The “Nezavisnost” Union at N1 and Forbes Serbia called on the new management to clarify future editorial standards and provide guarantees regarding editorial independence and the professional rights of employees.
The demand follows an open letter from Alpac Capital CEO Pedro Vargas David to Serbian Information Minister Boris Bratina.
Bratina had questioned the regulatory status of N1 Belgrade and Nova S, urging that these channels be registered with Serbia’s Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM) following Alpac Capital’s planned acquisition of the Adria News Network. He also claimed that their current editorial direction had turned them into political actors opposed to the government.
Vargas David responded by stating that the media should align with neither the government nor the opposition, and that journalists should investigate every center of power without becoming political actors themselves.
He remarked that the world today is divided into two types of media. “There is a trend imported from the United States in which journalists and media organizations, both on the left and on the right, behave like political forces, and journalists behave like politicians. When news organizations believe that they are the news, and their mission is not to report on the news but to be the news, they enter the arena; they become part of the game,” Vargas David replied.
He further said that responsible journalism must not involve “undue influence or secret agenda” and that any attempt to influence journalism, directly or by pressure, will never work.
His assertion that Alpac supports serious, “non-activist, Western-style journalism” prompted the union to seek clarification.
“Our journalists and editors have worked in accordance with the highest professional standards for years: they verify information, confront public officials with facts, and are accountable to the public rather than to political or proprietary interests,” the union stated.
“That is not called activism. It is called journalism,” they added.
The union also noted that “all relevant international journalist organizations view N1 exclusively as a professional media outlet of critical importance to pluralism of opinion in Serbia, whereas allegations of alleged ‘activism’ have thus far come only from government representatives.”
It added that the CEO’s remarks in his open letter to Information Minister Boris Bratina appear more like a message aimed at employees than the person to whom the letter was formally addressed.
The union has requested guarantees that journalists acting in accordance with professional and ethical standards will not face sanctions, dismissal, or professional restrictions based on the topics they cover or the questions they ask.
“The distinction Vargas David made refers to journalism that scrutinizes every center of power, on the one hand, and journalism that adopts a political goal or becomes part of the events it reports on, on the other.”
The union also requested a meeting with Alpac Capital representatives and the commencement of collective bargaining.
Source: N1
