It is with some joy I bring you this blog entry…. Entirely selfish joy. For this summer I was to be going to Serbia to carry out my MA (readers should be aware I lived there for 3 years from 2005 to 2008), and I was afraid there was no real story to tell other than the usual “it’s hard being a journalist” and covering the ways in which Serbian journalists have become free from government influence, or not, since the fall of Milosevic.
Now I definitely have a justified topic for my MA.
The Serbian media is threatened by the fall in adverstising which will lead to a massive change in how it is to be funded and the ways advertising is to be used, as you can read at Balkan insight.
The fall in advertising income has lead some smaller and pirate broadcasters to go under and lead to staff cutbacks across the board (this of course doesn’t make me happy).
The media outlets are going to the government for help.
Why Serbian advertising is in trouble? -It says choosing a bank is like choosing a barber/ dentist/ ‘shoemaker’ respectively, probably wouldn’t be allowed in the UK, it’s fair to say..
Veran Matic, owner of B92, Serbia’s major independent broadcaster has outlined the steps his firm has taken to cut costs.
“We reduced the number of freelancers, and their work is being taken on by existing full time staff,” he told Balkan insight. He also outlined a reduction in programme production and the purchasing of films and serials.
B92 is serbia’s major news broadcaster, alongside the state-run RTS (Radio Televizije Srbije), there are fears it will cut its journalistic output and make it more challenging for the public to find good news content in their own language.
Nadezda Gace, whose surname means “underwear”, president of the NUNS (The union of serbian journalists) said that the NUNS will set up a fund designed to help journalists and also the broadcasters themselves:
“Many media in Serbia will soon face a catastrophe which will mostly affect journalists. In some media houses they have already stated to fire journalists. Our idea is to create such a fund in order to help journalists, first of all, and then the media houses too,” Gace said.
Nebojsa Bradic
At the conference propositions were put to Nebojsa Bradic, the culture minister, who will announce the government’s strategy for the media this week. It is likely to include relaxation of alcohol advertising laws to try and draw more money from the advertising well.
More updates when I get over there in the summer.
