HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMUNICATION REGULATORY AGENCY IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 1998 – 2005 A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Communication of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts Adin Sadic March 2006 2 This thesis entitled HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMUNICATION REGULATORY AGENCY IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 1998 – 2005 by ADIN SADIC has been approved for the School of Telecommunications and the College of Communication by __________________________________________ Gregory Newton Associate Professor of Telecommunications __________________________________________ Gregory Shepherd Interim Dean, College of Communication 3 SADIC, ADIN. M.A. March 2006. Communication Studies History and Development of the Communication Regulatory Agency in Bosnia and Herzegovina 1998 – 2005 (247 pp.) Director of Thesis: Gregory Newton During the war against Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) over 250,000 people were killed, and countless others were injured and lost loved ones. Almost half of the B&H population was forced from their homes. The ethnic map of the country was changed drastically and overall damage was estimated at US $100 billion. Experts agree that misuse of the media was largely responsible for the events that triggered the war and kept it going despite all attempts at peace. This study examines and follows the efforts of the international community to regulate the broadcast media environment in postwar B&H. One of the greatest challenges for the international community in B&H was the elimination of hate language in the media. There was constant resistance from the local ethnocentric political parties in the establishment of the independent media regulatory body and implementation of new standards. The lack of a democratic heritage and the complex mix of cultures compounded the challenges facing the international community. This study uses internal documents, decisions and laws imposed by the OHR, first hand reports and communication from international experts who were involved in the establishment of the IMC and CRA. Evidence suggests the IMC was successful in the establishment of the fundamental principles for media regulation where previously no consistent principles existed. The IMC was also successful in licensing media outlets and in its transition to the CRA. The CRA achieved its goals of establishing the cooperation of broadcasters and the public. The CRA made significant progress in the protection of 4 copyrights and creating a solid base for the development of a fair and competitive media environment. As a result, hate language has nearly vanished from the B&H media, although there still remains work to be done. Several questions remain, however. There needs to be a better understanding of the failure of the OBN to involve the B&H media experts in developing solutions to the media problem and the inconsistency in applying the same set of standards for media warmongers in B&H and Rwanda. Approved: Gregory Newton Associate Professor of Telecommunications 5 Acknowledgments I would like to thank my graduate committee members Dr. Gregory Newton, Dr. Duncan Brown and Dr. Don Flournoy, who guided my work and made this study possible. Their ideas and advice were instrumental in formulating the theoretical concepts and methodological procedure for my thesis. Most importantly, I would like to thank Dr. Newton who constantly provided advice and a greater vision. I appreciate his hard work on the drafts and his suggestion that improved my work. I would like to thank writing tutor Micah Robinson for his contribution and creative advices, and Roger Hart who edited this study and made it suitable for the publishing at the Institute for Telecommunications Studies. Special thanks to Amela Odobasic, the Head of Public Affairs at the Communications Regulatory Agency in Bosnia and Herzegovina. My graduate program was made possible by the Ron Brown Fellowship Foundation, coordinated by the Institute of International Education. I would like to express my gratitude to the senior coordinator of the program, Dr. Nora Yepes and Tony Claudino, and especially to my academic adviser Dr. Don Flournoy. This thesis is for my mother Alija and father Kadrija. Their love and support gave me strength to accomplish my goals. 6 Table of Contents Page Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………3 List of Tables…………………………………………………………………………... 9 List of Figures………………………………………………………………………..... 10 Preface………………………………………………………………………………..... 11 Chapter 1: Overview of Media Regulations in Bosnia and Herzegovina before 1995.. 18 1.1. Media Regulations in the Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia….. 20 1.2. The Media Environment and Political Influences in Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Bosnia and Herzegovina Before 1995……..