Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the region lying in the eastern part of the Europe. It is the region lying between the central Europe and western Asia, with main characteristics consisting in Byzantine, Orthodox and limited Ottoman influences. The United Nations statistics division developed a selection of geographical regions and groupings of countries and areas, under these following ten countries were classified as Eastern Europe-
Belarus
Bulgaria
Czech Republic
Hungary
Moldova
Poland
Romania
Russia
Slovakia
Ukraine
According to CIA World Fact book- states location as Eastern Europe- Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova and Ukraine.
Media System in ALBANIA-
Albania is the country which lies at the eastern region of the Europe. Officialy, Albania is known as Republic of Albania. Albania covers 28,748 sq.km area with 3,510,484 population.
Number of television stations: 9
Number of television sets: 405,000
Television sets per 1,000: 115.4
Number of Radio stations: 21
Number of Radio receivers: 810,000
Radio receivers per 1,000: 230.7
Number of individuals with computer: 25,000
Computers per 1000: 7.1
Number of individuals with internet access: 3,500
Internet Access per 1,000: 1.0
The gradual economic and political disintegration of the Ottoman empire in the late nineteenth century and the empire’s military defeats in the twentieth century against successful nationalistic waves of independence by Serbians, Romanians, Greeks, Montenegrins and Bulgarians provided the Albanian people with the opportunity to seek their own independence. During the next five years all opposition to Hoxha’s communist government was eradicated. The media was seized by communist authorities in 1944 but not nationalized until 1946. All media forms were used to instill Marxist values and justify communist rule. The press, radio and television urged implementations of communist economisc programs and supported anti-religious campaigns and literacy promotions. All newspapers were under the control of communist government. Albania’s few radio and television stations spoke only the communist credo. In 1990 Albania re-organized itself into a multiparty democracy. Students unrest in 1990 led to violent clashes. The political party, the Democratic Front and its daily newspaper, “Bashkimi”, covered the clashes, arrests and police activity.
In 1996 Albania published five national dailies with a combined circulation of 116,000. In 1995 the four largest newspapers were the Albanian language morning dailies Zeri I Popullit, 35,000 circulation; Koha Jone, 30,000 circulation; Rilindja Demokratike, 10,000 circulation; and the Albanian and Italian language morning daily Gazeta Shqiptare, 11,000 circulation. Dy Drina is published in northern Albania and has a circulation of 1,000. According to 1995 statistics, general-interest biweekly periodicals circulated as follows: Alternativa, published by the Social Democratic Party, 5,000 readers; Bashkimi, published by the Democratic Front, 5,000 readers; and Republika, published by the Republican Party, 8,000 readers. Weekly general interest periodicals are Ax, 6,000 readers; Drita, 4,000 readers; and Zeri I Rinise, a Youth Confederation publication, 4,000 readers. Lajmi I Dites, published by the ATS News Agency, has three issues per week and a circulation of 5,000. Special interest publications are the monthlies Albanian Economic Tribune in both Albanian and English with 5,000 readers; Arber, published by the Ministry of Culture with 5,000 readers, and Bujqesia Shqiptare, published by the Ministry of Agriculture with 3,000 readers. Weekly special interest periodicals are Mesuesi, published by the Ministry of Education, 3,000 circulation, and Sindikalisti, circulation 5,000. The University of Triana publishes the biweekly Studenti, with a circulation of 5,000, and the quarterly Gruaja Dhe Koha has 1,000 readers. The quarterly Media Shqiptare, founded in 1999, caters to journalists and provides news about the profession. The Albanian print media is generally characterized as an extension of political parties. It is perceived as more opinion than factually based. Albanian newspapers have distribution problems. They are sold in the cities, which omit 60 percent of the population residing in the countryside. Newspapers lack adequate revenue to cover printing costs and salaries for a professional staff. Since 1999 newspaper circulation has dropped from 75,000 to 50,000 readers. A majority of Albanians believe that the print media are a negative national influence. Polls indicate that Albanians prefer to receive their news via electronic means. Albania has had one government owned radio station, Radiotelevizioni Shqiptar. The nation's previously government-owned television station is also called Radiotelevizioni Shqiptar. In 1999, both stations were merged into a public entity no longer financed by the state and without direct linkage to the government. Radiotelevizioni Shqiptar (RTSH; Albanian Radio Television) is under the jurisdiction of the National Council for Radio and Television and regulated by a committee whose members are chosen by Albania's parliament.
