Media in Montenegro from the perspective of citizens and journalists
Media in Montenegro from the perspective of citizens and journalists

Author(s): Damir Nikočević, Vuk Čađenović, Damir Suljević
Contributor(s): Daliborka Uljarević (Editor)
Subject(s): Media studies, Sociology, Policy, planning, forecast and speculation
Published by: Centar za građansko obrazovanje (CGO)
Keywords: Montenegro; media; perspective of citizens and journalists;
Summary/Abstract: The emergence of a multi-party system in Montenegro was simultaneously accompanied by the development of the media scene through the formation of the first private media. This parallel would have no significance in societies with developed democratic and institutional mechanisms, but it does in a society where political and media intertwining is intense. The fourth branch of government, as the media are often informally called, has the role of guardian of the public interest. In this context, the trust of citizens is crucial for the media that aspire to be the serious actors. Within the general decline of journalistic standards, followed by ratings based on reality television programmes in which violence and light entertainment dominate, trust is what the media must strive for. In the harsh struggle for survival, in which marketing income often prevails over objective, professional and independent journalism, the fundamental functions of serious media such as informative, control and educational are easily forgotten. Therefore, it is not surprising that public opinion findings indicate that the vast majority of citizens (87.2%) consider that the media in Montenegro are willing or somewhat willing to publish sensational information that are not verified at all or insufficiently verified to increase circulation and ratings. At the same time, research of citizens’ perceptions of the media indicates that almost half of them consider that media in Montenegro are not impartial, and almost half of them think that media use facts mixed with rumours. The role of journalists in protecting the interests of citizens is enormous, and the only proper manner to respond to that responsibility is to remain committed to the profession, no matter who holds the levers of power. In a time of misinformation and fake news, a journalist is the regulator of the content given to the public. Even the best self-regulatory and regulatory bodies are not strong enough mechanisms if there are no journalists with integrity, ready to protect the dignity of their profession. Journalists should oppose any internal and external manipulations of various interest groups through credible reporting. In addition to empirical research, we conducted 10 profound, qualitative interviews with journalists, editors and media owners of different generations and genders, from the local and national levels. The publication also provides insight into their attitudes on the environment for the media work in Montenegro, the status of journalists, the role of the media in democratizing society, journalism ethics, influence on the work of the media (internal and external), sensationalism in the media, investigative journalism, economic sustainability of the media, etc. The additional value of this publication is that the responses of citizens and media representatives to identical questions can be compared in one place. Thorough, qualitative interviews with journalists, editors and media owners conducted and processed researchers of the Centre for Civic Education (CCE). On the other hand, expert support in conducting a public opinion poll, from 20 to 25 March 2021, was provided by the Damar agency, with application of the CAPI method, and with a random stratified sample of 991 adult respondents. Similar research on citizens’ attitudes was conducted by the Damar agency in 2018, which enabled comparative insight into the set of issues that can be valuable for understanding the complexity of the situation in the media sphere and planning further media policies, but also as an indicator of changes in certain aspects covered within this research. We owe special gratitude to the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Embassy of the Kingdom of Norway and the Balkan Trust for Democracy of the German Marshall Fund of the United States (BTD) who supported the production of this publication through the project “Media for Me!”, implemented by the CCE.

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