TWO BACK SIDES OF THE JOURNALISTIC MEDAL

Although it did not disclose anything unknown so far, the Dubrovnik gathering on the freedom of the media is valuable because of the prevailing atmosphere: it left, namely, perhaps a weak and fleeting hope, but hope nevertheless, that in the journalistic profession, or at least in its more significant part, awareness was slowly growing that it was necessary to stand up in defense of the fundamental principles of the profession. These principles have been profoundly shaken, not only by the state and party charges against numerous papers, but also by the passive attitude of most journalists who for fear, conformism or interest agreed to sell their soul, and walk in the media world without their own shadow.

AIM, OSIJEK, December 17,1994

All the participants in the Dubrovnik gathering, "The Media, Society and Politics in Croatia", held in mid- December in the organization of the German "Foundation Freidrich Naumann", close to the liberals there, have not yet even returned home and Zlato Canjuga, HDZ Secretary- General, has already seen through the "attempt of several journalists to represent themselves to the Croatian public as the yardsticks of the freedom of thought and media in Croatia". Naturally, Canjuga was not satisfied only with the mentioned claim - he immediately disclosed "their intellectual essence" also. These are naturally "the spiritual guides of socialism, transformed within the European framework", yet another group from the "handful of sold-out scoundrels", the pet name of the Croatian President for such "idiots".

The Dubrovnik gathering (which, in contrast to the HDZ Secretary-General, the author of these lines attended) gathered a rather motley group of journalists: the organizers cannot be blamed for determining its messages in advance by the choice of participants. That is why Canjuga's scalpel struck so quickly - he hurried, lest the methastases spread, to separate "several journalists" made of still healthy tissue. For, in addition to Ivan Zvonimir Cicak, Dr.Ivo Banac, Krsto Cvijic, Bozo Novak, Soros and Feral journalists, the gathering was attended by journalists from the state media - the Croatian Television, Radio, the Slobodna Dalmacija, the Vecernji List... And since during the two-day talks there was no awful quarrel between the "regime" and the "independent" journalists, but they talked calmly and openly, the authorities had to react so as not to allow the conclusions of the gathering - which easily tipped the scales towards the real freedom of the media, confirming the sickening picture of journalistic freedoms - to become the opinion of the majority.

The Croatian authorities are evidently still ready to tolerate the functioning of rare independent media (although trying, through various taxes like in the case of the Feral Tribune, to make their life difficult too. Since the introduction of the tax so far, the Feral has paid about DM 300,000 to the state!), because it, nevertheless, in a way gives it at least some sort of a democratic identity card abroad.

But, since at the Dubrovnik gathering on the media, the positions of the "regime" and "independent" journalists became so close, in favour of the latter, the authorities interpreted that as the sounding of a general alarm. The statement of the HDZ Secretary-General, who saw in the gathering also "liberal attempts to relativise the positive values of the building of the Croatian state at all levels, including the media", is therefore probably only the announcment of a new, God knows which, satanization of numerous internal enemies, which the regime in Croatia multiplies by geometrical progression.

Let us, however, go back to the Dubrovnik gathering on the media. Although it did not disclose anything unknown so far, the Dubrovnik gathering on the freedom of the media is valuable because of the prevailing atmosphere: it left, namely, perhaps a weak and fleeting hope, but hope nevertheless, that in the journalistic profession, or at least in its more significant part, awareness was slowly growing that it was necessary to stand up in defence of the fundamental principles of the profession. These principles have been profoundly shaken, not only by the state and party charges against numerous papers, but also by the passive attitude of most journalists who for fear, conformism or interest agreed to sell their soul, and walk in the media world without their own shadow. Although the gathering was not what is in statistics called a representative sample, one can hardly escape the impression that not much time will pass until journalists in Croatia start organizing themselves, at least like the railway workers, who - at the same time - precisely on those days showed the authorities what it looked like when the locomotives were not running.

