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"The public service has failed to fulfill its mandate for many years. It has remained silent, turned a blind eye, reported events one-sidedly and uncritically, failed to ask the right questions, or even asked them at all. For this, we owe our viewers an apology." A TV presenter broadcast these words at the start of a news program last week.
The thirty-second statement, a rare live apology, was broadcast by Serbia's public broadcaster Radio Television of Vojvodina (RTV). The station serves the northern province of Vojvodina.
The apology came the day after Serbian parliamentary elections. At that time, President Aleksandar Vučić conceded defeat to a student-led movement, ending fourteen years of his party's political dominance. During this period, the government exerted strong influence over much of the country's media.
In the days that followed, news program editors and top managers at RTV and Serbia’s national public broadcaster resigned. Media observers have noticed that opposition voices are beginning to appear on news and debate programs, something that had been extremely rare in the past.
RTV's apology quickly spread on social media and attracted international attention. What's the reason behind this?
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"We turn a blind eye"
The apology was broadcast on Monday, October 26, the day preliminary vote counts confirmed the victory of the student-backed list, and was broadcast for the first time on RTV's flagship news program.
RTV editor Marija Stokuća, who wrote the apology, explained that after the election, some journalists in the newsroom voluntarily stepped aside to allow others to take over the news programme.
“This wasn’t the first time we asked for change,” she said. “This time, management agreed.” Stokuca, who worked elsewhere in the newsroom, was nominated by colleagues to help lead the effort.
End of Hot Reading
She told the BBC that dissatisfaction within the network had existed for ten years. "Some RTV staff have been waiting for a long time for changes so that our reporting would be objective and in the public interest."
According to Stokuca, journalists have repeatedly warned that important news is either omitted or presented through a narrow political lens.
She also cited the collapse of the canopy at the Novi Sad train station as an example, which killed 16 people. On November 5, 2024, thousands of people took to the streets in silent marches demanding accountability, but RTV barely covered the incident.
Subsequent student-led protests and blockades also received limited coverage. The tragedy sparked months of mass protests and fueled the student movement that later challenged the government in elections.
"Public broadcasters should be a voice for all citizens and report on what is happening," Stokuca said. "It cannot be turned a blind eye, and we have been turning a blind eye in the past."
She stressed that there had been journalists within RTV who had objected to such editorial choices, but they lacked the power to change.
This week, Stokuca accepted a position as editor of the channel's news programming. The BBC contacted RTV's press office to inquire about its reporting. Newly elected RTV program director Predrag Novković responded by email, saying RTV "failed to fulfill its legal obligations to inform the public in a professional, objective, fair and timely manner."
"Serious issues such as high-level corruption and crime, threats to the physical and legal security of citizens, and the erosion of media freedom and freedom of expression are also ignored." Novkovic stressed that this mainly applies to flagship television news programs, as other radio and television programs manage to maintain "certain professional standards" despite often being under pressure from the ruling structure.
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Insider
News anchor Goran Eror, who read out the apology, said he worked a normal schedule that day. On arrival it was learned that the RTV editor-in-chief had been replaced and that Stokuca would be in charge of editing the news program in just a few hours.
"She sat down at the computer and we all gathered around her trying to help," Errol said. "It usually takes hours to prepare a news story, so many colleagues pitch in to help."
Stokuca wrote the apology, which was later read by Errol.
He said he was impressed by the response. "I think this apology is really healing," he said. "It shows that we are aware of what has happened over the past few years and that our editorial policy will be significantly different."
Symbolic meaning is greater than substantive meaning
Tanja Maksić, media policy analyst at BIRN Serbia, said the moment was significant but should not be mistaken for structural reforms.
"The reason why the transformation is so dramatic is that public broadcasters are not truly independent but are closely tied to political power," she said.
In her view, this apology reflects a sudden change in Serbia’s political environment rather than establishing a guarantee mechanism for editorial independence.
Maksich also acknowledged years of pressure from internal reporters to publicly challenge editorial policies. But she believes the mechanisms that enable political influence remain firmly in place. "This is more symbolic than substantive change," she said.
She also stressed that "reliance on state funding and politically influenced appointments to governing bodies remains."
In reality, Serbia's public service broadcasters coexist with private media, but both sectors are susceptible to state influence through funding and advertising. Independent media are under financial and political pressure, while sensationalism and partisan reporting increasingly dominate the Serbian media environment.
Earlier this year, the Serbian parliament approved continuing to provide budget support to RTV until the end of 2026 on the grounds that viewing fees alone are not enough to cover its operations.
RTV editor Stokuca, who wrote the apology, was careful not to exaggerate its significance. She said, "No one should think that a 30-second apology is enough...Trust must be rebuilt day by day."
This article was originally written in English. We used artificial intelligence to assist in translation and was reviewed by BBC journalists before publication. Learn more about how we use artificial intelligence.
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