Montenegro, as a new democracy, has passed a rocky road to establishing the functioning self-regulation mechanisms for media. Still to this day, self-regulation concept is a concept differently treated by members of media profession in Montenegro. The reasons vary from the general lack of democratic tradition of self-monitoring and self-regulating behavior, to political clashes between opposed media fronts in Montenegro, that prevail over the profession’s interests to protect its own sense of existence.
Media Council for Self-Regulation (MSS) in Montenegro
The first Journalist Self-Regulatory body in Montenegro (NST) was set up in 2003 by six journalists’ unions, which have shortly after adopted the Code of Ethics. NST issued periodic monitoring reports that dealt with the infringement of the Code by the media in Montenegro. Live broadcast of one political show in 2008 created a dispute among the members of the NST, which resulted with the shutting of this body in 2010.
After NST fell apart, new Media Council for Self-Regulation (MSS) was established on 07th March 2012 in Podgorica. Media founders of the Media Council for Self-Regulation in Montenegro are: Televisions – IN TV, RTV Atlas, TV Montenegro, MONTENA NTV, RTV ELMAG, TV Teuta, MBC TV, TV Boin; daily newspapers – Pobjeda and Dnevne novine; radio stations – Radio Antena M, Skala radio, Radio MONTENA, Radio Tivat, Radio Jadran, Radio Montenegro, Radio Dux; internet portals – Cafe del Montenegro and Portal Analitika. As published on 11.06.2013. upon the signing of the declaration on the accession, new members of the Media Council of self-regulation have become: Blic Montenegro, PRVA TV, Pink M and Portal RTCG.
Assembly of MSS is consisted of nineteen Montenegrin print, broadcast and online media, which agreed and adopted founding documents of this body, with the aim to monitor the implementation of professional and ethical standards in Montenegrin journalism.
The founders of the Media Council for self-regulation opted for the concept that self-regulation should only rely on the media that accept the Code of Journalists of Montenegro and the moral principles of responsible and professional journalism. MSS is therefore, according to the statute, open to all media in Montenegro who wish to continue to develop and promote journalistic ethics and the profession, which has for several years suffered serious abuses and manipulations.
MSS issues monitoring reports on two and a half-month basis, based on its own monitoring work and complaints from viewers/readers. Article 21 of the Statute of the Media Council for Self-Regulation stipulates that the monitoring team of the Council “shall decide on appeals filed against any media organization in Montenegro when it comes to violations of the Code of Journalists of Montenegro and informs the public”. Complaints may be submitted by mail, e mail and phone to MSS. This means that apart from its own members, the regular monitoring corpus includes the analysis of reporting done also by media which are not members of MSS. Since March 2012, MSS has produced 12 monitoring reports. Contrary to their Statute, MSS does not perform the monitoring of electronic media, so they basically act as a Press Council which monitors the work of 6 daily papers and functioning online news portals, even though they are called a Self-Regulatory body. As well as this, they still do not have the Rules of procedure on the Complaints from the public.
Nevertheless, results of the monitoring represent just a set of recommendations for media and information for the public. They do not possess any obligatory power, nor do they envisage sanctions or penalties of any kind for the infringement of Codex.
Representatives of the management body are prominent figures mainly from media sphere. The Executive Secretary of Media Council for self- regulation is Ranko Vujovic, Montenegrin journalist and a president of the Agency for Electronic Media Council since 2010. The president of the Assembly is Darko Šukovic, Montenegrin well-known political journalist and founder of Radio Antena M. Members of the Board of Directors, are: Đuro Vučinić, the owner of
Television “Montena”, Radojka Rutović, who is also the Director of Public Service Television of Montenegro, Boris Darmanović, the founder of “Dnevne novine” and Draško Đuranović, founder of the online portal “Analitika”. Among the Board of Directors was also a member of the opposition party “Pozitivna Crna Gora” Dritan Abazović, who left the Board in May 2012. Srđan Kusovac, due to his new position in the media department in the Government of Montenegro, left MSS in September 2013.
The members of the Monitoring team are Gordana Borović, journalist of portal Analitika, Miodrag Bubreško and Ranko Vujović.
According to the Statute of MSS, the body is registered as a Non-governmental organization that finances its activities from the budget donations, membership fee, charity, gifts, donations and other manners that are in line with the law. However, the only financier of MSS is the Government of Montenegro. According to the Action Plan signed by the Government of Montenegro and the European Delegation in Montenegro, MSS was to be funded by the Government of Montenegro for the first three years of its existence (1st year 100%, second 75% and third 50%). In the first year,
In 2012, MSS was funded by the Government of Montenegro with the amount of 30.000 EUR, in 2013 the sum was 22.500 EUR, and this year it is 15.000 EUR. MSS still did not not manage to raise funds for its operating in 2015, therefore its future is very much dependent on this. According to the information available, the Government of Montenegro does not fund any other media organization in this manner. All journalist associations are registered as NGOs, therefore apply for the funds from government to the established Lottery Fund Call for Proposals and undergo a regular evaluation and selection process.
Challenges MSS faces today
Apart from its formal functionality and regular production of reports on the respect of the Code by the media in Montenegro, MSS has a difficult time to position itself as a credible and strong mechanism for self-regulation of the media content produced in Montenegro.
Two national dailies (Vijesti and Dan) and one weekly magazine (Monitor) are not the members of MSS. Their attitude towards MSS is that it is another government project to control the media. The afore-mentioned media are traditionally perceived by the Montenegrin public as “pro-opposition” media (against the government and pro opposition political parties). It is a custom in Montenegro that these three media and media who are members of MSS do not participate together in any media initiatives. This is reflected in headlines such as “Governments MSS to teach journalists on ethics”, as well as the monitoring reports made by MSS, which analyze in detail the reporting of Dan, Vijesti and Monitor which are not members of MSS.
Future of MSS and the need for self-regulation of media in Montenegro
Media self-regulation in Montenegro should have been a joint contribution of all media professionals to establish editorial guidelines, regulations and standards of the journalistic profession. In that way, the independent media were to accept their share of responsibility for the quality of public discourse while preserving their own editorial autonomy.
Apart from the financial and operation sustainability challenges it faces, the future work of MSS is strongly influenced by the willingness and determination of media members to continue to pursue the rules and guidelines the Journalistic code imposes.
Furthermore, it is necessary that all functioning media, especially those with national circulation and coverage, become members of a unique Media self-regulation body. In this way, impartial evaluation of reporting can be ensured though monitoring reports, and a stronger mechanism of responsibility and impartiality of journalistic work can be put in place.
Until then, the issues of media professionalism, ethics in reporting and production of quality content based on facts and journalistic research in Montenegro will still be on the discussion tables in Brussels and Vienna.
~~~
Marijana Zečević, Associate Researcher at Public Policy Institute
This article has been published on the website fairpress.eu.