Monitoring Media Pluralism in The Digital Era – Country Report: Montenegro

Country report on Montenegro, conducted by an independent researcher Daniela Brkic, showcased risk levels with regards to each of those categories. Lower risk percentage scores suggest a better situation in that segment, and vice versa. By adopting such an approach, the report makes it easy to follow the annual change of the media environment in the country in question. 

First pillar – fundamental protection, scored the best at 43% risk. Fundamental protection is a regulatory backbone of the media sector. Best rated indicator here is the media authority, the Agency for Electronic Media which, based on the report, can be considered an independent and transparent body. Worst rated, on the other hand, is the Journalistic profession, standards and protection indicator that stands at 63% risk. Media quality falls short, and so does the protection of the journalists. What remains notable in the latter is impunity, related to the unresolved cases of murders of some journalists.

Secondly, market plurality came out to be at 73% (high risk) rate, highest of the four. Lack of plurality in media markets, as well as in digital markets, alongside the influencing of editorial policies by media owners, led to such a disappointing result. Most of the media outlets are owned by businessmen with political ties that impact the editorial policies and current regulation is lacking provisions that would treat this as a conflict of interest issue. 

Political independence (65% risk), an indicator that assesses political control over public service media (PSM), is a significant issue. The existing legal framework does not sufficiently prevent political interference in the appointment of PSM council members, managers, and editorial teams. Similarly, most of the commercial media outlets in Montenegro are editorially aligned to partisan views. The indicator within the political independence theme – editorial autonomy, scored a 97%, suggesting that editors-in-chief of most outlets are politically affiliated. 

Finally, social inclusiveness (70% risk) is focused on specific groups in society, such as minorities, women and people with disabilities, as well as on media literacy in the country. One positive development in this area is that the government decided to introduce media literacy as a subject in primary schools, which shows initiative in the right direction.

Report concludes with recommendations for each respective theme, such as:

• Protection of personal data, or rather the capacity to promote it, should be strengthened in order to make sure safety of journalists is guaranteed, especially given the grim history of journalist killings in the country
• Establishing a single ownership register for all media 
• Revision of the law on national public broadcaster - Radio Television of Montenegro (RTCG) in order to prevent the political interference on the Council
• Development of community media intended for vulnerable groups 

Overall, the report found medium level risk for media pluralism in Montenegro, stressing out certain indicators that are driving it up. The overall risk levels are within similar ranges as the countries in the region, showing that the media landscape for Candidate Countries is a field in which reforms and further work need to be done in order to reach the European standards. The recommendations point out possible solutions that could significantly help the process.