Bojanić: The authorities cannot understand that the frequency is a national treasure

General Director of RTCG Boris Raonic said that there is little discussion in Montenegro about the sustainability of electronic media in the age of modern technologies.

"We see that television and radio stations and print are losing their positions and role. How will people get information in the future? I am one of those who are skeptical and my assessment is that information from social media will be perceived as fake news. society is a matter of how we will react to these trends", said Raonic.

He said this at the International Conference on media sustainability and successful business models, which is organized by the Media Association for Southeast Europe (MAJE).

However, he also said that non-linear platforms are the future and that a significant number of people are informed through social media.

When asked about the staff, he said that the Public Service has three less employees compared to the previous period and that 739 people work in the RTCG.

Director of Vijesti Marijana Bojanić said that there is no smaller country with more media and a poorer market. She said that at the moment we have three commercial televisions, RTCG and PINK which was branded before going to cable. She explained that Croatia limited that number to three national frequencies, including the public service, and their media market is 100 million euros.

"Croatia protected the market very smartly. This is done for the sake of the citizens, you will make a better program, and the stronger the media market, the less political influence. In our country, local television also entered the measurement recently, so in the future they too will share a small cake with everyone else. The media market is unregulated and this has been going on for years, despite talks with the institutions," said Bojanić.

She said that the authorities in Montenegro cannot understand that the frequency is a national treasure, and that we, as she assessed, "gave it to those who brought folk manner to Montenegro... Serious and professional media must take care to disseminate information of public interest, not those that are of interest to the public. And entertainment should have its own measure if it goes over the national frequency.

Bojanic said that our media market does not look good.

She also said that it is discouraging that people are running away from journalism and that fewer and fewer people want to do this difficult job, which requires 24 hours of engagement.

"Unfortunately, editorial offices in commercial media are getting smaller because people are leaving and the financial situation is more difficult. Corona brought more viewership, however, it also affected revenues. The situation is similar with the war events in Ukraine, because advertisers, for example, do not want their banners to go with texts that write about the war, the victims...", she said.

Bojanić also said that the problem is unfair competition, not only because of the media coming from the region, but also the public service.

"What do citizens gain by watching the same content on commercial television, and then on Television of Montenegro?" The public service has a budget of 15 million euros, and if we have 210.000 employed citizens, it turns out that each of them gives around 70 euros for RTCG. Citizens want to watch something new and different, not copy-paste from commercial television," Bojanić said.

Bojanić: Find a way to save printed media

Director of the Media Association for Southeast Europe (MAJE), Vuk Maraš, said that the entire media community was never more complex, so proposals were formulated that were included in the draft Media Strategy.

At the International Conference on Media Sustainability and Successful Business Models, organized by MAJE, Maraš said that they spoke with 100 representatives from 50 Montenegrin media and said that it is time to stop looking at differences and solve the problems that exist in the media.

Speaking about problems not related to the relationship with the state, he mentioned the lack of printing paper.

"All of us, together with the Ministry of Media, found a way and helped to reach a stable solution, even though it makes it difficult for us to function," said Maraš and appealed to the government representatives to cover the costs of broadcasting.

He said that he believes that it is finally time to abolish the VAT for the press, to reduce the VAT on advertising from 21 to seven percent and to increase the funds in the Media Pluralism Fund.

It is not known who is behind the portals that promote fake news

The director of Vijesti, Marijana Bojanić, said at the panel "Print media - chances and challenges", that 26 percent fewer people in newsrooms across Europe is a worrying fact and that it is a global problem of print media, and that a way must be found to save print.

She said that today we have a whole "flood" of portals that are run from living rooms, we don't know who the editors are, how they are financed, and that a large number of fake news originates from them, and that the print media is in crisis.

She said that the prices of paper are 70 percent higher and that with all the financial difficulties, it is a big blow and that it is very difficult to get material, but that, despite this, they did not decide to increase the price of printing because they want it to be available to everyone.

Bojanić said that, regardless of political changes, the print media face a selective attitude towards the media when it comes to state enterprises.

Give journalists a special status

The director of the daily Dan Mladen Milutinović said that journalists faced with difficulties, pressures and that this type of work must be interpreted in a different way...

He said that the initiative to improve the position of journalists must be supported by granting them a special status, something similar to an official or a benefited seniority.

Milutinović said that it is necessary to return the legal provision according to which the journalist is not obliged to reveal the identity of the source in court.

More and more problems since journalists started asking questions about the work of institutions

Asked if there was an improvement in cooperation with the public administration after the change of government, Milutinović said that one gets the impression that there are no fundamental changes.

He said that a lot of time has passed, but little has been done and that the Government must do more to encourage media pluralism.

"One step forward, and two or three steps back. We have projects, but we don't have laws, regulated procedures," said Milutinović.

Bojanić said that the formation of the Media Directorate was delayed. She pointed out that in the first few months, when they were talking about what they found in the institutions, everyone was eager to cooperate with journalists.

"However, when journalists started asking questions about their work, there were problems that are getting bigger and bigger," Bojanić stressed.

She announced that in a year and almost four months, they have not felt any special benefits and developments and that we are now in a situation where, for example, RDC, since October, three television stations are trying to find out what will happen to the subsidies.

Ivanović: We are thinking about introducing a subscription on the Vijesti portal

During the panel "Portals - sustainability and the possibility of monetization of digital content", Filip Ivanović from Vijesti said that the advertising market in Montenegro is getting smaller year by year in the media and that it is not settled on the Internet.

He pointed out that part of advertising depends on the media itself, and part on what cannot be influenced. He said that they are analyzing the content and the needs of the users and that they are considering a subscription in the coming period.

He mentioned the example of Slovakia, when the online media there realized that it is not possible to live only from advertising in digital media, a dozen of them launched a subscription option.