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Life in Kosovo debates the impact of regional media

26 11 2009  Life in Kosovo discussed the role of media upon political and social life in the Balkans.

The main questions discussed included: What is the impact of the media in the political and social sectors? How far is the freedom of speech protected in the Balkans? How far does Kosovo respect the freedom of speech in the media? What are the main barriers journalists face in their professional life?

To what extent have the relationships between citizens, media, government and the private sector changed? To what extent does the media create problems for citizens?

To discuss these issues, host Jeta Xharra was joined by the following guests:

Haki Abazi, Balkan representative of the Rockefeller Brothers’ Foundation
Veran Matic, TV B92 (Serbia)
Lutfi Dervishi, a journalist from Albania
Sasho Ordanovski, ALSAT M (Macedonia)
Baton Haxhiu, TV Klan (Kosovo)
Zarko Puhovski, Professor at the Philosophical Faculty of the University of Zagreb

Xharra started the show by referring to the recent attack on an Albanian journalist, Mero Baze. Baze had been hospitalised because she had “criticised some people”, Xharra said. On this basis, she posed the question of whether critical journalism is feasible in Albania.  

According to Lufti Dervishi, Mero’s case highlights the three underlying problems with Albanian journalism: the environment in which journalists work; the divides between journalists who stand for different positions and issues; and the dominance of the media sphere by a few individuals with “deep pockets”.  

In addition, he claimed that Albania lacks a “tribune” for the freedom of speech, in which only facts can be presented.

Thus, he said “somewhere, sometimes, someone will speak the truth on an issue that today could be brought up by citizens through the internet”. Asked if speaking the truth can result in violent reprisals, Dervishi replied that investigative journalism is a difficult profession, and that the risks associated with it are not unique to Albania.  

Baton Haxhiu said that politics and business are very well connected across the Balkans. He claimed that the case of Mero Baze is an example of the consequences of the “slowing down” of journalism in Albania since 2007, alongside the deepening of the relationships between business and political actors.  

Moreover, he added that the media and journalists are often aligned with specific political parties, creating so-called ‘flirted journalism’, Haxhiu explained.

Asked if he had been subject to pressure as the operator of a newly-established TV channel, Haxhiu claimed that post-war Kosovo is “a product of international unions and the EBU, and has a good model for journalism.” Kosovo, he added, was “lucky to have a national TV station established by internationals, since it guaranteed freedom of speech.

”In addition, he claimed that all media outlets are under political pressure, but that the important point is “how much you as a media outlet are able to overcome that pressure”.

Veran Matic, asked if the situation in Serbia is similar, said that from his point of view, it is even worse.

He began by referring to war veterans who have attained strong economic and political influence since the war, and gone on to influence the media.

He pointed out that the government has still not uncovered who was responsible for killing a number of investigative journalists in Serbia who had obviously been obstacles for politicians and the hooligans employed by some members of Serbia’s post-war elite.  

Zarko Pohovski from Croatia said the situation in his country is mixed, since Croatia is closer to Europe, yet still witnesses the murder of journalists.

He went on to say that when someone is killed, the case is not solved, leaving others to worry might happen to them next.

Furthermore, Pohovski claimed that the latest killing of a journalist in Croatia remains unsolved and incredibly complicated. The journalist in question had been moving in various social circles, and had even uncovered evidence of war crimes.  

Sasho Ordanovski, when asked for his opinion of media freedoms in Macedonia, argued that everything is more sophisticated there.

For example, he pointed out that the Macedonian government last year invested €18 million on developing its public relations department, where the limit was up to 1-2% from its budget for Public Relations.

Thus, by spending large sums over the limit, Oranovski claimed, they could create the impression that the government is maintaining good relations with the public, so no officials are interested in making additional public comments, since they know the government will ensure information is delivered to the population.

With a broader knowledge of the region, Haki Abazi was asked to talk about the Balkans as a whole. Making up for the lack of a specific representative on the panel, Abazi also mentioned that the media situation in Montenegro is no better than the rest of the former Yugoslavia.

More generally, he stated that media across the region are in line with what one would expect for systems in transition, which is a process outside of media actors’ control. Abazi pointed out that the Balkans are expected to pass through this stage faster than average.

However, he also claimed that, with few exceptions, Balkan media outlets are not working as hard as they could be.

Indeed,he claimed that if they were to do so they might already have overcome their heavy dependence on governments for financial support through advertisements and grants.  

Abazi continued to say that media environments are ever-changing, and journalists always face pressure from economic influences. He concluded that they need to find common ground and a common language to communicate between private businesses, politics and the public interest.

Ordanovski, when asked to comment on interactions between the private sector and journalists, claimed that there need to be “independent officials who will support journalists and take responsibility for protecting them, which seems almost impossible in our region.”

In conclusion, all participants agreed that media outlets need to achieve meaningful independence from business, and also need stronger support from citizens, and to be allowed to continue their work without external intervention.

Life in Kosovo concluded with BIRN’s satirical sketch, Lamjet.