Law as an Instrument for Political Influence over Kosovo’s Public Broadcaster

• Main Author: Rexha, Gjylije
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: UBT Knowledge Center 2015
• Subjects: public broadcaster; RTK; editorial independence; political instruments; Communication; North Atlantic
• Online Access: https://knowledgecenter.ubt-uni.net/conference/2015/all-events/13; https://knowledgecenter.ubt-uni.net/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2056&context=conference

Politics uses its instruments to exert influence over the public media. The main instrument that politics uses is the law – as the grounds which regulate the rapport between the public media and the political power. Examples of the most independent public broadcasters can be found in those countries where politics has adopted and executed such legislation that limits the possibility of politics to exert influence over the main components related to the independence of the public media. In the case of the Radio Television of Kosovo – RTK, politics has failed to follow this practice notwithstanding that RTK has been established based on models of the public broadcasters in countries representing the Democratic -Corporatist and North-Atlantic Models. The political power in Kosovo has used the law as an instrument to exert influence on the two main parameters related to the editorial independence of the broadcaster: the manner of financing and the election of the medium’s Board. The model of influence has not changed in sp ite of changes made within the RTK’s founding institution or by changes of political forces in power. RTK went through only one five-year spell of pre-payment during which time it underwent the transformation into a company that is financially independent. However, that same period demonstrated that financial independence alone without managerial independence is no guarantee for editorial independence. The consequences of such influence are reflected on the editorial policies and program content, which render this broadcaster that has the legal status “public” into a medium that serves as a “loudspeaker” for the voice of the political power.