Slovenia Bulletin: New government promises efforts toward greater media pluralization

četrtek, december 09, 2004

New government promises efforts toward greater media pluralization

The newly installed government is planning to work towards realizing one of conservatives’ traditional demands: greater pluralization of the media. The idea of creating a special governmental fund is once again being floated, but this time it is likely to go forward. Previously, the liberal-led government refused to go along with the plan.

A spokesman of the Slovene Democrats (SDS) told the press that the fund should be established by 2006 at the latest, and will be based on western models. Sweden in particular was named as a possible template [BWF / 05.12.04 / Media Fund to Be Created]

According to the daily Finance, the Swedish model foresees subsidies to small newspapers, as well as government co-financing of the second-largest daily on the market. In the case of Slovenia, that paper is Dnevnik. The subsidies would be funded by a four-percent advertising tax. Subsidies in Sweden amount to just about three percent of the total cost of publishing a daily newspaper [Finance / 05.12.04 / Če bi bil Janša Šved, bi subvencioniral Dnevnik].

Finance, however, also pointed out that the even as the new government is calling for greater privatization and less of a role for the government in business, it is now about to set up shop in the media industry. The paper fears that the fund could turn into little more than a way for the government to influence the national media, and even to punish dissenting voices [Finance / 05.12.04 / Machiavellijevi tolarji za medije ].