Albania is poorly represented in the telecommunications field with an obsolete wire system. Telephone wires were cut in 1992 by villagers and used to build fences. There is no longer a single telephone for each Albanian village. It is estimated that there are two telephones for every 100 Albanians. The lack of a telecommunications network is being alleviated by Vodafone Albania, a subsidiary of Vodafone Group Plc. Vodafone competes with Albania Mobile Communications (AMC) for the sale of cell phones in a nation without regular telephone communications. State run Albtelecom was privatized in 2002. Albtelecom has two Internet Service Provider licenses supporting ISDN and NT connections in five major Albanian cities and plans to expand and serve the university population. The competition of all three companies will allow Albania to catch up in the telecommunications industry on a level compatible with the European Union nations.
International communication is frequently carried by microwave radio relay from Tirana to either Greece or Italy. During the communist era radio and television were exclusively used for propaganda purposes. In 1992 the government owned and operated all 17 AM radio stations and the sole FM station, which broadcast two national programs as well as regional and local programs throughout the country. Popular Albanian broadcast frequencies are AM 16 and FM 3. There are two short-wave frequencies. Albania has nine television stations. Programming is broadcast in eight languages and reaches Albanians in Africa, the Middle East, North and South America, and Europe. Until the early 2000s all radio and television stations were broadcast exclusively over government-controlled frequencies and were usually propaganda based. This has changed significantly with the restructuring of the RTSH. In 1999 new privately owned radio and television stations began to emerge to compete with the print media for circulation. At least 50 television and 30 radio stations competed with the RTSH, formerly run by the state. To control a proliferation of broadcast media stations the government approved new licensing requirements. The national council of Radio and Television was created to regulate the licensing of radio and television stations. The council’s membership is equally divided between the government and the opposition political parties.The National Council for Radio-Television regulates broadcasting. The president appoints one member, and the Commission on the Media, which is made up of representatives selected equally by the government and the opposition parties, chooses six members. The National Council broadcasts a national radio program and a second radio program from 14 stations. Statistics for 1997 indicated that Albanians owned 810,000 radios and 405,000 television sets. In 2000, many Albanian television stations operated illegally without government licenses. There were 120 applications with 20 television stations competing for two national channels. The National Council for Radio and Television granted the two national channels to TV Klan and TV Arberia. TV Shijak, one of the television losers, criticized the decision as being politically motivated. Other television stations were granted licenses for local broadcasting including TV Teuta. Most television and radio stations are joint ventures with Italian companies. Despite the criticism, Albanian media is increasing in number and reflecting the political and economic stability of the nation. RTSH tends to provide more government information as it makes the transition to a private network system. It is the only station to broadcast throughout the entire country. Radio Koha, Radio Kontakt, Radio Stinet, Radio Top Albania, and Radio Ime are Albanian's most popular radio stations. Their programming emphasizes music, news, and call-in shows. Albanians receive FM broadcasts from the Voice of America, British Broadcasting Corporation, and Deutsche Welle on short wave.
Electronic media in Albania is a relatively recent addition to the media. The list of electronic media is growing at a rapid rate. AlbaNews is a mailing list dedicated to the distribution of new and information about Albania, Kosovo, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, and Albanian living around the world. Major contributors to AlbaNews are Kosova Information Center, OMRI, Albanian Telegraphic Agency, Council for the Defense of Human rights and Freedoms in Kosova, and Albanian Weekly (Prishtina). Electronic Media newsgroups for Albania include soc.culture.albanian, bit.listserv.albanian, clari.news.Europe.Balkans, alt. news.macdeonia, soc.cuture.yugoslavia, and soc. culture.europe. Albanian television stations with Internet sites are Radio Television of Prishtina Satellite Program, Shekuli, TV Art, TVSH-Programi Satelitor, and the Voice of America Albanian Service.
CZECH REPUBLIC
The separation of the former federal state of Czechoslovakia into two independent states, the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic, in 1993 had no major impact on the media, which were organized in the both parts of federation already before the split. The state federal media Czechoslovak Radio and Czechoslovak Television were dissolved on December 31,1992. The nine national dailies make two third of the newspaper market. The share of local and regional dailies is about 30 per cent. Nearly all of the daily press, with the exception of the leftist daily Právo and communist daily Haló noviny, are owned by foreign companies. However, no publisher occupies any monopoly or dominant position in the national daily press.
