Journalists in Serbia Face Growing Pressure, Attacks Often Incited by State Officials

Journalists in Serbia are experiencing escalating pressure, marked by frequent threats and physical assaults. Data from professional organizations indicates a continuation of the negative trend observed in 2025, with a significant number of incidents reported in the first half of the current year.

The Association of Journalists of Serbia (UNS) recorded 98 cases of threats against journalists in the first six months of this year, a slight decrease from the same period last year but still indicative of a serious problem. The previous year, 2025, was particularly record-breaking for threats, pressure, attacks, discrimination, and obstruction faced by journalists and media outlets. UNS documented 34 specific threats in the first half of this year, compared to 17 in the same period last year, with online threats being the most common.

Cyberattacks have also increased, with the organization registering ten such incidents in the first six months of this year, compared to none in the same period of 2025. Recent events include physical attacks and intimidation targeting journalists covering an LGBTQ+ rights march in the southern Serbian city of Pirot. A reporter for TV N1 was hit in the head with a tomato, while other N1 staff and journalists faced insults, intimidation, and attempts to prevent them from doing their jobs.

These incidents followed threats of physical violence directed at the editorial office of the local portal Slobodna riječ. Prior to that, the editor-in-chief of TV N1, Branislav Šovljansky, and his family received threats. The individual responsible for these threats had previously been reported to the police for threatening TV N1 journalists, yet no legal action has been taken against them. Journalists and media organizations in Serbia repeatedly point to public statements by state officials as a frequent source of incitement for attacks against the media, contributing to the impunity of perpetrators.