Professional standards

The election campaign in Serbia was superficial and flashy, politicians behaved as show business stars, while the media and the civil society, who are supposed to act as controllers of the democratic process, failed in their mission – this is the conclusion reached by the participants of the conference "The Election Process Monitoring 2012". During the recent election process, organizations Transparency Serbia, Biljana Kovacevic Vuco Fund and the Bureau of Social Research examined the financing of election campaigns, the degree of implementation of democratic principles and legislation, as well as the reporting of the media during the election campaign.
(Pravda, 25.05.2012)

Communicologist Jelena Klaut said today that poverty and social isolation were not sufficiently represented in the media, and added that research showed that "the media portrait of the poor was faceless". "Instead of a realistic picture, we are being offered a simplified, stereotypical and one-dimensional picture of the impoverished", said Klaut at the international conference entitled "The Media, Poverty and Social Exclusion" held at the Faculty of Philosophy in Novi Sad.
(Beta, NDNV, 02.06.2012)

The international scientific conference "The Media, Poverty and Social Exclusion", held in Novi Sad, will be dedicated to research of media reporting on poverty, the poor and socially excluded groups in the countries of the region. Speakers at the conference include scientists from universities in Skoplje, Sarajevo, Banjaluka, Podgorica, Nis, Beograd and Novi Sad.
(Dnevnik, 01.06.2012, Beta, Danas, 02.06.2012, NUNS, 04.06.2012)

"Serbia has good photographers who good at their work, but they concentrate too much on individual pictures and faces, instead of a wider picture", said Peter van Agtmael, a photographer from the agency Magnum from New York, during the international photography conference held in Nis. The conference, organized by the Center for Development of Photography, was attended by renowned photographers from Serbia and abroad. All the participants agreed that latest technologies have not significantly changed their methods, apart from the fact that that today they do not have to worry about running out of photographic film. Expensive and advanced equipment does not guarantee high quality of photographs, while good photographs can be made even by mobile phones. The participants of the conference agreed that documentary photographers have a great responsibility and obligation to objectively present events, since very often they are the main witnesses of historic events.
(UNS, 24.05.2012)

The owner of the television channel PI Kanal from Pirot, Boban Mitic, said yesterday that the Republic Broadcasting Agency (RRA) demanded in January that Telecom not broadcast the programme "Srbija na dlanu" on TV PI, without any explanation for the request. The programme is ther result of partnership between Telecom, which is the leading provider in Serbia, the PI channel and TV Galaksija from Cacak. Mitic said that the project had been fully harmonized with future digitalization and today's standards of television broadcasting. The programme is being broadcast Telecom Serbia's web TV.
(Fonet, Politika, UNS, NUNS, 25.05.2012)

The Media Center invites interested young people to apply for volunteer work. The deadline for applications is June 11, 2012.
(MC, 01.06.2012)

The Data.Journalism! conference, organized by the Journalistic and Media Forum Vienna (FJUM) and the European Journalism Center (EJC), will take place in the capital of Austria on June 14-15. Additional information is available at the web page www.fjum-njien.at/njp/ddj-conference-2012
(Danas – Weekend, 06.02.2012)

Awards, training courses and competitions

In most of the all-pervasive commercial media, guided by sensationalism, women are usually depicted as objects of desire or viewing. All boundaries of correctness are being overstepped. The so-called "women's media" offer content about the physical appearance of women or a stereotypical content intended for "housewives". The president of the Managing Board of the Women's Forum of Prijepolje, Mileva Malesic, and a civil-sector television station, TV Forum, are committed to elimination of gender stereotypes and establishment of gender equality in the media. Within the project "The Media and Gender Equality", a two-day seminar was held in Prijepolje for journalists and editors of Serbian local media outlets.
(Vesti – Uzice, NUNS, 25.05.2012)

Seven largest European media foundations have decided to establish the European Press Prize, which will be given to journalists from all 47 European countries. The first prize will be presented in 2012 and the public contest for the prize will be open between July 1 and October 26. The award will be given in four categories, for the best editor, commentator, and reporter, and for innovation in written or television journalism.
(Beta, NDNV, 24.05.2012)

Between April 1 and September 30, 2012, Transparency Serbia will implement a regional project entitloed "Legal Leaks". The project aims to assist journalists in obtaining information from authorities by exercising their rights defined by the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance.
(Transparency Serbia, NUNS 25.05.2012)

The Executive Committee of the European Newspaper Publishers Association decided yesterday in Nicosia to hold the next year's General Assembly in Belgrade. The Managing Board of the Media Association will be host of the largest European newspaper association in May 2013.
(Vecernje novosti, Politika, Blic, NUNS, UNS, 26.05.2012)

Which information has to be given to journalists and how should the journalists demand access to it? Answers to this and many other questions are available in the legal guide for media professionals entitled "Yes, You Are Right! for Journalists" published on the website www.upravusi.rs. The project is implemented as a part of the the media support program of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) in cooperation with IREX Serbia.
(Medija Centar, NUNS, 29.05.2012)

