NATIONAL INTEGRATION, MEDIA AND DEMOCRACY IN POST-MILOSEVIC SERBIA: SOCIALIST LEGACIES, NEOLIBERAL STRATEGIES by Vladan Pantie B.A. University of Belgrade, 1982 M.A. University of Oklahoma, 2001 DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the School ofCommunication © Vladan Pantie 2008 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Summer 2008 All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission ofthe author. 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APPROVAL Name: Vladan Pantie Degree: PhD Title of Thesis: National Integration, Media and Democracy in Post­ Milosevic Serbia: Socialist Legacies, Neoliberal Strategies Examining Committee: Chair: Dr. Robert Hackett, Professor Dr. Yuezhi Zhao Senior Supervisor Associate Professor, School of Communication Dr. Catherine Murray Supervisor Professor, School of Communication Dr. Richard Gruneau Supervisor Professor, School of Communication Dr. Dal Yong Jin Internal Examiner Assistant Professor, School of Communication Dr. Olessia Koltsova External Examiner Dean and Associate Professor, Sociology Higher School of Economics Petersburg, Russia Date Defended/Approved: ii SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Declaration of Partial Copyright Licence The author, whose copyright is declared on the title page of this work, has granted to Simon Fraser University the right to lend this thesis, project or extended essay to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. 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Bennett Library Simon Fraser University Burnaby,BC,Canada LIst revision: Summer 2007 ABSTRACT This dissertation offers a socio-historical analysis of media and democratization in post-Milosevic Serbia. The transformation ofSerbian media structures and practices is framed around competing notions of democracy and a clash between two opposing conceptions of national integration: the universalism of an egalitarian legal republic and the particularism of a community united by historical destiny, common language and culture. The ousting by the democratic opposition in 2000 of the authoritarian and nationalist Milosevic regime set in motion, in conjunction with the capitalist transformation of Serbia's economy and society, the development of democratic processes and institutions. In the process, domestic political elites and media reformers discounted participatory democracy as a form of media organizing, embracing instead the liberal and elitist notion of democracy advocated by Western governments and aid organizations. The complicated issues of national integration, state formation, and media in two consecutive historical periods, are critically reviewed highlighting ideological, structural and cultural legacies influencing Serbia's ongoing transformation. The media transformation process has centered on privatization and the construction of a legalistic regulatory framework, changes which have resulted in the alienation of Serbian media institutions from both from journalists and a society deeply ambivalent about the choice between universalism and particularism. The dissertation assesses both the elitist nature iii of the transformation and the controversial micro-dynamics ofpower as it operates among the agents of change. This dissertation argues that Serbia's unresolved questions of external and internal sovereignty have the integrative capacity of the democratization process less effective. Moreover, a form of integration through ethnic bonding still prevails and presents a powerful challenge to the still-embryonic social bonding achieved through democratic citizenship. The tension between the nationalistic and republican conceptions of democracy has contributed to the contradictory and volatile development of a Serbian constitutional democracy, public sphere and democratic media. The dissertation concludes that the polarized pluralist system of media and politics found in southern Europe also provides important insights guiding our consideration about the possible direction of the Serbian transformation. iv To Sue v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many special people have been involved in the process of conceptualising, researching, writing and revising this project. It is not always easy to express one's feelings and this section might be short and simple; however, its brevity does not in any way diminish my deep appreciation and love for the beautiful souls that I had the chance to meet during this process. There really are no words to express my gratitude. lowe a special debt to the beautiful spirits at the Simon Fraser's School of Communication. Neena Shahani and Lucie Menkveld: What wonderful people! Denise Vanderwolf, Monique Cloutier and Amy Soo: you were always there for me when I stumbled. A special thanks to my friends and colleagues Dr. Kathleen Cross, Ian Chunn and Susan Reaney. I am most grateful for our conversations,