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Medienhilfe Ex-JugoslawienProfessionelle
Solidarität gegen Nationalismus und Chauvinismus
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IWPR & MEDIA PLANMONITORING REPORT30 March 1997 Vol II / No 12MEDIA FORTNIGHT IN REVIEW: 17 to 30 March
At long last, the visual media in BiH were in complete agreement in their presentation of a story. RS and federation media both did a considered, professional job in their coverage of the Academy awards ceremonies in Hollywood. There was, however, the usual dissonance in their coverage of a range of themes related to the implementation of the Dayton Accords. While the Pope's impending visit to Sarajevo has prompted excitement among the media in the Federation, it has been pointedly ignored in the RS media. In this edition we shall focus our attention on:
(From this edition we have expanded our monitoring of TVTPK and TV USK) TV BIH: DIPLOMATIC OFFENSIVEThe last week of March saw extensive coverage of visits of Alija Izetbegovic to the US and Haris Silajdzic to Pakistan and Egypt. Their activities occupied the top slots on the central newscast. The TV BiH correspondent in America reported daily(twice on Dnevnik 25/3 and 26/3 and in loving detail on Izetbegovic's every move. TV BiH even went as far as using an expensive live satellite link. All this for a visit with President Clinton lasting less than half an hour. Co-chairman of the council of ministers, Haris Silajdzic's travels were also "covered" by a special correspondent from Sarajevo accompanying Silajdzic on the airplane. State TV played a big role in trying to sell viewers on the idea that a major "diplomatic initiative" was under way. TV BiH tried to paint a rosy picture, portraying American officials as giving unselfish support to the idea of a united B&H and unreserved support to Izetbegovic. But the statement of President Clinton (the only tone insert), "We have yet lots to do. All parties should give more effort," was somewhat more even handed. TV BiH claimed that the most important result of the Izetbegovic - Clinton talks was American support for BiH to enter NATO's "partnership for peace" program. It failed to mention, however that Bosnia's entry was contingent on suitable conditions, such as the existence of a unified army, that do not appear to be just around the corner. TV BiH seems to be following the old Titoist tradition of slavish coverage of political leaders on foreign trips, no matter how insignificant their purpose or unsuccessful their outcomes. There was no discussion of the fact that progress on joint institutions was even more stalled than usual during Izetbegovic's and Silajdzic's jaunts, or why they were not traveling with their counterparts from the Republika Srpska. Such inconvenient questions might result in the reporter not being allowed on another exciting foreign trip or, in the case of the US correspondent, recall to (God forbid!) Sarajevo. SERB REPRESENTATIVES - ACCORDING TO MERITSDnevnik gave some politicians from Republika Srpska better coverage in the past week, particularly Co-President of the council of ministers, Boro Bosic. TV BiH gave good coverage to Bosic's warning that the postponement of the donors' conference could encourage those "who wish for war". The following day, Bosic was again at the center of attention when he signed the contract receiving a Japanese government donation for Bosnia-Herzegovina. Following talks between representatives from both entity governments in the American Embassy in Sarajevo, TV BiH gave equal time to the statements of Federation Prime minister Edhem Bicakcic and his counterpart from the Republika Srpska Gojko Klickovic. It appears that TV BiH is giving more space to Serb politicians who were not "active" during the war as well as to those statements that are not putting in question the existence of B&H. RS President Biljana Plavsic's and member of the collective presidency Momcilo Krajisnik's statements are sometimes ignored, as it was the case with Krajisnik's reaction to Izetbegovic's foreign trips (17/3 & 21/3). Otherwise they are referred to in quotations from foreign news agencies, usually with intention of portraying the Serbs as not respecting the Dayton accords. SRT: ATTACKS ON IZETBEGOVICWhile Izetbegovic's and Silajdzic's foreign adventures were the main event for TV BiH, SRT went on the offensive, accusing Izetbegovic in particular of neglecting his duties to the joint institutions at home in order to pursue a unilateral foreign policy. It isn't often that SRT expresses much interest in the joint institutions, but Izetbegovic's travels gave them the opportunity to point the finger at the Federation for lack of progress. On several occasions Izetbegovic was portrayed as the main obstacle to the work of the joint institutions. SRT reported the statement of Momcilo Krajisnik who expressed big worries for the work of joint institutions "because instead of going to Lukavica, Alija Izetbegovic left for Saudi Arabia" (17/3). Krajisnik went on to denounce the trip as an "irresponsible action" and said the visit was not "legitimate." Interestingly, the Sarajevo media failed to air Krajisnik's criticisms. SRT journalists were particularly incensed by Izetbegovic's offer, during his meeting with Clinton, to bring Bosnia-Herzegovina into NATO's Partnership for Peace program without the agreement of the Serbs. Novosti (27/3) said Izetbegovic was "ignoring reality." While raising a legitimate issue about the nature of unilateral foreign policy initiatives by Bosnia's ruling partners, SRT somehow failed to report the news. The Novosti commentator's remarks were the first the SRT audience had heard of Izetbegovic's trip to the US. Along with the general criticism of Izetbegovic, SRT has increased ist coverage of the months-long trial in Banja Luka, in which Izetbegovic is accused of war crimes. AGREEMENT - BONE OF DISCORDDisagreements within the leadership of the RS over the agreement on special relations between FRY and RS, were not reported on SRT. Instead, state-controlled television is trying to persuade its viewers that if there were any conflicts, they have passed, and everybody is one big happy family. SRT broadcast a statement of SDS president Aleksa Buha (23/3), claiming that disagreements no longer exist, that those that did occurred due "to lack of mutual information" and that in future on every strategic matter the Central Committee of the SDS will take a position which everyone in the party will be obliged to support. MIRROR, MIRROR ON THE WALL...TV B&H journalists and presenters generally refrain from
commenting on interfederal disagreements. Space is also often
also given to the Croat "side" of issues. However,
sometimes by the way the information is selected, it is clear out
"whose television" one is watching. When, for example,
the second IPTF report on the police shootings of Muslim
civilians in West Mostar on February 10th was released (26/3) TV
BiH Dnevnik did not even mention the report, which included some
offenses against Croats after the shootings. Instead, it
broadcast the statement of High Representative spokesman Colum
Murphy "that in fact West Mostar is obstructing the
implementation of the Dayton agreement". Dnevnik also
presented letters and statements again accusing the Croats.
