BIRODI: Government Largely Supported by Voters Watching TV Stations Broadcasting Nationwide

Zoran Gavrilovic (BETAPHOTO/MEDIJA CENTAR BEOGRAD/MO)

The authorities in Serbia are largely supported by voters using as a main source of information the TV stations broadcasting nationwide, Zoran Gavrilovic, the executive director of the Bureau for Social Research (BIRODI) said on Feb. 13.

During a presentation of his organization’s research “Serbian Public Opinion and the Media”, Gavrilovic said that for 64.4 percent of respondents the Serbian Broadcasting Corporation (RTS) was the main source of information in terms of television stations, followed by Prva and Pink, with 33.7% and 32.5%, respectively. Happy TV is the preferred source of information for18.3 percent of the interviewed, and B92 TV for 15 percent.

N1 TV is the first choice of 12.8% of viewers included in the survey, and eight percent preferred Nova S.

According to the survey, if only the Pink viewers voted in an election, the parties included in the ruling coalition would gain 84.7 percent of the vote, the “right-wing opposition” would get 9.1 percent in total, while the civil opposition would be unable to cross the three-percent vote threshold. The results are very similar for the viewers of Happy TV.

At the other end of the spectrum are N1 and Nova S television stations, whose viewers would mostly vote for the civic opposition, whereas the nationalist opposition and ruling parties would come second.