28. 12. 2011

PROBLEMS IN MEDIA NOT RESOLVED ON TIME

Belgrade, December 28, 2011 (EurActiv.rs) - Crucial issues for the functioning of media, such as ownerwhip and allocation of budget funds, have not yet been resolved in Serbia. According to media expert Rade Veljanovski, the reason lies in the fact that state institutions have avoided to deal with such issues in due time.

Status of the state's news agency in Serbia, the quality of public broadcasting service and the importance of transparent financing for the quality of the media are some of the issues discussed at the presentation of the magazine "Challenges of European Integration", whose new edition is dedicated to the media.

"Unfortunately, in the last 10-11 years, we have had a situation in which the state and its institutions have stubornly avoided to take position on these issues", Veljanovski said, adding that the state had taken part more actively in the legislation issues only in the past year or two.

Speaking for EurActiv, Veljanovski expressed his regret that it seemed that the media would continue to be financed directly from the budget rather than project financing as proposed by the members for the development of Media Strategy, including himself.

"Sadly, the view that the state should have a number of media on its list to which it would allocate the funds from the budget regardless of how they exercise their functions, still dominates", said Veljanovski.

He also raised the issue of impact that could be made to the media in this way. "It can be concluded that those in power, the powerful ones, will probably like the idea to be promoted a little bit more by these media then someone else, seeing it as an exercise of public interest and therefore they will keep such media on their lists of those are on their side", Veljanovski said.

Just to remind, the Strategy for development of media in Serbia by 2016, adopted on September 28, 2011, a year and a half after the preparation of this document, in which the journalists' and media associations had also participated, stipulates that the state may not be the owner of media, except some specific journals or heralds directly relating to its work and the work of public broadcasting service. Another key media issue - financing of media directly from state budgets - should be resolved by January 1, 2012, since Serbia is obliged by the Stabilization and Accession Agreement to put an end to such practice by this date.

Articles for this issue of the magazine "Challenges of European Integration", published in cooperation with ANEM, were prepared by professors at the Faculty of Political Sciences Snjezana Milivojevic and Rade Veljanovski, assisstent at this faculty Jelena Surculija, attornies at law Slobodan Kremenjak and Kruna Savovic, journalist Zuzana Serences, professor at the Faculty of dramatic arts Mirjana Nikolic and Tanjug Director Branka Djukic.