State- controlled Radio BiH's coverage was virtually identical to
that of TV BiH. A PROMISE IS A PROMISEIn a special supplement on the fourth anniversary of a battle in the Usora region of Central Bosnia, TV B&H ran an archive recording of a group of soldiers of the Croat militia (HVO) taking the Bosnian Army (ABiH) oath. (Dnevnik, 22/3). In the film there is a close-up shot of now-joint presidency member Kresimir Zubak pronouncing the army oath: "I swear to protect the territorial unity, independence and integrity of B&H". Afterwards the commander calls on soldier Zubak and congratulates him. Zubak, a judge from nearby Doboj, enlisted in the HVO as a private soldier at the beginning of the war. Wounded in battle, he was evacuated to Mostar where he apparently forgot his oath and served in the government of the Croat separatist state, Herceg-Bosna. Particularly given the recent tensions within the Federation, TV BiH is always happy to remind old soldiers of their obligations. HRTBoth HRT's Dnevnik and the program "Observations" carry regular reports dedicated to the coming local and district elections. In the elections reports, all parties get equal time and fair coverage, but during the rest of the news program, it is clear who HRT wants its viewers to vote for- the ruling HDZ. The HRT choice is displayed in its heavy coverage of state activities in which HDZ officials are constantly portrayed as doing something good for the people and the country.In the period we monitored, nearly every day HRT followed different ceremonies of HDZ government officials opening new building sites, turning on electricity, dedicating new schools and kindergartens. Particular attention is given to the activities of president Franjo Tudjman, with no distinction made between his presidential and party activities. The opening of a bridge over the Drava followed by a pre-electoral meeting in Osijek, etc. TPK TELEVISIONIn terms of quality of programs, production values and staff, Television of Tuzla-Podrinje Canton (TV-TPK) is the most developed cantonal TV station in the Federation. On the air since 2/93 The station is part of the Public Company of RTV TPK, whose owner is the Parliament Of Tuzla-Podrinje Canton. Through relay stations on Majevica, Bistrik, near Kladanj, and Srebrenik, TV-TPK covers the entire Canton as well as neighboring municipalities in the RS. The station is financed from the Cantonal budget, and part of the income is collected from the "economic propaganda programs" or advertisements. According to a poll in Dnevni Avaz, TV-TPK, after TV BiH, has the greatest media influence in the area of Tuzla Canton. The program is on the air weekdays from 16:00 to 23:00, sometimes longer on weekends, broadcasting news, documentary, entertainment and film programs, with occasional live coverage from local sporting events. The main news program is Dnevnik (19:00), on before the TV BiH is nightly news. During prime-time, there is a variety public service programs, the most popular of which is "Replica," which brings together cantonal authorities and opposition leaders for debates on current issues. TV-TPK does not forget who its masters are- the SDA dominated cantonal assembly. Programs are generally aimed at the Bosnian Muslim members of the audience, with extensive coverage of the activities of the cantonal governor and prime minister. The most frequent guests on Dnevnik are cantonal ministers, and the news programs loyally broadcast without exception all statements of the cantonal bodies and the ruling SDA. TV-TPK is much less open to opposition parties, particularly when they criticize the cantonal authorities. There is not enough information about events on the ground in the canton, except when "hot" themes are in question, such as the problems faced by Bosnian Muslims moving into Serb-controlled areas of the zone of separation (ZOS) such as Gajevi and Jusici. TOLERANT LANGUAGEIn the monitored period, references to Serbs were generally balanced, and aimed at normalizing the situation in the region. Speaking about the situation in the village of Gajevi, cantonal governor Sead Jamakosmanovic uses the term "authorities of Republic of Srpska," and reporters described the houses in Gajevi as having been burned by "Serb extremists", avoiding the usage of the term "Chetniks" (Dnevnik 18/3). There has been a noticeable effort to produce reports helpful in calming interethnic tensions. Dnevnik (20/3) gave high billing to the news that Tuzla police cooperated with Serb police in arresting and handing over two criminals who had robbed a family near Bijeljina, and escaped to Tuzla. The following day Dnevnik presented a report about the return of 200 Serbs to the Ozren village of Krtova, on Federation territory. PRE ELECTORAL OPERATIONTV-TPK has been less balanced in its coverage of the conflict between the SDA, which rules the canton, and the authorities in Tuzla, which is controlled by the Union of Bosnian Social Democrats (UBSD). The monitoring period saw the beginning of the SDA's campaign for the upcoming municipal elections (planned for mid September). Dnevnik (21/3) ran a report on