Belgrade Insight Kicked Out of Distribution Points

As of February, BIRN's English language newspaper, Belgrade Insight, will no longer be distributed at one of the paper's biggest distribution points - Tourist Organisation of Belgrade centres.

While distribution of the free newspaper has also halted at Dufry outlets at Nikola Tesla Airport, negotiations with this company remain ongoing.

Dufry, a global travel retailer that operates over 1,700 shops in airports, on cruise liners, at seaports, and other tourist locations in more than 60 countries, pulled Belgrade Insight from its venues on February 6.

In circulation since May 2008, Belgrade Insight is published fortnightly by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network.

In addition to detailed analysis and coverage of political, economic and business affairs, Belgrade Insight provides its readers with everything that expatriates, short-term visitors and local residents need to know in order to enjoy this great city.

From detailed arts and entertainment listings, comprehensive sports coverage, music, theatre and restaurant reviews, travel and lifestyle features, Belgrade Insight mission is to both inform and entertain.

Dufry, which has been hosting Belgrade Insight pick-up points since 2008, said the company had no written contract that obliges it to continue distributing the newspaper.

Miodrag Popovic, the acting director of the Tourist Organisation of Belgrade, TOB, told BIRN that Belgrade Insight's editorial concept was not appropriate for tourist info centres.

"When in comes to distribution of your publication in the tourist-information centers of TOB, the answer lies in the definition of these centres," he said.

"They are tourist-information [centres] and materials that there can...