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"The threats that female journalists receive in the online space are incomparably more terrifying than those received by male journalists," said Veran Matić, president of the Board of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) and member of the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists, in an interview with Nova S television.

Since the protests in Serbia began, violence against journalists has increased. The Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS) has registered 318 attacks this year, nearly double the number compared to the previous two years. International organizations, including the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) from the United States, are warning about the increasingly dangerous situation for media workers in Serbia. The CPJ is one of the few remaining voices from the U.S. that continues to respond to threats to media freedom worldwide. Atila Mong, the organization's representative for Europe, warns in an interview with Svet i Mi that journalists in Serbia are becoming less safe due to societal tensions and the lack of political will to prosecute and punish those responsible for attacks against them.

Although this year there have fortunately been no killings, kidnappings, or imprisonments in our country, Serbia, with 91 confirmed physical attacks on journalists, unfortunately deserves a special mention in the report from Reporters Without Borders. Just like Aleksandar Vučić, who appears on the list of "predators of press freedom" by RSF. Reporters testify to a deadly year for journalists worldwide: 67 killed, 503 imprisoned, 135 missing.

Gavrilo Andrić is one of the photographers who marked the student protests. Many will remember them for the footage he captured. Perhaps that is why he has been physically attacked so many times. In some of the attacks, the police were involved. He does not understand why, as a society, we do not respond more seriously to violence, but at the same time, he testifies to how photographic civic engagement can be beautiful.

During November 2025, the Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation recorded at least 154 cases of verbal attacks on critical journalists and media in Serbia by 36 high-ranking state officials and members of parliament. The number of attacks remains alarmingly high and approximately the same as the average number of attacks in the previous two months (there were 163 in October and 141 in September).

The past week was marked by events related to the Ministry of Culture, Minister Nikola Selaković, and the "General Staff" case. The minister's choice of words in the public sphere became evident after his appearance on Informer television, where he commented on the Organized Crime Prosecutor's summons for questioning as a suspect by stating that he "had more important things to do." This statement triggered a week-long saga during which the minister did not hold back on insults directed at the prosecutor's office handling the "General Staff" case. The saga continued when employees of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments went public with claims that officials from the Ministry of Culture had come to "erase the General Staff from the central register." Although the Ministry of Culture did not respond to Insider's inquiries on this matter, it issued a statement a few days later claiming that these allegations were false, accompanied by serious accusations against the media that reported on it.

The President of the Board of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) and member of the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists, Veran Matić, emphasized that the ruling prohibiting the editor of the Večernje Novosti portal, Andrijana Nešić, from performing editorial duties for one year is a precedent.

In November of this year, the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia (NUNS) recorded a total of **30 incidents**. There has been a notable increase in actual attacks on journalists, particularly during public gatherings organized throughout Serbia. There is a concerning pattern of inadequate responses by police officers in cases of attacks on journalists, as well as the attacks themselves or the lack of response from the police. A total of 21 actual physical attacks were recorded, of which 5 were perpetrated by the police. Additionally, there were 5 death threats and threats to the physical safety of journalists, 3 other threats to journalists, 1 threat to media and organizations, and an attack on media and media organizations.

Attacks on journalists and independent media outlets in Serbia have escalated over the past year, United Nations experts warned today, calling on the government to end the impunity of those responsible for these criminal acts.