Tamara Skrozza, a well-respected journalist and deputy editor-in-chief of the independent Serbian News Agency FoNet (https://fonet.rs/), has become the target of a coordinated smear campaign in Serbia. This campaign, which has been ongoing for three days, accuses Skrozza of making incendiary remarks during a TV appearance on TV N1 (https://n1info.rs/). These allegations are a blatant distortion of her words, taken entirely out of context.
The timing and uniformity of these attacks suggest an orchestrated effort to discredit Skrozza, an experienced journalist known for her critical stance and adherence to journalistic ethics. This situation is particularly alarming, as it recalls previous instances where Skrozza was similarly vilified, raising concerns for her safety and that of her family.
Such actions not only endanger Skrozza but also serve to intimidate independent journalists across Serbia, creating an atmosphere of fear and insecurity. As surprise came the reaction of the Ministry of Information and Telecommunications in Serbia, that instead to support Skrozza and protect her from the attacks, said in an official statement, that it “expresses its concern over the increasingly frequent manifestations of hate speech and open calls for violence and/or even the murder of dissenters that fill our public space. The most recent example is a part of the statement of Mrs. Tamara Skroza given in the program “Da sam ja neko” broadcast at the beginning of June this year on TV N1″ (in Serbian: Ministarstvo informisanja i telekomunikacija izražava zabrinutost zbog sve učestalijih manifestacija govora mržnje i otvorenog poziva na nasilje i/ili čak i na ubistva neistomišljenika kojima je ispunjen naš javni prostor. Najnoviji primer jeste deo izjave gđe Tamare Skroza dat u emisiji ,,Da sam ja neko“ emitovanoj početkom juna ove godine u programu TV N1. – more on the official webpage of the Serbian Ministry: https://mit.gov.rs/vest/sr/7362/sucelimo-stavove-i-cinjenice-a-niposto-ljude.php)
Tamara Skrozza, born 1973 in Sombor, Serbia, began her journalism career in Radio Indeks and became well-known in Serbia through her work with weekly “Vreme (https://vreme.com/),” and the portal Cenzolovka (https://www.cenzolovka.rs/), and has been with the FoNet news agency since 2017, currently serving as deputy editor-in-chief. She is member of the Complaints Commission in the Press Council in Serbia. Skrozza is also a mentor in media ethics at the School of Digital Journalism, organized by the Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation. Her contributions to media ethics and professionalism have earned her multiple accolades, including the “Jug Grizelj” award, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (www.osce.org) Person of the Year in Media, and the regional “Srđan Aleksić” award for journalistic courage.
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) strongly condemns the coordinated smear campaign against Tamara Skrozza. This campaign not only endangers Skrozza but also aims to intimidate independent journalists, creating a climate of fear and insecurity. SEEMO calls on the relevant authorities to take immediate action to protect Skrozza and uphold press freedom in Serbia.
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) is a regional non-governmental, non profit network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in Southeast, South, East and Central Europe. SEEMO members are in Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Moldova (with the territory of Transdnestria), Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Türkiye / Turkey, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Austria, Italy, Vatican and San Marino have a special status in SEEMO. SEEMO has over 3000 individual members, and additional media as corporate members.
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