Members of the editorial staff of NIN recently learned from the media that the company "Ringier Srbija" transferred the ownership of the weekly with a long tradition and strong reputation - "out of the blue", without a hitch, to its long-time director Jelena Drakulić Petrović. The public wondered what was really happening there, what the plans were and how the story would end.
Many felt that it would not be good, because who gives up ownership of something that definitely has serious value. Especially if it is a company that cares so much about profit, for which money is both ideology and religion. Those who knew about Drakulić's closeness with the Vučić family were even more frightened.
The fate of the disobedient
With its editorial policy, NIN stood out compared to other editions of "Ringier", which has already shown so many times in Serbia - both for this and for the previous authorities - that it does not really care too much about any kind of public interest in the sphere of public reporting. And business in Serbia cannot be done without government.
If you are disobedient, not only will you be left without government advertisements, but private advertisers and agencies will not answer your phone either. It is well known. Just remember how "The Courier" ran out of ads when it played critical newspapers.
Look at how many advertisements there are in newspapers calling out Vučić and company. Controlling a huge percentage of advertising, more precisely all the money that goes to the media, both budgetary and other, the government becomes the editor-in-chief of almost all public media in the country. It must be said that this system was thought up in its initial form by the pre-progressive authorities, and that the people of Vučić only carried it out to the end, arrogantly and recklessly, as only they know how.
When the government is surprised
NIN was considered weakly influential. He represented the company as an ornament for the domestic and international public. It didn't cost much, and it didn't do much damage either. However, it was intended for a narrow audience, those who are not really Vučić's potential voters and who are capable of reading more complex content.
And then things started to change, the weekly had a great impact, not so much by circulation, but by revealing numerous affairs that found their way to a wide audience.
It would not be surprising if the paper was bothered, at least to some extent, by the famous NIN award for the novel of the year, which also goes to those who do not belong to the progressive cultural circle, and are not big enough patriots.
Who slammed his fist on the table?
And then someone, we know who, maybe both of them, slammed their fist on the table. And said: enough more bullshit, solve that problem if you want us to continue to be good. The plan was then worked out, actually simple. The company makes a decision to "tame" the weekly and put it at the disposal of the regime.
It has been estimated that the autocratic adaptation of a respected weekly, which will certainly have a significant impact, would cause damage to the company, and in the international framework. She then transfers ownership to a verified executor. This job, like other jobs before, he performs efficiently and ruthlessly, no doubt in constant communication with the Vučić family.
Well, Vučić's arrival in the newsroom and interview at the end of last year was a triumphant demonstration of conquest, that is, the occupation of "alien territory". It's just that no one waved flags at him and he didn't hand out chocolates to anyone. There will be more in the future, though.
