Communications and media in Sarajevo

Last updated
The Avaz Twist Tower is the headquarters of the Sarajevo newspaper Dnevni avaz Sarajevo Twist Tower.jpg
The Avaz Twist Tower is the headquarters of the Sarajevo newspaper Dnevni avaz

As the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo is naturally the main center of the country's media. Most of the country's major television channels are based in the city, as are the most popular newspapers and magazines.

Newspapers are the most popular and most well established forms of media. The two most popular and credible daily newspapers are the Oslobođenje and the Dnevni avaz , The buildings of both of these are adjacent to each other, situated in Novi Grad municipality, making the spot the center of the Bosnian media world.

The Dnevni avaz (the Daily Voice) is today the more successful of the two. It was claimed to have ties with the powerful Party of Democratic Action, which some take to explain its success. Later however it shifted its supported among the other parties. The Oslobođenje is the older and more well known of the two. Meaning "The Liberation", it was established in Sarajevo following World War II as the communist party's newspaper. Oslobođenje preserved somewhat leftist views. Novi Plamen , a monthly magazine, is the most left-wing publication currently.

Infostaza is the first newspaper in Bosnia and Herzegovina that is published exclusively online. It offers a wide range of daily news and current topics.

As well as professional newspapers, Sarajevo is also home to a variety of magazines and political tabloids, such as Slobodna Bosna, Dani, and Walter, all of which have a high circulation.

Television is very popular in Sarajevo, even though for most people the number of channels is somewhat limited. Satellites allow for a number of foreign channels to be watched, but the most popular are the local news stations based in the city. Federalna televizija (FTV) is the television of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity, while there is also a national radio-television system named Public Broadcast Service of Bosnia and Herzegovina. A Sarajevo Cantonal channel is also available.

After the government affiliated channels there are several other television stations, perhaps the most prominent being Hayat TV. Another is the Open Broadcast Network, a television station founded by the International community, now privately owned. Television stations from Croatia are also available, as is Serbian Eastern European media giant RTV Pink, with Pink BH Company, the local branch based in Bijeljina.

Many small independent radio stations exist, although the majority listen to the more established ones such as Radio M, Radio Grad, eFM Student Radio and RSG. RSG, Radio Stari Grad (Radio Old Town) is the most popular of these. Radio Free Europe can still be heard, and several American and West European stations are available for listening as well. Also popular is Radio 202, affiliated with FTV.

Related Research Articles

Sarajevo Capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sarajevo is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,569 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo Canton, East Sarajevo and nearby municipalities is home to 555,210 inhabitants. Located within the greater Sarajevo valley of Bosnia, it is surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of the Balkans, a region of Southern Europe.

Dnevni avaz is the most influential and best-selling daily newspaper in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is published in Sarajevo. Their web portal Avaz.ba is the third most visited website in Bosnia and Herzegovina, after Google and YouTube.

Bisera Alikadić is a contemporary Bosnian poet and author, best known best for her work Larva and Krug. She mostly writes romance novels as well as children's books. She was one of the first Bosnian women to publish romance novels. Her books Grad hrabrost and Knjiga vremena express the city of Sarajevo's struggle during the Bosnian War of the 1990s.

Avaz Twist Tower Architectural structure

The Avaz Twist Tower is a 172 m tall skyscraper in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the headquarters for Dnevni avaz, a Bosnian newspaper company. The tower is located in the Marijin Dvor city neighborhood, Sarajevo's central municipality. Construction began in 2006 and was finished two years later in 2008. The tower is notable for its twisted facade. It is currently the tallest skyscraper in the former Yugoslavia. In 2009, famous German company Schuco chose the tower amongst the 10 most beautiful buildings in the world.

Mass media in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The mass media of Bosnia and Herzegovina refers to mass media outlets based in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Television, radio, magazines and newspapers are all operated by both state-owned and for-profit corporations which depend on advertising, subscription, and other sales-related revenues. The Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina guarantees freedom of speech, although political and business pressures - coupled with administrative fragmentation - still hinder the independence of journalists and media outlets.

Federalna televizija

Federalna televizija is a public mainstream TV channel operated by RTVFBiH. The program is broadcast on a daily basis, 24 hours from RTVFBiH headquarters located in Sarajevo. The radio and television program is mainly produced in Bosnian. Television program initially aired on two television channels. Since April 2003 the television program is reduced to one. According to the most recent measurements viewership of television channels in 2012, FTV is most watched television station in Bosnia and Herzegovina with 14.4% share. This television channel broadcasts a variety of programs such as news, talk shows, documentaries, sports, movies, mosaic, children's programs, etc. FTV also broadcasts teletext services.

