History of ANEM

In 1993, several stations - Radio B92 and NTV Studio B from Belgrade, Radio Boom 93 from Požarevac, Radio Antena M from Podgorica, Radio Bajina Bašta from Bajina Bašta, Radio Smederevo from Smederevo, and Radio Cetinje from Cetinje - established the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM). The goal was to unite isolated media outlets, marking the first step towards dismantling the media monopoly controlled by the state.

Until the onset of mass civil protests in the winter of 1996/97, the influence of independent, non-state electronic media was very limited. Radio B92, Radio Index, Radio Bajina Bašta, Radio Boom 93, and Radio Cetinje were an oasis of professional reporting.

By early 1996, due to the repression exerted by the authorities, only four active members remained in the Association - Radio B92, Radio Boom 93, Radio Antena M, and Radio Bajina Bašta. In December 1996, the Serbian government shut down Radio Boom 93, reducing the number of members to three. When the opposition won local elections, local radio and TV stations in about thirty of the largest cities in Serbia were presented with the opportunity to change the media landscape and threaten the monopoly of state radio and TV stations. Taking advantage of the favorable political situation created by the mass student and civic demonstrations of 1996/97, ANEM established a network of 19 affiliated independent local radio and TV stations across Serbia and Montenegro in June 1997. The reach and influence of ANEM significantly increased, so that by June 1998, the aforementioned network consisted of 35 stations.

In November 1997, ANEM became a legal entity. Based on the Companies Act, it was registered as a business association of its three most active and dedicated members - Radio B92, Radio Boom 93, and RTV Bajina Bašta.

During 1998 and 1999, the authorities intensified repression against ANEM stations - a number of affiliated stations were banned from operating, while others were taken over by the regime. In the first weeks of the bombing, the authorities took control of Radio B92. During the three-month bombing, eight ANEM stations were shut down. By August 1999, all affiliated stations that had been closed during the NATO bombing returned to the air.

After the democratic changes in 2000, around 100 radio and TV stations applied for membership in the Association, and the founders of about thirty stations were granted full membership status at the first ANEM Assembly in May 2001.

ANEM exclusively gathers stations that hold broadcasting licenses. Its members are united in their commitment to fundamental human rights, the respect, protection, and promotion of freedom of expression and information, and the nurturing of the highest journalistic standards and ethics.

ANEM actively works to improve the conditions for media development, freedom of expression, and the protection of its members' interests, as well as the implementation of the legislative framework. It has successfully carried out numerous projects while its representatives actively participated in various working groups for media legislation reform.

In recent years, ANEM has focused on the issue of journalist safety, monitoring the regularity of the project co-financing process for media content at all levels of government, as well as the process of selecting members of the REM Council.