News

The Government of the Republic of Serbia adopted the Proposal for the Law on Amendments and Supplements to the Law on Public Media Services at today's session. The aim of these amendments is to improve the operation of public media services, ensure greater accountability to users, and stabilize funding.

New Niš TV, although without the necessary approval from the REM and the consent of the Niš Assembly to use the city's name, continues to broadcast its program. The city’s Attorney General's Office states that they have received a request regarding the name of the television station, but their response, if there will be one, will have to wait for prior confirmation from the Niš Parliament and their order for any measures to be taken. How it is possible to broadcast without a permit is unclear even to the Ministry of Information, as they claim to have "no knowledge" of a new television station being established in Niš, even though the president of the country, who was also the first guest, is aware of it.

The gminfo portal has rejected the funds allocated this year through the competition for co-financing projects for the production of media content in the field of public information for the year 2025, which was announced by the municipality of Gornji Milanovac.

The media of the two local media moguls are known for reporting in Serbian, but that was no obstacle. The Ministry of Information left only crumbs for the true minority media.

The siege of KRIK shows no signs of weakening this month. Yesterday, a hearing was held regarding the lawsuit for damages filed by Jelena Tanasković, accused in the case of the canopy collapse in Novi Sad that resulted in the deaths of 16 citizens. She is seeking 1 million dinars for emotional distress; in a few days, there will be a hearing in the proceedings where she is claiming the same amount in damages. The day after that, there will be civil proceedings based on the lawsuit from Judge Dušanka Đorđević and her husband, attorney Aleksandar Đorđević, who are demanding 760,000 dinars in compensation. At the end of the month, there will be a hearing regarding the third lawsuit from Koluvija. Imagine a newsroom with no more than ten journalists who must devote immense time and resources to pursuing legal actions because of their revelations.

**Author: Veran Matić**

The operator Orion Telekom has discontinued the N1 service from its offering, despite the contract being valid until the end of March 2024, and users were informed half an hour before the discontinuation. The owner of Orion Telekom, Slobodan Đinović, is not responding to calls from N1 journalists.

If, in the next year, the residents of Kragujevac are informed about local events according to the way funds from the city budget designated for public information are distributed, they will mostly receive biased news about the Serbian Progressive Party and its satellites.

After the collapse of the canopy on November 1, 2024, the largest and most persistent uprising of citizens and students began – protests that have been ongoing for over six months. This is likely a period in which it is clear that there are two Serbias, as well as two types of journalists.

The process of amending and supplementing three media laws, which should soon be presented to the National Assembly, has been marked by serious deficiencies and shortcomings, not only regarding the procedure but also concerning the content itself, assess the interlocutors of our portal. It is emphasized that everything has transpired with significant delays, there was a lack of public debate on the Law on Electronic Media and the Law on Public Information and Media, while the Law on Public Media Services did not close the space for political financing.