'Weak' Serbian Media Can't Resist Political Pressure: Research

Serbian media's economic unsustainability and dependence on the authorities for advertising, combined with a poor professional culture and a lack of protection and financial security for journalists, allows politicians to exert control over media organisations, according to the research published on Tuesday.

According to the findings of the research, conducted by the Slavko Curuvija Foundation as part of a project with BIRN and the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia, pressure usually comes from the authorities and political parties, then from editors, and then advertisers.

The executive branch exerts the strongest effects over journalists' work, the research suggested.

"The minister calls the managing editor or the 'Dnevnik' [daily news show] editor or deputy, or someone from the PR service calls, you never know who, but they do it non-stop," said one journalist working for Serbia's public broadcaster, RTS.

Another journalist interviewed for the research said that "the [president's] office dictates who should not be invited as a guest".

The research was conducted through an online survey of 177 journalists and 10 in-depth interviews with employees of various media that showed indications that they had been exposure to strong pressures from outside or within.

Of all the journalists polled, 69 per cent said they encountered at least one form of pressure from the authorities. Over half of them - 56 per cent - encountered pressure from political party representatives.

Editorial pressure was experienced by 47 per cent; 41 per cent faced pressure from management, a third from the advertisers and 30 per cent from the media owners.

Institutions and parties obstructed journalists by refusing to provide them with...