The regional press is thus nearly completely controlled by VLP. The first free Czech daily, Metro, published by Swedish MTG and distributed in Prague since July 1997, has been facing new competitors since 2005. Ringier, publisher of the tabloid Blesk, entered the free paper market with the free daily 24 hodin (24 hours) in November 2005. Mafra launched another free paper Metropolitní Expres (Metropolitan Express) in April 2006. Both newspaper and magazine publishers are mostly foreign owned. The Finnish Sanoma Magazines International (SMI) has a strong position in women’s and lifestyle magazines and Ringier ČR is not only active in the daily press (Blesk, Sunday’s Blesk, Sport), but also in the magazine market.The Czech Republic introduced a dual public-private system in both the radio and the television broadcasting in the years 1991-1994. Unlike the other European public service broadcasters, the Czech Television and the public broadcaster Czech Radio are not associated in one organization; they are separated and detached bodies. Like the Czech Television, the Czech Radio is also funded by a radio license fee together with commercials and sponsorship and other commercial activities, which together make about 15 per cent of the total income.
Czech Radio operates seven stations, three of which has fully nationwide coverage. From the ownership point of view, the most powerful position at the radio market is occupied by a group of a French investor Lagardere Active Radio International SA. The second largest private broadcaster is the nationwide station Radio Impuls, controlled the investment consortium Eurocast Rundfunk Beteiligungs GmbH. The penetration of cable and satellite television is low. There are two digital satellite services operating in the Czech Republic: UPC Direct and Digi TV. Digital terrestrial TV broadcasting was launched on a regular basis only by the public broadcaster Czech Television in October 2005. The other digital terrestrial TV broadcasts are supposed to be launched in 2007 when the quarrels about digital licensing will be cleared. Experiments with digital radio broadcasting (DAB) was halted in 2005 after several years of testing.Two most important associations are: Czech Publishers Association (UVDT) for newspapers, Association of Private Radio Broadcasters (APSV) for commercial radio, Association of Television Organizations (ATO) for television broadcasters. Public and commercial television operators are members of the ATO, which organizes the audience research for all of them. The only working organization of journalists is the Union of the Czech Journalists. However, only minor part of working journalists are members of the association.All the Czech media are now in private hands. The only exceptions are the public broadcasting organizations Český rozhlas (Czech Radio), Česká televize (Czech television) and the news agency ČTK (Czech Press Agency), which are established by law, have a status of independent public corporations, and are controlled by the Parliament.
POLAND
The transformation of mass communication in Poland as well as in Central-Eastern Europe is based, in fact, on two crucial changes: political breakthrough in 1989-1995, and technological transformation which started after 1995. In Poland, as the beginning of political changes the following factors could be recognised: 1) the abolition of press licensing (May 1989), or 2) parliamentary election (June 1989), or 3) suppression of communist-party controlled press monopoly (March 1990), or, finally, 4) abolition of censorship (June 1990). The Broadcasting Act adopted by the Polish Parliament on December 29, 1992, which enabled to launch private, commercial radio and television stations, should be perceived as a crucial moment for audio-visual media. The process of demonopolisation and deregulation of electronic media in Poland goes in the same direction as the one in Germany which started 7-8 years earlier: the audience of public radio and television slowly decreases when three private channels (Polsat, TVN, and TV-4). In 2001, a new partner ś TV Puls (a commercial channel, but inspired by Catholic social philosophy) appeared on the Polish television market.
In radio, the domination of private broadcasters is even more noticeable. RMF FM is head and shoulders above any other broadcasting stations including Program I and Program II of the public radio. In Poland, the analog signal is still received, nevertheless, everybody starts to realise how important digital television is for future development. At present, there are three partners (Cyfra+, Wizja TV and Polsat 2) which have a versatile programme offer.
Simultaneously, the extent of dailies increased several times: from average 6-8 pages in 1989 to 60-80 nowadays. The media of Poland are heading in the direction of globalism chiefly in the sphere of economics. On the press market dozens of foreign magazines appeared in Polish language versions like, for instance, the French Elle, American National Geographic, Playboy, Cosmopolitan and Readers Digest, German: Burda Moden, Tina, Bravo and Bravo Girl. The media and advertising market are closely connected with that of advertisements. Its globalization in Poland manifests itself in the expansion of those advertising agencies that dominate the entire free market world. This relates equally to what is advertised as to who creates the adverts. Products of world standing, like Coca Cola, Pepsi Cola, Sony, Kodak, Michelin etc., dominate in the advertisements that appear in the large-circulation Polish media. The two transformations (political and technological) described above, which took place in Central-Eastern Europe in the 1990s have their economic and social aspects in such a way that we should talk of a political-economic-social breakthrough and a technological-economic-social breakthrough. The former was driven by politics, the latter by technology. The processes of desovietisation, democratisation, pluralisation, privatisation and marketisation were typical for the former, whereas digitalisation, telematization and globalisation were typical for the latter. Evaluating the results of globalisation it can be stated that Poland heads towards the state in which its media (just like media in other countries) will attract people to the same advertisements of the same products by the same entertainment programmes and by the same news, coming from the same information sources about the same events. However, as it is generally known, globalisation brings about its counter-process of localisation and fragmentization, which is present mostly in printed media. In Poland regional newspapers issue more and more local newspapers. At the same time, the number of sublocal newspapers increases: in 1988 about 100 titles were printed, in 1996 about 1200, in 1998 about 1500, and in 2000 as many as 1800. These include newspapers directed to inhabitants of one city quarter, one town, one county, one parish or one local association. Newspapers printed by various subculture, alternative youth groups/associations constitute a separate class of these publications. Year after year such publications launch their Internet web services. Owing to these activities, sublocal contents/channels mix with global contents/channels bringing about the process which is often called globalization. The media in Poland remains in an expansionist mode. Polish media is taking on a global dimension with the introduction of digitalization, specialization, concentration of media ownership and development of local media. Poland is one of the number of countries in Europe where private stations have to compete for both audiences and advertising revenue with subsidized state owned channels.