After several months of preparations, the OSCE Mission to Serbia and IREX have begun realization of a seminar dedicated to advancement of quality of reporting on economy. The first part of the seminar includes the following lecturers: Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic, Governor of the National Bank of Serbia Dejan Soskic, President of MG Group Miodrag Kostic, Acting General Director of the Post Office Serbia Goran Ciric, President of the Managing Board of Hippo Alpe Adria Bank Vladimir Cupic, and President of the Center for Liberal-Democratic Studies Boris Begovic. Experienced journalists Dimitrije Boarov and Milan Culibrk will be moderators of the event. Participants of the seminar will include the journalists from Vecernje Novosti, Blic, Politika, Press, NIN, Vreme, Dnevnik, Color Press Group, Tanjug, Local Info Media Group and Fonet.
(Politika, NUNS, 29.05.2012, Dnevnik, Vecernje novosti, UNS, 30.05.2012, Politika, NUNS, 31.05 2012)

The Press Publishing Group company received the Brand Leader Award in the area of the print media at the Eighth International Brand Conference.
(Press, 01.06.2012)

Investigative journalism

Within a project entitled "More Transparency in Local Self-Government", the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS), in cooperation with CIN from Bosnia and Herzegovina, worked intensively with four local media outlets on research of activities local self-governments. The results of the research were published this month in a form of 8-page supplements in the print media, as well as on the internet. Some of the research topics were selected by votes of citizens in Krusevac, Kikinda, Cacak and Nis in October 2011.
(NUNS, 28.05.2012)

A research conducted by the journalistic network Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and the Center for Investigative Journalism of the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS) (CINS, www.cins.org.rs) showed that the businessman Bogdan Rodic had business deals with an associate of Darko Saric, as well as Rodoljub Radulovic aka Misa America, who is wanted by the police from several countries because of his activities as the leader of Saric's drug-dealing network, reports the daily newspaper Kurir.
(Kurir, 29.05.2012)

The former minister of energy, Goran Novakovic, participated in privatization of companies in Serbia together with people associated with organized crime, reports the daily newspaper Kurir. According to information published by the Center for Investigative Journalism of the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS), Novakovic and other "partners" were behind the consortium of companies that bought the company "Zmaj" in 2006 for the sum of one million euros and accepted the obligation to invest another six million euros during the next five years. Immediately after the privatization, buyers ended the production in "Zmaj", thereby violating the contract, which resulted in laying off of workers and ruination of the factory. The Privatization Agency says that the consortium that bought "Zmaj" has not violated any of the provisions of the contract. "They have fulfilled all contractual obligations several months before the agreed deadline", said the Privatization Agency.
(Kurir, 29.05.2012)

In Memoriam

A long-time journalist and a member of the Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS), Nada Erceg, was cremated on May 22 in Belgrade. She began her journalistic career in 1945 as a member of the editorial team of "People's Army" ("Narodna Armija"). In the editorial office of the magazine "Omladinska Rijec" in Sarajevo, she worked as one of the editors. She was one of the editors in the magazine "Zora", the editor-in-chief of "Banjalucke Novine", and the editor-in-chief of Radio Sarajevo. She retired in 1973, after which she worked part-time as the editor of the magazines "Zena Danas" and "Faits at tendences".
(UNS, 24.05.2012)

After a long and serious illness, renowned Serbian and Yugoslavian journalist Milutin Milenkovic passed away in Belgrade on May 21 at the age of 87. He worked in Radio Sarajevo, Borba and Radio Belgrade, where he was the director and the editor-in-chief of the First Channel. He became famous for his reports on foreign affairs and worked as a special correspondent for Borba, Tanjug and Radio Belgrade from France, Great Britain, Sweden, Poland, USA, Lebanon and Egypt. He was an expert on Middle East and published books "Africa and Major Powers", "With Algerian Rebels", and "Arabs Between Yesterday and Tomorrow". Milutin Milenkovic was an active member of the Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS). He was the president of the Journalists' Union of Yugoslavia in 1977. He won the "Mosa Pijade" Life Achievement Award given by the Journalists' Union of Yugoslavia in 1981, the "Svetozar Markovic" Life Achievement Award of the Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS) in 1998, as well as the 7th July Award.
(UNS, 25.05.2012)

A member of the Anti-Corruption Council and an associate of the Institute of Philosophy and Social Theory, Stjepan Gredelj, died on May 30 in Belgrade after a long illness. He was the editor-in-chief of the magazine "Overview of Sociology" and "Philosophy and the Society". Stjepan Gredelj was a regular member of the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS).
(RTV, NUNS 01.06.2012)

"She spoke quietly and thought bravely. There is not enough such people", said the academician and writer Dobrica Cosic during the yesterday's presentation of the book "Visnja", which is compilation of articles authored by the renowned journalist Visnja Bozovic Vukotic. Among the attendees of the event were Milos Sobajic, Milan Beko, Radovan Bigovic, Ljiljana Blagojevic, Vuk Draskovic, Merima Njegomir, Ljiljana Kapor, Ratko Bozovic, Milorad Vucelic, Dragan Nedeljkovic, Dragan Dzajic, Dusan Savic, Dragana del Monako...
(Vecernje Novosti, 06.01.2012)