Fahrudin Radončić

Fahrudin Radončić is a Bosnian media magnate, entrepreneur, investor, and politician who served as the Minister of Security on two occasions. He is the founder of the Dnevni avaz, the best-selling newspaper in Bosnia and Herzegovina and is the founder and current president of the Union for a Better Future of BiH.

Television in Bosnia and Herzegovina was first introduced in 1961. Out of 94 TV stations, 71 are commercial, 20 are public, while 3 public services are funded through subscription.

Telemach is the leading cable television and broadband internet service provider, and the largest alternative fixed line operator in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The company is owned by British company BC Partners.

Moja TV is a Bosnian IPTV provider, subsidiary of the BH Telecom, which provides various thematic channels, HD and Timeshift channels, Video on demand, video recording, the use of an Electronic Program Guide (EPG) and other similar services. Customers must purchase or rent an IPTV set-top box and subscribe one of the four basic TV packages: Moja TV Phone, Moja TV Net, Moja TV Full and Moja TV Premi. There is also MojaTV Biz is a service designed for business customers.

Suad Zeljković is a Bosnian politician who served as Prime Minister of Sarajevo Canton, one of Bosnia and Herzegovina's ten cantons, until his forced resignation as a result of the countrywide anti-government riots in February 2014.

Radio Sarajevo is a radio station and magazine that began airing 10 April 1945, four days after the liberation of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina near the end of World War II. It was Bosnia and Herzegovina's first radio station. The first words spoken by announcer Đorđe Lukić were "This is Radio Sarajevo... Death to fascism, freedom to the people!"

RSG Radio Radio station in Sarajevo

RSG Radio is a Bosnian commercial radio station, broadcasting from Sarajevo.

Srđan Dizdarević was a Bosnian journalist, diplomat, and activist. Born into a prominent Bosniak political family of diplomats, Dizdarević graduated from the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Sarajevo in 1976 and entered politics. As a diplomat, he was the first secretary of the Embassy of Yugoslavia in Paris, and in 1991 he returned to Bosnia and Herzegovina. He also worked as the assistant editor-in-chief of the newspaper Oslobođenje and was a member of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1995, becoming the committee's president in 2005, serving until 2014. He died of severe pneumonia in 2016.

Queer Sarajevo Festival was the first public queer festival in Bosnia and Herzegovina, organized by Organization Q in September 2008 in Sarajevo. The Festival is remembered as the first public coming out of LGBT*IQA persons in BiH. It became the center of interest of Bosnian-Herzegovinian, regional and international public and media after the escalation of violence against Festival participants and journalists on the day of the opening. The Festival was closed for the public two days after its opening, due to counter-reactions of general public, political representatives and as the organizers, journalists and Festival participants had been physically attacked by Islamic religious extremists and nationalists.

Nova BH

Nova BH is a Bosnian commercial television channel launched on 9 October 2018. From 2003 to 2018, this national commercial station formerly was known as Pink BH. Since October 2018, Nova BH is a member of the United Media portfolio, the leading media platform in South East Europe. Headquarters is located in Sarajevo and Nova BH also has offices and studios in Banja Luka.

Muharem Bazdulj Serbian and Bosnian writer

Muharem Bazdulj is a Serbian and Bosnian writer. His work of historical fiction Byron and the Beauty has been translated into English by John K Cox.

COVID-19 pandemic in Bosnia and Herzegovina Ongoing COVID-19 viral pandemic in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The COVID-19 pandemic in Bosnia and Herzegovina is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The virus was confirmed to have reached Bosnia and Herzegovina on 5 March 2020, when a patient in Banja Luka, who had travelled to Italy, tested positive. Later on the same day, a second case, who was the son of the first case, was reported. On 21 March, the first death in the country from COVID-19 was announced in a hospital in Bihać. The patient was an elderly woman who had been hospitalized two days before.

BIR TV or BIR Televizija is Bosnian commercial cable/IPTV television channel based in Sarajevo operated by Islamic Community of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The headquarters of Radio and Television of the Islamic Community of Bosnia and Herzegovina - BIR is located in the building of the Gazi Husrev-bey's Library in Sarajevo.

References