Serbian journalists’ union demands details of sale of newspaper publisher

The Novosti company was sold to the Stamparija Borba company (which the government owns 80 percent in) in May this year, SINOS said in its press release.  It asked how an unknown company with no employees could buy a national brand for 300 million Dinars (1 Euro - 118 Dinars).

It said that the unions and employees of Novosti were surprised by the sale, the more so since a SINOS representative in the working group drafting the national media strategy proposed changes to the law to all private-public partnerships as solutions for the state-owned Tanjug agency and Politika and Novosti newspaper publishers.  

The sale of Novosti has drawn criticism and claims of the authorities expanding their hold on the media.