A Serbian social research organization said that reporting on the European Union by national media is mainly neutral.

The Bureau for Social Research (BIRODI) said that its monitoring of main news shows between August 1 and December 31, 2018 showed that electronic media with national frequencies and the daily press just reported on activities involving Serbian officials and the EU.  

It added that the German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung’s assessment that reporting on the EU by media close to the Serbian president was wrong. “Reporting about the EU by the (pro-Vucic) TV Pink is more positive than negative while the Informer tabloid’s reporting on the EU is negative,” Birodi said in a press release, adding that except for European Commissioner Johannes Hahn and High Representative Federica Mogherini, all other EU officials are just barely present in the media.  

“What is clear, based on seven years of media monitoring, is that the EU does not have an adequate communication strategy in Serbia,” Birodi said.