edition-dw-akademie-in-the-service-of-the-public-functions-and-transformation-of-media-in-developing-countries-pdf

During the decade of conflict, B92 could not have survivedwithout the financial support of international donors. Amongthe organizations that financially supported B92 during theconflict time were the Soros Foundation, USAID, the SwedishHelsinki Committee, NED, and Norwegian People’s Aid. 35 However,the donor support completely stopped a few years afterthe end of the Milošević era.In 2003, 30% of B92’s capital was sold at auction and boughtby the Media Development Loan Fund (MDLF) 36 – a fact thatenabled the broadcaster to be a serious competitor of otherprivate channels for a number of years. 37B92 as a Public Service Broadcaster in the Conflict PeriodThere is general agreement 38 that B92, though privatelyfunded, served as a quasi public service broadcaster fulfillingall major public service functions during the conflict periodin the 1990s and in the first years after the establishment ofdemocracy. From its foundation, the broadcaster was basedon international standards of independent and free media.And from the beginning B92 journalists were driven by a verystrong public service ideology, as will be seen below. Further,as a new, young, and innovative media outlet it also had a specificstyle and taste in its approach and manner of communicationwith its listeners. 39Creating a Public SphereDuring the conflict period in the 1990s, B92 was among thevery few media outlets that provided the Serbian citizens withindependent information. B92 had a strong focus on news,which was comprehensive and generally objective. However,B92 was against the policies of the authoritarian Miloševićgovernment and therefore pro-opposition. Its daily eveningnews program quickly became very popular: The B92 journalistVeran Matic even claims that the radio featured the “best,the most credible and the most objective current affairs andnews program.” 40B92 indeed offered balanced programming, in which allpolitical parties were represented. The overall approach wasa very critical one, meaning that both political and social actorswere regularly criticized. Moreover, B92 was one of thefew media outlets which covered the whole range of relevantissues, putting taboo topics such as discrimination, violence,war crimes and other social problems on the agenda too.B92 had an analytical approach, providing not only factualnews but also background information and debates. Both politicaland social actors and topics were critically reflected andquestioned. Thus, the broadcaster offered social and politicalorientation and moderated the public debate. 41 Further, fromthe beginning B92 attributed great importance to in-depthjournalism, as far as this was possible under such difficult conditionsand with limited resources.Supporting IntegrationB92 was accountable to the Serbian population by coveringall topics relevant for the different parts of society, includingsexual and national minorities. 42 The station ensured participationthrough call-in programs and live debates and furthergave different sections of society a voice by regularly includingvox pops in its programs. 43 Due to the analytical approach,which meant that topics were not only presented but also criticallyreflected and questioned, B92’s programming also hadan educational aspect. Moreover, not only with its programsbut also by supporting protests and other civil activities, thebroadcaster contributed to strengthening the Serbian identityas well as fostering cultural cohesion.B92 commonly had a reputation of being a young andinnovative media outlet. In fact, since it operated under extremelydifficult conditions – including recurring bans andshut downs – the journalists were forced to be innovative sothey could broadcast their program. Consequently, B92 wasamong the first media outlets to provide content via the internet.44 Overall, and particularly in comparison to the traditionaland very formal state media, the station’s characteristicsof broadcasting were and still are perceived as innovative.The interviews conducted for this study show that, for mostpeople, B92 has more rhythm, more dynamics in its programmingand that its news is easier to watch and understand thanthat of today’s official public service broadcaster RTS. 45Despite the fulfillment of general public service functions,it is important to remember, however, that until 2000 B92was only a radio station and did not distribute its content viatelevision. Further, until 1996 it was a local broadcaster witha signal that mainly reached the capital Belgrade. Thus, manyparts of the Serbian population, especially in the rural areas,did not have easy access to B92. The station’s coverage increasedconstantly and eventually reached the national levelwhen, in 2006, B92 got national licenses for both its radio andits TV channels.Yet, in the first years after the democratic changes, B92 – bythen both a radio and television broadcaster – still fulfilled thecrucial public service functions mentioned above. Indeed, asthe Assistant Minister for Information, Saša Mirković, pointedout in the interview, after the end of the Milošević regime theformer youth network offered perfect conditions for becominga formal public service broadcaster: 46 Its staff, whose numberhad grown from around 30 in 1989 to ca. 100 in 2000, wasdriven by a strong public service ideology; its program wasbalanced, critical, of a high journalistic standard and B92 wasvery popular and enjoyed high credibility among the Serbianpopulation. However, according to the interviewees, the newpeople in power did not have sufficient understanding of itsimportance and future potential. Some even worked againstthe critical broadcaster. 47164