On Sunday, they were employed in Belgrade pro-regime propaganda magazines founded their own association – Journalists' Association of Serbia. Among the most famous names of that association are Dragan J. Vučićević (Informer), Minja Miletić (Juronjuz), Gordana Uzelac, Predrag Sarapa, Srđan Predojević and Jovana Jeremić (Pink), Milomir Marić (Hepi), Saša Milovanović (Serbian Telegraph)... Faces and names from Tanjug and Television K1 are conspicuously missing.
Does this society really need another journalist association? In principle - no, but, on the other hand, why not? Association is free and it is always good to gather and unite people who are for something. The problem is that these are useless. They have come together solely to demonstrate that they are against it. Now, that association against some phenomenon is also in order. The problem arises when a group unites against specific individuals. Not against someone's actions or, what if, opinions and attitudes, but against someone's existence and living on planet Earth.
Why would these people join forces?
Indeed, there is no strong reason to connect the bought, the super-rich and the morally debatable, who already cover an incredible three-quarters of the media market, even more closely on the media scene. In the end, they are already connected and connected with each other.
The president of the newly founded association is Ivana Vučićević, chief and responsible editor of Studio B, who announced in her speech that she will promote the "ethical code of journalism". The colleague and newly elected president of the newly founded association, as expected, shows symptoms of "catacism". Because there is no "ethical code of journalism", but the Serbian Code of Journalists.
Yes, sometimes we all call it simply "code" or "code of ethics", but in an official address, and that is the speech at the assembly of the association, we are obliged to use the full and proper name of the document that is the basis of our profession. Of course, ours, not theirs.
Duplication syndrome
Of course, the establishment of ANS is a consequence of the fact that the repressive regime is falling. One of the most interesting consequences of that decline is the creation of a parallel society within society. Serbia has students, but the regime has created its own "students 2.0". We also have rebellious citizens, everywhere, throughout the country. And we also have simulants in the occupied Pionirski Park, criminals who pretend to be a rebellion in Čaciland. Serbia has some citizens' associations, which, among other things, deal with election observation, but the regime has created falsified associations for itself. We, Serbia, also have media that are independent from pressures. But here, someone thought to gather all those addicted to pressure and repression in one place.
These are all scenes for a play, and the audience for which the play is intended is only one man, the outgoing president of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić. It is not easy for him, because since November he has witnessed his political end and is trying to resist it. However, the end of his rule is inevitable, and with this kind of bludgeoning, Vučić will not prolong his survival in power. It only prolongs the end, which I guess we have understood for all these months - the process. Basically, he's just prolonging his own agony.
And these media propagandists, instead of announcing what is obvious to them, that the end is in progress, continue to play to the rhythm dictated by Vučić. Why? Because they worked like that for 13 years and now they don't know any other way. They don't even know what the Code of Journalists of Serbia is called, let alone how to apply it.
