Political clientelism in Serbian media - the case of the Tanjug news agency

Abstract

The paper problematizes the presence of political clientelism in the media in the Republic of Serbia. The aim of this research is to point out the examples of establishing mechanisms of clientelistic practice in the media, using the News agency Tanjug as an example. Three analytical categories, which are relevant for perceiving the problem of clientelism, have been included: regulatory framework, financial allocations from the state budget and the reporting of the news agency Tanjug. The results of the research show that the illegal functioning, the unsolved ownership issue, non-transparent financing and unprofessional reporting are characteristics of the media work of Tanjug agency. According to the law, the former state agency was scheduled to stop work by the end of 2015. However, Tanjug still, with unclear legal status and significant financial help from the state, publishes information, some of which were proven to be disinformation. The analysis of examples of unobjective and unprofessional reporting points out to the ignoring of public interest, in order to satisfy the particular interest of the governing political structure, which financially makes Tanjug?s functioning possible, in an illegal manner. This case represents a closed circle of interrelationships on the relation politics-economy-media, through which clientelism is defined, using quid pro quo practice.