BANJA LUKA, 05.09.2018. – During the pre-election campaign media face specific professional and ethical challenges, including compliance with legal regulations and codes, as well as frequent political pressures, sometimes in the form of threats and even physical attacks on media professionals. Professionalism and ethics in work, as well as solidarity among colleagues, are the best defense of journalists against all pressures, said journalists today in at the conference “Meeting the elections: media coverage during the pre-election campaign” held in Banja Luka.
At the conference, the monitoring of media reporting during the election campaign was announced.
Media monitoring in the pre-election campaign for the General Elections is conducted on a sample of a total of 30 media of all formats and from all over BiH, in the period from September 7 to October 10, 2018, based on a customized methodology created by university professors from Banja Luka and Sarajevo ” , said the General Secretary of tBH Journalists Association Borka Rudic.
„Intimidation and attacks directed at journalists arebecoming more frequent on the before the election, and the practice of relativizing the attack on journalists, which we testify in public speech, is especially worrying“, said Siniša Vukelić, president of the BHJA Journalists Club Banja Luka and added that media have a great responsibility to adhere to ethical principles and laws in order to preserve the dignity, image and reputation of the profession.
Speaking about the international standards and obligations of the media in the pre-election process, Mladen Bubonjić, editor-in-chief of the information portal Gerila.info, pointed out that political actors agreed with their involvement to be subject to supervision and public criticism, especially through the media.
„For the democratic environment and the work of the media in the pre-election period, it is particularly important to enjoy the freedom of satire which allows for a higher degree of exaggeration, even provocation, until the public is deceived by the facts“, he said.
„When reporting on the pre-election activities of political subjects, the media should pay more attention to specific topics and put them in the focus of their reporting in a way to make more specific stories that have an analytical approach“, said Borislav Vukojević senior assisted on the Faculty of Political Science in Banja Luka, when presenting recommendations for more quality reporting and better understanding of professional responsibilities and the in the pre election campaign.
Elma Džaferović from the Regulathory body recalled on the media’s responsibility and role of this regulatory agency in the pre-election period. „Journalists and hosts in electronic media are not allowed to present in their regular and special programs their possible affiliation or affection“, emphasized Džaferović.
During the campaign RAK will monitor 7 broadcasters.
„This year, 234 media are obliged to monitor the pre-election campaign. A comprehensive monitoring program for such a large number of broadcasters is not possible due to objective restrictions of the Agency“, said Džaferović.
Participants in the Banja Luka conference sent a public protest to the journalists of RTRS and ATV for unprofessional reporting on the attempted murder of BN TV journalists by Vladimir Kovacevic and the targeted reduction of the consequences of this crime. These two television stations, without prior checking and consulting Kovačević himself, on the day of his departure from the hospital, published incorrect information about the donor funds that Kovačević allegedly received from foreign donors. Thus, the RTRS and ATV directly placed the target on the head of the colleague Kovačević, and further jeopardized his and his family’s safety. This is contrary to all journalistic principles and human norms, and participants in the conference require the public apology of the RTRS and ATV editors for this unprofessional procedure.
We recall that the Steering Comitte of BHJA called out all media, but especially the PBS’s, to stop transmitting statements by individual politicians and texts of tabloids and portals without an impression, since their irresponsible and unprofessional conduct, uncritically transmitted texts and statements put a target on certain media and journalists.
The conference „Meeting the elections: media coverage during the election campaign“ gathered 20 media professionals from Banja Luka, and was held within the BASE project financed by the European Union and USAID, and implemented by a consortium of BH journalists Association- Boram and the Coalition Pod lupom.