Media in Serbia

The media of Serbia refers to mass media outlets based in Serbia. Television, magazines, and newspapers are all operated by both state-owned and for-profit corporations which depend on advertising, subscription, and other sales-related revenues. The Constitution of Serbia guarantees freedom of speech.

Serbia's media system is under transformation, which is yet "slow, incoherent and incomplete". According to the European Journalism Centre, "democratisation of the media system has failed to become a factor in the democratisation of society as a whole, which was a widespread hope in 2000 based on the achievements of the decade-long struggle against media repression in the Milosevic regime." Serbia ranks 59th out of 180 countries in the 2016 Press Freedom Index report compiled by Reporters without borders.

The 1990s saw the end of state monopoly over the media. Throughout the decade, media remained divided between state-controlled and independent ones. Media autonomy and the survival of independent media remained a major bone of contention during the rule of Slobodan Milosevic. During this time, the media was a tool against domestic and international enemies. Civil society and international donors stood behind the creation of independent media. According to the Association for Private Broadcasting Development, in the year 2000 Serbia hosted 480 radio and TV stations, of which 300 were privately owned and the rest were local, public media.

The control over the media was reached through different strategies. On the one hand, the legal framework on the media system was purposefully left chaotic, while the state maintained the monopoly over the distribution of frequencies and production of newsprints, printing facilities, and distribution networks. Moreover, non-aligned journalists, media outlets and media advertisers were harassed, jammed and/or forcefully closed down – particularly if perceived as dangerous to the government, such as elections, the 1996–97 mass demonstrations, and the 1998–99 war in Kosovo.

After the fall of Slobodan Milošević, most state media changed overnight and supported the new ruling coalition, DOS. The political changes made way for the reconstruction of the media sector. Yet, post-Milošević governments were unable to bring the transition to completion. A media policy was neglected for the whole decade 2001-2010, not to risk electoral support by unsettling the status quo.

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Wikipedia