Nino Brajović

The Working Group for Media Strategy was formed during the meeting, to be led by Dejan Stojanovic from the Ministry of Culture and the Media, the government has announced.

The working group consists of nine representatives of media and journalistic associations and eight representatives of the state.

The plaque - that has been destroyed six times in the past by unknown perpetrators - is located near the Velika Hoca-Zociste road where Radio Pristina journalists Djuro Slavuj and Ranko Perenic went missing on August 21, 1998.

BELGRADE - State Secretary at the Serbian Ministry of Culture and Information Nino Brajovic said Wednesday he often cited Tanjug as a good example of fair market competition and that the news agency had demonstrated it was sustainable in the market.

BELGRADE - The newly-appointed state secretary for information and media at the Ministry of Culture and Information, Nino Brajovic, announced Wednesday he would dedicate himself to issues related to the media strategy, including solving the status of the Tanjug news agency and the Politika daily, as well as funding for local media.

Nino Brajovic says he will dedicate himself to issues related to the media strategy, including solving the status of the Tanjug agency and the Politika daily.

The newly-appointed state secretary for information and media at the Ministry of Culture and Information added on Wednesday that the funding of local media would also be among his priorities.

The media privatization process in Serbia finished on Monday when the last media outlet that was announced for sale signed the contract with a buyer.

However, journalists associations claim the Serbian media will not be any freer as a result of the sales.

Serbia has confirmed the imposition of a new monthly licence fee for broadcasters of 150 dinars [?1.2], together with continued state financing to keep the national broadcasters, RTS and RTV, solvent.

The plan has drawn criticism from media experts, however, who said the independence of the broadcasters can only be ensured if they are financed solely from taxes paid by citizens.

1,050 journalists and media workers have lost their jobs during the process of privatization of media outlets in Serbia.

This number was presented on Thursday by Secretary General of the Association of Journalists of Serbia (UNS) Nino Brajovic.

A total of 28 media outlets will be offered for sale in the next round of privatisations which should be concluded by the end of the October, the Journalists' Association of Serbia said.

Another 22 media outlets will be shut down or transferred to their employees free of charge.

Studio B, a symbol of media freedom in the era of Slobodan Milosevic, has been sold for just over half a million euros.

The station is the largest media outlet in Serbia to be sold so far under the recent media privatisation programme.

The sales of two other major media companies, Tanjug news agency and the Novi Sad-based daily, Dnevnik, failed due to the lack of bidders.