MACEDONIA
| Region (Map name): | Europe |
| Population: | 2,046,209 |
| Language(s): | Macedonian Orthodo, Muslim, other |
| Literacy rate: | NA |
| Area: | 25,333 sq km |
| GDP: | 3,573 (US$ millions) |
| Number of Television Stations: | 31 |
| Number of Television Sets: | 510,000 |
| Television Sets per 1,000: | 249.2 |
| Number of Radio Stations: | 49 |
| Number of Radio Receivers: | 410,000 |
| Radio Receivers per 1,000: | 200.4 |
| Number of Individuals with Internet Access: | 50,000 |
| Internet Access per 1,000: | 24.4 |
The media scene in Macedonia livened up within a few years after the country declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 and commenced a double transition toward democracy and capitalism. Media outlets started to compete for the attention of a literate (94 percent) and multi-ethnic audience, hungry for respite from the propaganda humdrum in the communist-ruled Yugoslavia. Hundreds of private newspapers and magazines emerged, and some 250 private broadcasters took to the air. The promise for a quick transition to Western-style free press in Macedonia has been since dampened. The media scene is still much livelier than during the Yugoslav period, but it has suffered from government interference, political and ethnic biases of publications, a malfunctioning economy, and uneven and often poor quality of journalism. Plagued by high unemployment and decline in living standards, Macedonia endured series of economic, political and social crises during the 1990s. It is hardly surprising that media have been preoccupied with issues of security and politics. The Ministry of Information listed 818 officially registered newspapers and magazines as of June 2000, but the actual number is considerably smaller. Of those, 51 are published in Albanian language, 6 in Turkish, 4 in Vlachian, 3 in Romany (Roma), 2 in Bosnian, and 5 in English. More than 600 publications are based in Skopje.
In March 2000 Macedonia had 11 dailies, 2 in Albanian and 1 in Turkish. Most popular by circulation are: Dnevnik (daily 60,000; weekend 70,000), Ve&NA;er (50,000), Utrinski Vesnik (30,000), Vest (25,000), Nova Makedonija (20,000), Denes (15,000), SportFakti (10,000), and Flaka (3,000). The independent Dnevnik is considered to be the most influential newspaper, and Nova Makedonija has traditionally been the voice of the government. Most newspapers are losing money. The government owns one third of NIP Nova Make-donija, publisher of Nova Makedonija and Ve&NA;er , as well as the weekly Puls , the Albanian-language daily Flaka , and the Turkish-language Birlik , which comes out three times a week. The state-owned Macedonian Radio and private Kanal 77 have national radio coverage. There is a large number of local private stations, so many towns have at least one station; most are entertainment-oriented. Dozens of unlicensed, pirate radio and television stations operate locally without paying any fees and violating copyright laws. The government's efforts to enforce the regulations have been inconsistent. Newspapers and magazines must register with the Ministry of Information according to a 1976 statute. Broadcast media are regulated by the Law on Broadcast Activity, adopted in 1997. The Broadcasting Council, whose members are selected by the parliament, disburses broadcast licenses. The government, however, gives the final approval and thus exerts a measure of control. A proposed draft law on public information in 2001 caused outcry from media organizations, as it intended to introduce licensing for local journalists and registration for foreign correspondents. Political parties in power can manipulate the media by allocating advertising and ensuring income for some media and none for others. Political and business affiliations of owners also greatly influence the coverage and staffing decisions. Although primarily a formality, distributors of foreign newspapers and magazines must obtain permits from the Ministry of Interior. Foreign media are readily available, especially in Skopje, but prices of Western print media are usually prohibitive for most Macedonians.