Some data presented in Dubrovnik on the state of papers and journalism in Croatia confirm the theses of some analysts, that the social factor, rather than the ethical one could homogenize the dispersed "star dust" of the Croatian part of Gutenberg's galaxy. The average journalists pay in Croatia today is about DM 400, so that if the recent statement of the Croatian Prime Minister, Nikica Valentic, that the average salary in the state is about DM 500, is correct, than the wages of journalists are below the average. In the structure of reproduction costs of daily papers in Croatia, the share of salaries ranges from 10 (the Vecernji List) to as much as 32 percent (the Glas Slavonije). Journalists of the Slobodna Dalmacija are best paid, and of the Glas Slavonije the worst. In all newspaper houses, somewhere more and somewhere less, but most often only symbolically, journalists are also co-owners of the papers they work for. But, dividends for the paid shares have not, for the time being, brought almost anyone even a kuna (Croatian national currency) of profit. The only exception is the Rijeka Novi List.

In the structure of costs, one of the largest items is the money spent on the distribution of the paper. It accounts for almost a third of the entire costs - 28 percent. But, all the papers are equally dissatisfied with the manner of distribution, which is in organizational and technical terms, below all European standards. The share of paper in the structure of newspaper production costs ranges between 20 to 30 percent, the costs of printing vary from issue to issue: the lowest printing costs amount to 12 percent and the highest to almost twice as much - 23 percent.

If the facts presented in Dubrovnik can be considered reliable, the circulation of all daily papers in Croatia is growing. In all fairness, today there is no association of journalists, like the former Business Community of Newspaper Publishers, which used to monitor circulation trends and the financial operations of newspaper houses, publishing from month to month not only circulation graphs, but also the credit-worthiness of individual publishers. Nonetheless, increased circulation does not mean the concurrent improvement of the material position of the publisher. Even the strongest ones, which certainly include the "Europa Press Holding", which in addition to the Globus and the Glorija, both with large circulations, admitted several previous publications of the Vijesnik (the Arena, the Mila...) to its "cartel", fired 14 journalists a few days ago, although until recently it was considered a "journalists paradise".

The facts presented at the Dubrovnik gathering on the financial position of newspaper houses - although mentioned only incidentally under the item "The Printed Media under the Scissors of the Market and State" - did not, in tone, considerably differ from the story about the freedom of the media. It turned out that the media medal had two reverse sides. Most interesting is by all means the fact that individual "regime" journalists also publicly spoke of the (non)freedoms they enjoy. Damir Matkovic, a journalist of Croatian television, for instance, publicly said that both the picture and tone were manipulated in the informative shows of Croatian television. Matkovic illustrated his claim by an incident which occurred during President Tudjman's visit to Sarajevo.

In the first information programme the picture of Tudjman's short walk through Sarajevo was accompanied by the original, so called "international" tone, which clearly transmitted the booing and loud protests of the Sarajevans who were standing around. This "editorial omission" was corrected in the News. A new tone was inserted, from an earlier gathering in Croatia, so that instead of the protests of the Sarajevans, cheering: "Franjo, Franjo" could be heard! Matkovic also spoke about "black lists" of persons who cannot appear on television. He did, however, add that they did not exist in written form, but that every editor "knows" whom he may not call to be a guest. It happened to him personally with Dafinka Vecerina, whom he had to thank for participating, after having invited her to the show "Slikom na sliku" (Picture on picture) - before the show even began!

A lady journalist of the Croatian radio also mentioned an example of "free reporting" on Croatian Radio. She said that statements from the Cabinet of the President of the Republic must be read in their integral form, without any editing whatsoever on the part of the editor. When once the reply of President Tudjman to the singer Tereza Kesovija was read after some editorial corrections and shortening, immediately after the programme a phone call was received from the Presidential Palace and on the next News Tudjman's entire report was read.

Obviously, the "regime" journalists succumbed in Dubrovnik to a moment of truth and they spoke about the conditions under which they work. All this was said publicly from the rostrum, before reporters of the Croatian media, who - probably themselves encouraged by what they heard - sent reports to their offices without autocensorship. Much more could be heard in the corridors of the Dubrovnik gathering, but it would not be fair to publish what was said in confidence. Undoubtedly, some, like Damir Matkovic from Croatian Television, will have problems enough because of what they said publicly. Namely, Matkovic's former colleague from television, Jozo Djuric, now public relations officer in President Tudjman's Cabinet, strongly reacted to Matkovic's statement in Dubrovnik on the replacement of the picture and tone.

Djuric's statement, as befits everything coming from the President's Cabinet, was broadcast without editing. What will happen to Matkovic and will the omnipotent director of the "cathedral of the Croatian spirit", Antun Vrdoljak, turn off both his picture and tone - remains to be seen.

DRAGO HEDL