РЕГИСТРАЦИЈА ЈАВНИХ ГЛАСИЛА
Registration of Media Outlets

Summary/Abstract: The registration of media outlets has been a current issue in Serbia ever since the media register was established by the Act Amending the Public Information Act. The Constitutional Court of Serbia subsequently ruled that respective provisions of that Act were unconstitutional. The author analyzes the international standards and comparative legislative solutions on a number of questions which need to be answered when the media register is being introduced. The fisrt question is whether to introduce a single register for all the media outlets or several registers which would acknowledge the differences between the print, broadcasting and Internet media in terms of the legitimate scope of their regulation. There is also a number of questions concerning the purpose of introducing the media register, its content, i.e. data that shall be registered, the authority which shall keep the register and its status vis-à-vis the public administration, as well as the instruments for encouraging media registration (sanctions, benefits). Further on, the author considers the possible alternatives to introducing the media register, which may serve to accomplish the same goals. In addition, the author analyzes the international standards and comparative legislation which ensure the transparency of media ownership and prevent the prohibited media concentration, as the most frequently proclaimed aims for media registration. In the final part of the paper, the author examines the Serbian legislation on this issue and discusses the possibilities for de lege ferenda regulation of this matter, especially taking into consideration the Strategy for the Development of the Public Information System in the Republic of Serbia.

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