decision by the cable provider SBB to stop broadcasting the programme of TV Kanal 9 on 5 July 2011, the Commercial Court in Novi Sad adopted the Decision on Temporary Measure obliging SBB to continue the distribution of Kanal 9 programme within the package received by all registered users. SBB has continued distributing it, but on the channel S1 which is not being received by all users. The Commercial Court in Novi Sad tried to enforce the temporary measure, but the attempt was unsuccessful.
(www.kanal9ns.com, UNS, 09.11.2011)

The Media Strategy

The political will to achieve changes in the media sector in Serbia was limited to adoption of the Media Strategy – if not in the last two years during which the Strategy was being adopted, then certainly in the last few months during which the document was treated as a necessary condition for Serbia to acquire the status of candidate for membership in the EU, says ANEM's September media monitoring report. The report also says that this has led to neglecting of regulations that are already in force.
(Danas, NUNS, 28.10.2011)