North Macedonia ‘Extortion’ Scandal Pulls TV Station’s Plug

The private national TV station 1TV ceased airing its signal on Wednesday, unofficially due to major financial problems that have piled up since its informal chief, Bojan Jovanovski, known by the stage name Boki 13, was arrested late in July.

The TV station's main entrance on Friday was padlocked and its frequency blank, although its web page stayed active.

Unnamed employees at the TV station told the A1 news portal on Friday that the 100 or so employees and part-time associates had not been paid their wages for either July or August, and that they expected a bankruptcy procedure to be launched for the outlet.

The TV station began work in March 2018 with a gala opening attended by pop stars, prominent business people as well as many top politicians from the then still new government led by the Social Democrats, SDSM.

Formed soon after the ousting in mid-2017 of the government led by the VMRO DPMNE party and its then autocratic leader Nikola Gruevski - who had dominated the electronic media for over a decade - it was expected to bring a breath of fresh air to the country's stale TV scene.

With a team of seasoned reporters mixed with new faces, and an offering of live political debates, which were not common during Gruevski's time in power, the TV station quickly became one of the most prominent private TV outlets in North Macedonia.

However, its informal owner, the showman-turned-businessman Jovanovski, on several occasions avoided answering direct questions about the origin of the money he got to help open the station.

The station is owned by the company BJM Media Group, owned by Jasna Ercegovic Mandic, and Jovanovski's father, Mile.

Trouble at 1TV started in July when Jovanovski and his alleged accomplice, Zoran...