The Macedonian media has been polarized along ethnic lines, which has hurt the objectivity of reporting. With the allayment of ethnic tensions the quality of journalism can be expected to improve. Yet Macedonia's media faces a credibility problem. The public's trust in the media is generally low, especially among ethnic Albanians, and surveys indicate that a majority of the population believes news media serve the interests of powerful people and organizations.
ROMANIA
Official Country Name: Romania Region (Map name): Europe Population: 22,364,022 Language(s): Romania, Hungarian,German Literacy rate: 97.0% Area: 237,500 sq km GDP: 36,719 (US$ millions) Number of Television Stations: 48 Number of Television Sets: 5,250,000 Television Sets per 1,000: 234.8 Number of Cable Subscribers: 3,532,480 Cable Subscribers per 1,000: 157.7 Number of Satellite Subscribers: 320,000 Satellite Subscribers per 1,000: 14.3 Number of Radio Stations: 245 Number of RadioReceivers: 7,200,000 Radio Receivers per 1,000: 321.9 Number of Individuals with Computers: 713,000 Computers per 1,000: 31.9 Number of Individuals with Internet Access: 800,000 Internet Access per 1,000: 35.8 . The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was given responsibility for the news media in order to protect and reassure foreign journalists in Romania. Law No. 462, published in the Official Bulletin ( Monitorul Oficial ) No. 218/1944, stated that there would be no administrative censorship whatsoever except for the customary war censorship exercised by military personnel. The Allied (Soviet) Control Commission established in Bucharest in 1944 changed everything. Soviet and Romanian Communist authorities began to restrict press freedoms. Article 16 of the Armistice allowed the authorities to regulate the printing, importation, and distribution in Romania of periodicals and other publications as well as radio broadcasts, the postal, telegraph, and telephone communications networks. Annex F of the agreement allowed the Romanian government and its organs to act in accordance with the instructions of the (Soviet dominated) Allied Control Commission. The Control Commission imposed strict censorship on all forms of communication, particularly the press. The propaganda and media section of the Central Committee supervised all publications. The Romanian Press Agency, individual publishing houses, printing establishments, book distribution centers, motion picture studios, and radio and television stations were all regulated by the Central Committee's initiatives. The number of print media publications in Romania dropped under Ceausescu from 51 dailies, 23 weeklies, and two semi-weeklies in 1969, to 36 dailies and 24 weeklies in 1985.
After 1960, the Communist regime used radio to disseminate propaganda. More broadcast facilities were constructed. Three medium-wave and one FM station broadcast news. An estimated 200 hours of broadcasting was done in 13 languages domestically and to foreign countries by Radio Bucharest. Television came under more scrutiny than did radio broadcasting. In 1984 Ceausescu denounced television as corrupted by Western influences. In 1989 the two national television stations were merged into one with only 22 hours of broadcast time. Romania had an estimated 100 daily newspapers in 1999 and more than 2,200 periodicals, including 200 periodicals published in minority languages. In 1999 Romanian publishing houses printed 8,000 titles. Major general interest periodicals are the following weeklies: Cuvintul (1995 circlation of 100,000), Express, (170,000), Flacara, (12,000), and Lumea Magazin (60,000). Special-interest publications include the weekly periodicals Dreptatea (6,700), Tribuna Economica (40,000), and Via Medicala, a health publication (35,000). Monthly periodicals include the women's magazine Femeia (70,000), Magazine Istoric (110,000), and the Jurists Union publication Palatul de Justitie (75,000).Romania is served by three news agencies. The government news agency is Rompres. Private news agencies in Romania are Apres-Romania Libera and Mediafax. All three agencies are based in Bucharest. Romania has three associations of journalists, the Journalists Trade Union (SZR), Professional Journalists Union (UZP), and the Romanian Journalists Association (AZR). In 2001 Romania had 50 privately owned television stations and more than 100 privately owned radio stations. State television and radio cover more of the nation, particularly rural areas. Both the Romanian Broadcasting System and the Romanian Television Corporation, now independent and public-service oriented, jointly regulate state run radio and television.
The Internet is increasingly an important method of communication in Romanian businesses, universities, libraries, and public facilities. Internet cafes are more numerous, although Internet access is limited by the high cost of telephone service. An increasing number of media are offering online publications.
During the 20th century Romania enjoyed short periods of press freedom. The propaganda and media section of the central committee supervised all publications. The Romanian press agency individual publishing houses, printing houses, printing establishments, book distribution centres, motion pictures studios and radio and television stations were all regulated by the central committee’s initiatives.
REFERENCES:
google.com
wikipedia.org
pressreference.com
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