……………………………… 23 Chapter 2: Media Situation and Political Environment in Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Dayton Peace Accord 1995……………………………………… 37 2.1. Major Political Challenges in Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Dayton Peace Agreement….……………………………………………… 38 2.2. Position of the Media after the Dayton Peace Agreement….…………….. 43 Chapter 3: The Establishment of the Communication Regulatory Agency in Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1998–2001……………….……………….. 49 3.1. Significance of International Intervention in the Domain of Media in Bosnia and Herzegovina……………………………. 49 3.2. Establishment of the Independent Media Commission in 1998…..…….… 62 3.3. Establishment of the Communication Regulatory Agency in 2001………. 79 3.4. Theoretical Frame – Public Service Broadcasting – Serving the Public Interest as a General Principle of the International Media Intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina………....88 Chapter 4: Responsibilities and Jurisdictions of the Communications Regulatory Agency………………………………………108 4.1. Structure and Divisions of the Communications Regulatory Agency…………………………………….. 108 4.2. Funding of the Communications Regulatory Agency…………………….. 113 4.3. Jurisdictions of the Communications Regulatory Agency………………... 117 7 Chapter 5: Effects of the CRA on Liberalization of the Electronic Media Market and Short Analysis of the Media Market in Bosnia and Herzegovina………...................................... 122 Chapter 6: Content Regulation and Sanctions for Broadcasters………………………. 137 6.1. Rules and Codes of the Communications Regulatory Agency…………… 137 6.1.1. Law on Communications of Bosnia and Herzegovina……..…… 138 6.1.2. Broadcasting Code of Practice and Elimination of Hate Language From the Bosnia and Herzegovina Broadcast Media Environment………………………………….. 140 6.1.3. Rules for the Broadcast License Fees……………………..……. 147 6.1.4. Merit–Based Competitive Process for the Awarding of Long–Term Licenses…………………………..….. 148 6.1.5. General Terms and Conditions of License……………………… 150 6.1.6. Media Concentration and Cross Ownership……………………. 151 6.1.7. Public Broadcasting Regulations……………………………….. 153 6.1.8. Contribution of the CRA in Domain of Copyrights and Intellectual Property Rights Protection…………………………. 160 6.1.9. Breaches of Rules and Regulations…………………………...... 164 6.1.9.1. The Most Recent Decisions of the Communications Regulatory Agency in Preventing the Hate Language and Unfair and Deceptive Reporting....................................................................... 168 6.1.9.2. Protection of Public Interest – Decency and Civility – The Most Recent Cases………………………………. 172 6.2. Broadcasters’ Feedback on the Work of the Communications Regulatory Agency…………………………………….. 175 Chapter 7: Telecommunications Regulations and European Integration……………………..................................................................... 185 Chapter 8: Conclusions and Recommendations……………………………………….. 196 8.1. Conclusions……………………………………………………………….. 196 8.2. Recommendations……………………………………………………….... 205 References …………………………………………………………………………….. 209 Appendix A: The Important Social and Political Factors Leading up to 1980’s……… 223 Appendix B: President Tito’s Perception of the Freedom and Independency of the Press………………………………………….. 226 Appendix C: The Important Legal Factors Leading to the Limitations of the Freedom of the Press in Socialist Yugoslavia…………………………… 227 Appendix D: The Important Background Information About the Position of Sarajevo Radio-TV as a Member of the Yugoslav Radio-TV Network…………... 231 8 Appendix E: Position of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Bosnian Muslims in the Former Yugoslav Federation……………………………………… 234 Appendix F: How Historical Events Became More Important Than the Present………236 Appendix G: The Responsibility of the Sarajevo Media in the Early 1990’s and the Consequences of the Media Misuse and Ethnonational Propaganda……. 237 Appendix H: The Main Obstacles for the Development of the Bosnian Market……... 241 Appendix I: The First Big Success of the International Community in Integrating the Bosnian and Herzegovinian Civil Environment……………………… 243 Appendix J: Maintaining the Political Influence on Cantonal Public Broadcasters…... 245 Appendix K: Current Organizational Structure of the Communication Regulatory Agency…………………………………….. 246 Appendix L: Advertising Shares Among TV Stations in Bosnia and Herzegovina……247 9 List of Tables Page Table 3.2. Number of broadcasters in Bosnia and Herzegovina after Phase Two was finished………............................................................. 72 Table 4.1. Cash flow statement for the fiscal 2002, 2003 and 2003 was created according to the Communications Regulatory Agency Annual Reports for the Years of 2002, 2003 and 2004………………………………………