The abolition of "Utisak Nedelje", a popular political talk show broadcast on B92 TV and directed by Olja Bećković, caused a true storm among Serbian journalists. But this is not the only programme gone missing from the schedules
Slovenian media market is assessed as free by the main international watchdogs, although under a strong State influence and lacking strategic private ownership. An interview with Marko Milosavljević, Head of the Department of Journalism at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Lubiana
Serbia adopted new rules that require the State to leave media ownership. Media associations have welcomed the new legislation, introduced as a result of pressure from Brussels
EU states are failing to reach relevant international standards on freedom of expression, as defamation remains a criminal act in 23 out of all 28 members of the bloc, the International Press Institute (IPI) said on July 17th
Reporters Without Borders warns that access to media and information can be dropped from United Nations development goals. Protection of the right to information is in danger of being weakened or disappearing altogether, to be replaced a vague reference to freedom of expression
Svetlana Lukić, editor of "Peščanik": the long rule of the Democratic Party, Boris Tadić, and his court set up a mechanism of media control. Vučić - once Milošević's minister of Information- inherited it and added his own, Šešelj-style, "charm"
Ljubica Grozdanovska Dimishkovska, author of international report critical of the country's level of democracy, was criticised for her analysis, with pro-government media seeing it as serving the interests of the opposition as well as those of Greece
In Bulgaria, freedom of the press and expression has dramatically declined in recent years. Among the principle causes are media concentration, self-censorship and pressure on journalists. We spoke about this with Professor Orlin Spasov
The Serbian government is facing increasingly frequent accusations of web censorship. The interventions by the OSCE and the European Commission, the reactions of prime minister Vučić
The Bosnian Herzegovinian Film Festival in New York City recently premiered a documentary movie on the White Armband Initiative, the event taking place in Prijedor each year on May 31st. Transitional justice experts Refik Hodžić and Eldar Sarajlić discussed the process of dealing with the past in the country
Aleksandar Vučić's government seems to be adopting a double standard when it comes to media: one for the EU, one for Serbia, with tight control over newspapers and television stations
Croatia's new Criminal Code establishes the offence of "humiliation", a barrier to freedom of expression that has already claimed its first victim among journalists – Slavica Lukić, of newspaper Jutarnji list
Are freedom of information and journalism in danger in Romania? An interview with Ioana Avadani, the Director of the Center for Independent Romanian Journalism
Attempts at media reform in Serbia appear to have run aground. International organizations are denouncing a number of abridgments of press freedoms within the country, which are slowly amounting to a new form of control
Georgia has embraced the idea of open data as a vital component of open government. Critics, however, say data usability is still out of reach. A vital civil society sector could make the difference
Controversial measures restricting internet freedom make critics cry censorship, in a country where freedom of information is already under pressure. The pressure of the new corruption scandals
Italy and fellow EU members Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Romania and Slovenia, as well as EU candidates Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey are among the 180 states included in Reporters Without Borders (RWB) annual survey of press freedom in the world. Only three of them have improved their standings
Media in Serbia are surely not in the same position of those surviving under authoritarian regimes, but since the latest elections the situation has seriously worsened
The Sochi Project, a digital tale showcased at the recent Amsterdam International Documentary Film Festival, is a powerful investigation into the next Winter Olympics, and on the human rights violations associated
The Council of Europe against Republika Srpska. Strasbourg reports serious offences committed by the police in Banja Luka, allegedly guilty of crimes that qualify as torture
Being a journalist in Albania is a difficult job. So tells us Axel Kronholm, a Finnish journalist who devoted his dissertation to press freedom in the country
Armenia and Azerbaijan are in a bitter conflict. Dialogue between the sides is difficult, but some visits across the border are still happening. The story of an Azerbaijani journalist in Armenia
Last month the UN Internet Governance Forum (IGF) was held in Baku. Amidst doubts on the choice of the host country, the distribution of reports on freedom of expression at the venue was blocked and the computers of assistants to vice-president of the EU commission Neelie Kroes were hacked
The long story of Azerbaijani cinema, from a documentary on oil gushes filmed in 1898 to Soviet-time musicals, and its bleak situation today. The government tries to help the local industry by banning foreign TV series and shows on local TVs, but hope comes from young directors
Known in Turkey for their investigations on the "deep state", Ahmet Şık and Nedim Şener have been arrested in 2011, accused of being part of the"Ergenekon" terrorist organization, the same they contributed to expose. A case that soon became a symbol untransparent sides of the investigation. OBC met them in Cyprus, a few weeks after their release
There are not many parts of the world where a TV talk show can be produced without requiring dubbing or subtitles in order to be broadcast in 5 different countries. But in the Balkans this is possible. Vicinities is a first when it comes to talk shows with a regional approach. "But don't talk to me about Yugosphere" says Nenad Šebek, the show's host
Recent estimates give 93% of the software used in Georgia as pirated. Nearly everyone uses illegal software without seeing it as breaking the law. Shops in Tbilisi sell computers with Windows and other programmes already installed without the licence. Music shops happily sell copies of CDs and DVDs. In the short term the situation doesn't look like changing
