The media center announced that it submitted a complaint to the RTCG Ombudsman regarding the interview with President Milo Đukanović, broadcast on July 12.
As stated in the press release of the Media Center, in the program "Interview" broadcast on July 12, the journalist opened the topic of nationalism in Montenegro and gave introductory explanations: "Nationalism is something that is healthy in every nation and I am not talking about it, because I do not problematize it, but there is the other side of the coin of nationalism which causes frustration, which glorifies itself. So I am not saying anything bad about this nice dose of nationalism, which we should all have, because we are all proud of our nation, our tribe and our brotherhood and to your name and surname and that's the good, healthy part...".
"The journalist claims that nationalism in itself is not negative, equating it with patriotism and therefore not clarifying the concepts of "chauvinism" and "fascism". , due to which nationalism is associated with ethnocentrism and xenophobia) is not a negative phenomenon. The journalist should use the definition of nationalism (elevation of one's nation as a higher nation compared to others) and know that the division into "good" and "bad" nationalisms has long been overcome "Nationalism that takes the form of hatred towards other nations is by definition chauvinism," Media Center director Goran Đurović said in a statement.
He adds that "in this part of the interview, the principle of fairness established by the Rulebook on Professional Principles and Standards RTCG was violated".
Đurović stated in the announcement that the Rulebook prescribes - "Any news or program content is not considered to be fair if it ... leads listeners and viewers to the wrong conclusion".
"With his interpretation of the term "nationalism", the journalist led viewers to the conclusion that nationalism is a positive phenomenon (equating it with love for the nation, the state...), which is the opposite of the meaning of this term. The relativization of the term "nationalism" obscures the damage caused by this phenomenon and about which it is and the interlocutor, President Đukanović, gave his opinion, justifying Montenegrin nationalism ("if it exists" as Đukanović says) from which no one is in danger. The journalist did not complete the topic he opened with additional questions about the role of President Đukanović in the spread of Serbian nationalism, chauvinism and fascism at the beginning of the nineties of the last century, and not even with the questions whether Montenegrin nationalism can cause any damage to the development of the civil state of Montenegro and whether the interlocutor actually believes that Montenegrin nationalism is desirable for the further development of the state".
Đurović also stated that the journalist "in the introductory part of the interview did not cover the topic of the alleged revanchism of the Prime Minister who, due to the denial of support from the DPS, through the Special State Prosecutor's Office sent a message to President Đukanović, by arresting his friends from the Board of Directors of "Plantaž".
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"The journalist had to insist that the interlocutor clearly state his position as to whether the SDT is under political influence and by whom, whether the Prosecutorial Council is under political influence. This is all the more so because during the interview the interlocutor, President Đukanović, sent very direct threats to the prosecutors if in the cases against Vesna Medenica and friends of the president, they do not file indictments or are rejected by the court. By doing this, the journalist also violated the Code of Journalists of Montenegro, which stipulates that "a journalist must be a critical observer of the bearers of social, political and economic power when reporting on them in the interest of the public", and that "it is the journalist's duty to respect the truth and persistently search for it, always bearing in mind the public's right to know and the human need for fairness and humanity", Đurović concluded.
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