Eastern Europe, the Newly Independent States of Eurasia, and Russia

Eastern Europe, the Newly Independent States of Eurasia, and Russia

Background • Evolution of mass media during the post-communist transition period has been uneven and, at times, turbulent and chaotic • Communist-style governance continues to haunt those working for media reforms • Threats and intimidation often pose threat to journalists’ lives and independence • Often work without adequate economic support: leaves them vulnerable to bribes, extortion, other forms of payoffs

Background • Governments increasingly have sought to impose serious legal limitations on the exercise of freedom of the press • Most media in Russia exist in shadow of public and political favor • Venture capital from abroad accompanied by sensationalized tabloid treatment of news • Press has sharp decrease in circulation since the early 1990s, because of economic distress and because of lack of consumer confidence

Background • Infrastructure of print media (equipment, facilities, distribution systems) remains generally inadequate • Although many nations have enacted civil codes consistent with Western standards, the ambiguity of codes addressing “libel,” “defamation,” “ridicule,” “derision,” and “insults” allows courts the wide latitude

Media Developments in Eastern Europe • Development of the press, TV, and radio remains key to a civil society in E. Europe • All share histories of aristocratic rule, colonial struggle, authoritarianism, uncertain path toward democratic reform • Prior to political reform, censorship and self-censorship dominated the media • Suspicion of democratic ideas and institutions made it difficult to embrace change

Media Developments in Eastern Europe • Considerable progress in most countries where parliaments expanded independence of both public and private media through laws on free access to information • Partisanship, politicization, advocacy, and literary bent were shared tradition of most journalists where profession was practiced mostly by intellectual/ political classes

Media Developments in Eastern Europe • Media growth in the 1990s defied commercial rationale, was divorced from a rich civil society that it could claim it directly represented, and was primarily politically motivated

Eastern European countries • Former Yugoslavia and the Balkan States • Czech and Slovak Republics • Poland • Hungary • Romania • Bulgaria • Albania

Unresolved tension between government and mass media • Many government officials award incentives to compliant journalists • Governments offer “most deserving” journalists money, gifts, or holidays • Problem lies in inclusion of defamation laws in penal codes. Those found guilty of any infractions under a penal code could serve time in prison • Free press advocates concerned about influence of organized crime in operation of mass media • Physical attacks/ threats on journalists

Growing popularity and influence of electronic media • Mushrooming of radio and TV stations • Also access foreign radio/ TV transmissions

Authoritarian roots persist in government-media relations • Post communist governments in E. Europe retain authoritarian habits and tendencies and continue to politicize decisions on media policies, laws, and regulations, and attempt to control or at least manipulate public broadcasting

Hammering out equitable media laws • Post-communist laws addressing various aspects of media system and of journalism are sources of continuing controversy • Because East European governments often equate society with the state, thus demanding that public broadcasting represent the state, the mission of public TV and radio to serve society is not fulfilled

Hammering out equitable media laws • Access-to-information laws and laws protecting journalistic sources have been enacted, but slowly, and there is no uniformity in their interpretation and application by the courts

Concepts of Media Freedom & Accountability • East European constitutions provide for freedom of speech and of the press, and in general the governments respect these rights, but not without some reservations • Notion that the media are far too important to be left to their own devices and that public service broadcast media, in particular, are to serve the elected governments is still strongly held

Concepts of Media Freedom & Accountability • Definition and application of media freedom concepts and accountability have until recently been left to people and institutions outside the media systems. That is slowly changing, partly with help of professional organizations • Code of ethics have been formulated in all four east European countries, but the enforcement of journalistic ethics is uneven

Journalism Education & Training • Demise of communist regimes brought an explosion of journalism education and training programs, partly because of increased interest in journalism once it was no longer related to the state and the Marxist-Leninist ideology, and partly because Western media aid packages contained educational and training elements

Newly independent states • Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania • Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova • Transcaucasia: Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan • Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Krgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan

Future of East Central Europe’s Media • Depends largely on economic factors, but even more on the evolution of political culture and politics • What readers, listeners, and viewers will demand of the media, and the direction in which journalism will develop, will be determined by their practical definitions of democracy and citizenship

Future of Media in the Region • Internet is generally not regulated and is subject to no control by governments in the region, perhaps because some still underestimate its scope and reach. • Internet cafes have opened in spartan areas • Government efforts to regulate Internet services have been unsuccessful

Media in the Newly Independent States • More than a decade after the collapse of the Soviet Union, optimism about the ease of such a transition has given way to a recognition of the complex challenges such transitions present • For all these nations, democratization has been a struggle, and the development of both independent media and the civil and cultural climates to support it has been fraught with difficulty

Media in the Newly Independent States • Transition to life after communism in the newly independent states differs regionally • All nations face challenges along the path to self-governance, there are qualitative differences in culture and politics • Each state has provision for free speech and media independence in its constitution laws are not recognized in practice

Organizations • International Freedom of Expression Exchange • Committee to Protect Journalists • Reporters San Frontiers • Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations • Government-sponsored: Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Radio Free Europe, U.S. State Department • NGOs: European Institute for the Media, International Federation of Journalists, Human Rights Watch, Soros Foundation

Contemporary Russian Journalism’s Problems and Opportunities • Development of journalism in Russia can be divided into three major parts: the pre-Soviet period, which includes early days of journalism, 19th century journalism, and journalism in the early 20th century; the Soviet period (1917-1985), which includes the Soviet period as well as changes during perestroika and glasnost; and the Gorbachev and post-Soviet period (1985, when Soviet Union collapsed to the present)

Censorship in Russia • Since the government brought the media to Russia, it had to guard the press content, so that the press could serve the government • Complex structure: Government officials of many levels had to read newspapers and journals regularly and were required to report on potentially harmful materials • Authors would be investigated/ prosecuted

Censorship in Russia • Many newspapers and journals were shut down as a result of censorship activities • Most Russian writers and publicists of the pre-Soviet era were exiled from the capitals

Contemporary Russian journalism • Took a gigantic media system, divided it into parts, made independent media out of it • Human and material resources have allowed fairly easy restructuring of the media, not start from scratch, except for Internet

Freedom of speech in Russian mass media • Important to study freedom of speech in country that has a long history but a brief democratic tradition

Legal Aspects of Freedom of Information • Russia meets European standards of human rights, including freedom of information • Have never been applied in practical terms to court proceedings that involve freedom of information disputes • Mass media law often is not enforced, not supported in practice • Mass media stay uninvolved in public debates because of self-censorship phenomenon

Public aspects of Freedom of Information • Also struggles to find its place in debates • If at beginning of perestroika, public was active about promoting freedom of info. and defending its rights, today public is less involved in debates on freedom of speech • Some govt actions have contributed to public’s disappointment and withdrawal

Eastern Europe, the Newly Independent States of Eurasia, and Russia