The director of the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN), Dragana Žarković Obradović, stated that the intensity of attacks against the TV channel N1 is directly proportional to its importance for public information and media pluralism in Serbia.
Speaking at a panel organized by the Platform of the Council of Europe for the Safety of Journalists in Brussels, where the latest report on media safety was presented, she warned that the situation regarding media freedom in Serbia is becoming increasingly concerning.
According to the report’s partners, Serbia has emerged as one of the main hotspots for attacks on media freedom in Europe during the past year. The report highlights that this hostility has been particularly directed toward N1, described as the main remaining independent television station, while also noting the relationship between Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and the media.
Žarković Obradović explained that the section of the report concerning N1 highlights two key issues. First, it underscores the importance and influence of N1 in Serbia’s information landscape. Second, it points to the broader environment being created for the criminalization and targeting of journalists.
“When such messages come from the top of the state, journalists become a legitimate target,” she warned.
She added that Serbia’s inclusion among the countries highlighted in the report — alongside Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Turkey, Slovakia, and North Macedonia — reflects the current state of media freedoms in the country. She noted that Serbia is mentioned across multiple categories related to violations of media freedom, indicating what she described as a system that suppresses independent journalism at institutional, legislative, financial, and even physical levels.
While emphasizing that Serbia cannot yet be compared with some of the most restrictive environments, she cautioned that negative trends often develop gradually, through smear campaigns, financial pressure, legal actions, and physical attacks on journalists.
The BIRN director also expressed hope that member states of the Council of Europe will show political courage and place media freedom in Serbia high on the agenda, stressing that the same political actors accused of fostering hostility toward journalists are also partners in dialogue with European governments.
