Don’t read all about it for much longer THE media across the Balkans and in former Yugoslavia are doing badly, commercially and politically. Every year Reporters without Borders, a journalists’ lobby, ranks some 180 countries for media freedom. The highest spot in the region this year goes to Slovenia, but only at 34th. Of the others, Serbia is 54th and Croatia 65th, with Bosnia, Kosovo, Albania and Montenegro coming lower still and Macedonia way down at 123rd. For countries that are either in the European Union already (Slovenia and Croatia) or aspire to join, these lowly rankings ought to dismay.The underlying problems for the media are similar, but each country has its own worries. Serbia’s government has direct or indirect control of as much as 40% of advertising, much of it by state-owned companies. Few media are ready to risk this (though advertising channelled through two media-buying agencies close to the then president, Boris Tadic, did not save his government in 2012). After the election most media, including the public broadcasters, shifted shamelessly in favour of the new most powerful figure, Aleksandar Vucic. Editors know…
