RTS Handed Demand To Change Its Editorial Policy

Slobodan Prvanovic RTS (Photo: Milan Obradovic)

The demand for the change in editorial policy of the Serbian Broadcasting Corporation (RTS), signed by more than 140 members of the academic community, was handed to that media house on Jan. 22, a science advisor of the Institute for Physics, Slobodan Prvanovic, has told reporters.

Among other things, it is requested in the document, that RTS introduces a new broadcast, on its First Program in prime time, which would objectively report about all the scandals. Prvanovic assessed that RTS did not adhere to the Law on public information and the public broadcasting service, and that the media house was deceiving the public, adding that the country could not be civilized before facing the problems such as censorship.

"These demands do not represent an act of support to any party – they aim to protect the interests of the people. We urge all parties to declare whether they support our demands. If they remain silent, we will view that as a negative answer. Moreover, we urge the journalists' associations to do the same, as we do the journalists of the public broadcasting service. We know there are professionals among them," Prvanovic stated.

A docent of the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade, Oliver Toskovic, assessed that media freedom in Serbia was low, recollecting the report of Reporters without Frontiers, according to which Serbia dropped 14 places on that list and, besides Montenegro, was the lowest ranked in the Balkans.