| Title: |
Assistance to a working group on media concentration |
| Description: |
|
| Status: |
Completed |
| Date: |
31/05/2006 - 01/06/2006
|
| Countries: |
Montenegro
|
| Contributors: |
|
| Programme: |
CoE Programmes (PoA and VC)
|
| Working Method: |
Organisation of meetings - Workshop (excl. training) |
| Location: |
Podgorica, Serbia |
| CoE Contact: |
THORHALLSSON, Pall
email
|
| Partners: |
|
| Web Pages: |
1 http://www.coe.int/media |
| Last Modified: |
04/01/2007 |
Activity Synopsis |
|
| Objective(s): |
The purpose of the activity was to work with the drafting committee that was formed to develop a law on concentration in the print media to ensure that the print sector remains as plural as possible given the very small population of the country. The expert worked together with the working group to develop a draft of the law based on Council of Europe standards and recommendations. |
| Output/Results: |
Following a presentation by the expert of his remarks regarding the existing draft (see attachment), a new and revised draft law has been agreed by the working group. The new draft version includes a set of new provisions and a percentage threshold ceiling that was agreed by all of the participants in the working group as the most suitable method to ensure pluralism in the newspaper sector. The preparation for the activity was undertaken by the Agency for Radio Diffusion and the Ministry of Culture and was well planned from the part of the local participants and the quality of discussion was good with a wide consensus as to the need for a law on print media pluralism and at the end of the seminar, the provisions needed. |
| Conclusions/Follow Up: |
Although it will require some time and resources, follow up will be essential. The expert has suggested that a final version of the draft is sent to the Council of Europe for final comments as soon as possible. There is urgency behind the need for this law as there is growing speculation that increased concentration on the market may be imminent. In the view of the expert, the draft is very much improved and all of the too far reaching provisions that existed in earlier drafts have been removed in order that the instrument reaches Council of Europe standards. The only outstanding issue are the penalty provisions and these need to be checked against the Montenegrin legal system. |
| Participants: |
The working group was comprised of the Deputy Minister for Culture, representatives of the Agency for Radio Diffusion and NGO representatives working in the media field. |
| Consultants/Experts: |
M. David WARD |
| CoE Secretariat: |
Mr Pall THORHALLSSON |
| Total No. Participants: |
10 |
| Last Modified: |
14/06/2006 |
