FOTP 2013 Full Report

media and supervises the implementation of the Mass Media Act. It also handles complaintsagainst the media from the public. Electronic media are regulated by the Post and ElectronicCommunications Agency. The agency’s responsibilities include monitoring the content of radioand television broadcasts and stimulating competition within the broadcasting industry.Janša, who had previously served as prime minister from 2004 to 2008, returned to powerin 2012 following December 2011 elections. Events since then have signaled the new Janšagovernment’s growing influence over the media. In July, four members of the supervisory boardof the public broadcaster, Radio-Television Slovenia (RTV Slovenia), who had been appointedin January 2010 by the previous government were dismissed before the end of their four-yearterms, prompting criticism from media advocacy groups. The dismissed members filed a lawsuitalleging that their ouster had been illegal, but Slovenia’s Administrative Court rejected the casein September. Later that month, Janša’s government removed an additional five members fromthe board, leaving it with just two supervisors out of the usual eleven. In November, Planet TV, anew commercial television station owned by the state-run Telekom Slovenije, made its debut.Critics noted that the launch was contrary to Slovenian law, according to which atelecommunications company cannot own a television station, and claimed that Janša’sadministration had established the channel in order to promote progovernment views.There are very few cases of threats and physical harassment against journalists, andreporters are generally able to cover the news without fear of violence.A wide variety of media outlets operate in Slovenia. There are eight daily and a numberof weekly newspapers; many of the weeklies report on local and regional issues and enjoysignificant readership within the communities they cover. The country’s major newspapers areprivately owned, while the broadcasting sector includes both public and private stations. RTVSlovenia is required by law to air radio and television broadcasts that cater to the country’sItalian and Hungarian ethnic minorities. The government-operated Slovene Press Agency (STA)publishes news in Slovenian and English and has permanent offices in several European cities aswell as in the United States. Internet penetration reached approximately 70 percent of thepopulation in 2012. The government does not restrict access to the internet.A transition to digital broadcasting has proceeded rapidly, and Slovenia now boasts thesecond-highest internet protocol television (IPTV) penetration rate in Europe. The digitization ofmedia has resulted in substantial declines in print media readership and revenues, and outletshave sought to cope by experimenting with online pay walls. At the beginning of 2012, a projectfrom Slovakia, called Piano, united eight major Slovenian publishers behind a pay wall. Thefinancial situation of print media was also threatened in late 2012 by a government proposal toraise the value-added tax (VAT) on certain items, including periodicals, from 8.5 to 20 percent.However, the bill was withdrawn from the parliament in November. In a highly criticized movein August, the Janša government announced plans to reduce the public broadcaster’s fundingfrom license fees by 10 percent. The cut was halved to 5 percent after RTV Slovenia publiclycampaigned against the move.Media concentration is high, and ownership of media outlets changes often, making themarket unstable and difficult to monitor. Two foreign companies decided to leave the Slovenianbroadcasting market in 2012, arguing that it was uncompetitive and inadequately regulated.Newspapers that are critical of the government sometimes face difficulty securing advertisers,and self-censorship is reportedly common among journalists who want to avoid problems withtheir employers.337