the visit of the head of the Tuzla SDA to surrounding communities. Judging from the reporting, the SDA and its loyalists in the media are already taking off the gloves. The reporter made statements such as: "at this moment the main goal of Bosnians is to win in Tuzla," "villages are ignored in which SDA has a stable electoral base," "the citizens are bittered because Tuzla is the most neglected city in BiH," etc. All these statements were made by the reporter. He neglected, however, to mention what in fact the officials he was covering actually said. USK TELEVISIONTelevision of Unsko-Sanski Canton (TV-USK), based in Bihac, went on the air in September 1996. This station is owned by the Public Company RTV-USK, which is controlled by the SDA-dominated Unsko-Sanski cantonal assembly. TV-USK covers the Bihac region, with a range of approximately 80-100 kilometers. Besides Bihac, the program can be seen in the area of Sanski Most, Velika Kladusa and Slunj (Republic of Croatia), but with a wide range of problems in signal reception. The program is transmitted on UHF channel 43 , daily from 15:00 to 23:00 hours, but during the monitoring period there were several problems in the reception of program, including a complete blackout on 30/3. The foundation of TV-USK programming are news and documentary programs. Every day at 18:00 "Chronika" provides thirty minutes of news from the canton, followed at 19:30 by TV BiH's Dnevnik. There is also a bi-weekly prime-time discussion program whose guests are usually high-ranking cantonal, federation, and BiH politicians. In most cases, however, they are all Bosnian Muslim, and SDA politicians. Cultural-art programs and programs of more complex structure are mainly of foreign origin, with a significant number of new, probably "pirated" foreign films.Cultural and entertainment programs are also taken from TV BiH, together with locally produced religious (Islamic) programs ORTHODOX RADIO "ST. JOHN"Since Dayton there has been the growth of the number of radio stations which stress their religious orientation. The most powerful among them is Pravoslavlje Radio "Sveti Jovan" (St. John Orthodox Radio), set up in June 1996 by Sonja Karadzic, daughter of former RS president and indicted war criminal Radovan Karadzic. It claims to receive part of its funding from the Greek Orthodox Church Based in Pale, Radio "St. John" transmits its own twelve hour (12:00-24:00) mainly religious and musical-entertainment program in the ekavian (Serbian, as opposed to ijekavian, spoken in Bosnia and Croatia) dialect. Programming largely consists of foreign and Serbian pop music, Serb folk songs and religious music. There is very little news or informational programming. Given Ms. Karadzic's connections in the RS government, it is not surprising that Radio St. John has access to transmitters that allow it to cover the entire territory of RS, part of the Federation, and parts of Northwest Serbia.News programs are not well developed. News briefs are broadcast three times a day (at 15:00, 18:00 and 21:00). Most of the news concerns events from the territory of RS, Eastern Slavonia and FR Yugoslavia. The work of the joint presidency and Council of Ministers is also followed. The only other news program, the twenty-minutes long "Epilogue" (Sundays at 21:00) gives chronological review of most significant events in the previous week . Religion and IdeologyWhile there isn't much news, Radio St. John uses its religious programming to get the Serb nationalist message across loud and clear. The two-hour weekly program, "Moment for you, Orthodox" (Thursday 18:00) talks about the Orthodox faith, St. Sava (Serbia's patron saint) and the Serb nation. The presenter mediates discussions of church history and refers to modern religious theorists, some of whom are guests on the program. In addition, however, there are often subjects with dubious religious pedigrees, particularly discussions of the history and ideology of the Chetniks, the Royalist guerrillas who collaborated with Axis forces in fighting the Yugoslav Partisans during WWII. The program recently celebrated the third anniversary of the "White Wolves," a mercenary unit that fought for the RS in the most recent war. From midnight to 12:00 Radio St. John's frequencies broadcast state-controlled radio programs. MEDIA NEWS IN BRIEF
Notice:In our previous edition, we posed a question to the Governor of Sarajevo Canton Midhat Haracic: "Please inform us whether the policy of removing old and installing new kiosks has taken into account the need to protect the interests of all print media and distributors equally?." To our question, we received the answer of Canton Minister of Space Organization Munib Buljina who said that the Government has adopted elaborate rules for allocating kiosks on the Canton area (in preparation is the decision on usage of public surface) while the giving away of locations itself is "exclusive authorization of municipal secretary of urbanism." We are not publishing the letter in its entirety because the answer "missed" the essence of our question.
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