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Serbian National Assembly passes two media laws — Law on Public Information and Media and Law on Electronic Media — on October 26, 2023 (142 votes in favour, 18 against, 15 abst…

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Serbian National Assembly passes two media laws — Law on Public Information and Media and Law on Electronic Media — on October 26, 2023 (142 votes in favour, 18 against, 15 abstentions). Key provision: exception allowing "a capital company that carries out electronic communications activities" to own media, specifically designed to legalize Telekom Serbia's media ownership. Reverses 2014 law requiring state and state-owned companies to divest media. Effectively legalizes what Telekom had been doing illegally since 2021 (Euronews Serbia via Arena Channels Group). Second enabling provision: restructures REM council selection — members now chosen by National Assembly rather than independent process, creating institutional leverage over media regulation. Passed under urgency procedure immediately before parliamentary dissolution for December 2023 elections. EU Commission flagged as contradicting Serbia's own 2020 Media Strategy and commitments to reduce state media ownership to zero. DUAL ENABLING FUNCTION: (1) Clears legal path for Telekom acquisition of Kurir/Mondo INC (activated January 2026, SRB-CAMP-012); (2) Restructures REM selection enabling executive interference (trigger for SRB-CAMP-012 authorization cascade, January 2026). Coalition for Media Freedom: "the first openly revisionist law, which by returning the state to media ownership simultaneously opposes European standards."
country
Serbia
date text
26/10/2023
entities
sources
  • citation
    Balkan Insight October 26 2023 (https://balkaninsight.com/2023/10/26/serbian-parliament-adopts-controversial-media-laws/); European Federation of Journalists October 2023 (https://europeanjournalists.org/blog/2023/10/04/serbia-new-draft-media-laws-represent-another-step-backward-for-media-freedom/); IPI December 2023 (https://ipi.media/deus-ex-lex-the-long-and-tortured-road-of-serbian-media-reform/); Media Ownership Monitor Serbia 2023 (https://serbia.mom-gmr.org/en/findings/transparency/)
tactics
narratives
campaign ids
campaign phase
Stage 6: Structural Enabler
campaigns served
channels
  • Parliament
civic response
Coalition for Media Freedom condemns law; EFJ/MFRR calls for withdrawal of problematic provisions; EU Commission flags contradiction with Media Strategy; media associations walk out of drafting process
consequence category
Legal/Administrative
created at
2026-09-24T17:50:55.358311+00:00
date precision
day
enabler status
Active
enabler type
Legislative Framework
escalation
6
harm track
Track 1 — Legal/Administrative
id
SRB-063
institutional consequence
State media ownership legalized through Telekom; REM council selection restructured under parliamentary control; Telekom acquires Kurir January 2026; REM process becomes trigger for SRB-CAMP-012 authorization cascade
notes
STRUCTURAL ENABLER — dual function legislative act. Passed under urgency immediately before Dec 2023 elections — timing aligned with 5-year Telekom-Mondo contractual purchase window. Not a standalone media law reform — purpose-built enabling legislation. Cross-ref: SRB-053 (Telekom/Kurir acquisition Jan 2026) is the activation of this enabler. Cross-ref: SRB-052 (Vučić Jan 7 2026 authorization) triggered by REM restructuring enabled by this law. SRB-CAMP-011 host campaign — pre-election delegitimization 2022-2023 — law passed at tail end of that campaign period. TC-49 added: 2023 Law on Electronic Media included provision allowing REM to function without full council — legislative enabler of the 18-month paralysis documented in SRB-102. SRB-063 is the statutory foundation; SRB-102 is the operational deployment.
occurred on
2023-10-26
signal ids
trigger type
TR-04: Electoral Event
updated at
2026-09-24T17:50:55.358311+00:00
version
1

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