Brussels, Nov. 20, (BTA/GNA) – European media freedom legislation may not achieve its goals in the Balkans if the political will and ability to implement it by media regulators is lacking. This is stated in a report by the Balkan Free Media Initiative, presented at the European Parliament here on Wednesday and entitled “The Invisible Hand of Media Censorship in the Balkans”.
In a video address, European Parliament Presiden Roberta Metsola said that the European media freedom legislation marks a turning point for democracy. Particularly in the Balkans, where media are often put under political and economic pressure, EU legislation opens the way for reforms, she added.
MEP Andrey Kovatchev (GERB/EPP) pointed out that media freedom remains a top priority for the EP and the European Commission.
Maja Kocijancic, foreign policy advisоr to the European Council President on the Western Balkans and EU enlargement, expressed the expectation that accession negotiations with countries in the region would help improve media environment.
Peter Hooks, co-founder of the Free Media Initiative in the Balkans and a long-standing BBC journalist, noted that national media regulators and European institutions need to be more assertive in enforcing EU rules.
As far as Bulgaria is concerned, the report states that political instability has, paradoxically, fostered media freedom. The European Media Freedom Act’s (EMFA) success will depend on the commitment of frequently changing authorities to its implementation. The report also stresses that Bulgarian media landscape is vulnerable to pro-Russian disinformation and propaganda by influential Russian channels and pro-Russian Bulgarian players alike. As an EU Member State, Bulgaria’s exposure to pro-Russian disinformation poses not only a significant threat to its own democratic structures, but also to the integrity and stability of European institutions as a whole. The report elaborates that political influence, though less overt, continues to undermine the independence of media and regulatory bodies in Bulgaria, while foreign ownership has contributed to increased diversity and media freedom, yet the lack of transparency and risk of monopolistic practices persist.
Greece faces entrenched challenges from oligarchic dominance, politicised regulators, and compromised public media, complicating the integration of EMFA standards.
In Slovenia, inconsistent enforcement and outdated legislation highlight the need for strong oversight in a country that has shown its susceptibility to foreign influence through the media.
Media freedom in Serbia has been in sharp decline. New national media laws have increased the State’s ability to exert control of the media leading to a deluge of disinformation and a backsliding in democratic standards.
Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which share a language with Serbia, are heavily influenced by Serbian State-backed media. This propagates anti-EU narratives, dividing the population and slowing their path to EU accession.
Recommendations are made to complete the legislation regarding the rules for transparency of media ownership, for limiting media monopolies, for fair distribution of budget funding for media. The report notes the need for public media to be protected from political interference, for media regulators to be independent and for the transparency of political advertising to be improved.
BTA/GNA