Covering Municipal Elections Proves a Difficult Task for the Media

AIM Pristina, October 25, 2000

A large number of media outlets in Kosovo, all of which applied with the OSCE for permission to monitor the election campaign in Kosovo, were given permits by that organization. Journalism in Kosovo is facing a very significant test of survival in conditions of transition. Coverage of local elections will be a serious challenge for the media in Kosovo.

A total of seven dailies, three TV stations, and five radio stations will be monitoring the elections scheduled for Oct. 28. The OSCE set several rules to regulate media coverage of the elections. These rules oblige the media to secure equal coverage for the election campaigns of all participating parties. This, however, has not happened yet and, what is worse, no one believes that it will. Though certain political parties have not been entirely shunned, it is likely that the media will not give minor parties even a portion of the coverage.

In Western democracies, news media are profiled according to whether they lean to the Right, Left or Center. In Kosovo, only the Bota Sot paper (printed in Switzerland, but sold in Kosovo) declares itself as Right-oriented. The other media outlets claim to be independent, and the majority of political parties centrist, but do not stress this openly. On the other hand, the broadcast media are still budding, the reason why many outlets do not carry editorials in their news. This is how they differ from the press, which does not hesitate to publish editorials.

Two types of donations are currently being given to the media in Kosovo. One segment of the media is definitely receiving party donations, the other foreign. The former defend their benefactors, while the latter pay little heed to the interests of political parties, their reporting being visibly freer. In general, the political differentiation of the media should be viewed as analogous to that of political parties. The Democratic Alliance of Kosovo, led by Ibrahim Rugova, is still regarded as the largest party, and enjoys the support of Bota Sot, whose circulation and market position are at the top. This paper, so to speak, has confrontations with politicians and public figures every week owing to its reports, often denied later. It is believed that exactly such articles were responsible for increasing the Democratic Alliance's electorate. The Alliance's biggest opponent, the Democratic Party of Kosovo, led by the former Kosovo Liberation Army leader, Hashim Thaci, is supported by three dailies: Dita, Rilindija and Epoka e Re. The Democratic Party is striving to equate its influence through the media via these three papers, though their net circulation is still less than that of the Bota Sot. Articles in these papers go from one extreme to the other. The Bota Sot accuses the rival Democratic Party of being a left-wing Marxist-Leninist party, even though the party's platform has no such elements. The other three papers deny these accusations, and on their part, accuse Ibrahim Rugova of committing "treason" during the war and frequently remind their readers of a meeting between Rugova and Milosevic during the NATO bombing of Serbian military positions. At the same time, Rilindija does not refrain from publishing up to four articles per issue against Rugova, regardless of whether the criticism is justified -- one could say: "at whatever the cost just to get Rugova." The other papers that claim to be independent, but depend on foreign donations, such as the Koha Ditore of Veton Surroi, the Kosovo Sot, published by Ruzhdi Kadriu and the Zeri, published by Blerim Shale, have almost equal circulations. They try not to give prominence to any particular party and hold a moderate position. However, analyses reveal these papers to have "hidden agendas" concerning certain political parties.

In addition to the Democratic Alliance of Kosovo (DAK) and the Democratic Party of Kosovo (DPK), the Alliance for Kosovo's Future, led by former KLA local commander Ramush Hajradinaj, and the Liberal Center of Kosovo, also led by a former KLA officer, Naim Maloku, are believed able of achieving results in upcoming elections. The Koha Ditore frequently gives prominent positions to articles on the Liberal Center of Kosovo, which is not the case when the DAK and DPK are concerned. The Zeri does likewise with the Alliance for Kosovo's Future.

The Kosovo Sot has oscillations. This paper has been on the defensive throughout the election campaign, but its coverage of the elections is unbalanced. One political party may receive more attention one day, another the next... Maybe this is because the paper wants to keep a neutral position, though people frequently criticize the paper for lacking a true editorial policy.

The most influential papers in Kosovo, the Bota Sot and Koha Ditore, are currently at odds, something that is evident even in their coverage of the political parties that they support. For instance, the Koha Ditore would never support Ibrahim Rugova in any way, even when it has good reason, the while Bota Sot, on the other hand, would defend him no matter what, despite the other dailies.

Not long ago, the leadership of DAK accused Koha Ditore's editors of political violence, after several activists of that party were attacked and a series of articles criticizing DAK's local chapters and members. The rivalry between the Bota Sot and Koha Ditore is also accompanied by ugly arguments on the account of one or the other paper and their editors. The Zeri daily recently joined the argument by attacking both papers and getting attacked in response. All of this tires readers and public figures, to the benefit of other papers like the Kosovo Sot, which has maintained a neutral position for two years.

How do the leading dailies reporting on the election campaign?

The Bota Sot, for example, included a very slanted article in a report on campaign posters. Below photos of posters bearing the DPK acronym and pictures of its candidates was the caption: "Photos that make the city look ugly," while a caption beneath photos of the DAK's and Liberal Party of Kosovo's posters read: "Who is tearing up posters?" The Bota Sot's partiality is noticeable in reports on DAK rallies. In the articles, the paper describes that party as the "main contestant," and "leading party," etc. The other three dailies that are close to the DPK, conversely, give prime coverage to the DPK and its campaign. These articles frequently capitalize on the KLA's role in attaining freedom and promise independence to the voters. When a meeting between U.S. ambassador Richard Holbrooke and Albanian leaders was held, Rilindija published a photograph of Thaci and Holbrooke, while the Bota Sot daily published a photograph of Rugova and Holbrooke... Those who lack the money to buy both papers are thus deprived of objective information.

A few weeks ago, the Bota Sot received stern warnings from some Albanians in the joint administration. One, Rexhep Qosja, a representative of a minor party, called the paper "fascist and anti-national." Qosja was revolted after the paper drew a parallel between Serb writer Cosic (whom Albanians are not very fond of) and him. This was supposed to send a message to the public that he had been "branded" a traitor. The paper was promptly visited by UNMIK chief Bernard Kouchner's representatives who seemingly managed to deter the paper from publishing further unscrupulous accusations against Rugova's opponent.

However, despite the limited echo of scandalous articles in papers of the opposing faction, the provisional administration did criticize the Dita paper and the Kosovo Press agency (supporters of Thaci) for blasting the DAK and Rugova for cooperation with Serb political structures, only two days before the election campaign commenced. Serious accusations against Rugova and his party were voiced, claiming that the had allegedly participated, together with the Serb national Council, in sending the names of former KLA members, involved in purported atrocities, to The Hague war crimes tribunal. The court's chief prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, was forced to deny this at a special press conference.

In a bid to avoid numerous irregularities and violations of professional ethics, the press signed a Memorandum on Mutual Understanding, which obliged all parties to professionally cover the elections campaign and elections. This temporary code was adopted by UNMIK, which prescribed punishments for breaches of the agreement. An OSCE's spokesman recently threatened to file charges in the name of the central election commission. Namely, some minor political parties complained of receiving unequal coverage in the media.

Domestic and foreign analysts generally agree that the election campaign, despite incidents, has so far been quiet. However, they also warn that tensions could increase as the vote nears, meaning a larger number of scandalous articles in the press or a clearer taking of sides by its members, even those papers that claim to be independent. This could mean risking foreign donations, which will depend in the future on the objectivity shown by the media during the elections. Some analysts believe that the already excessive number of papers, from a market standpoint, will drastically decrease after the elections.

Arber Aliu

AIM Pristina