In the most serious blow yet to freedom of the press here, the Serbian government has taken over the country's first independent television station and annulled its privatization.
Police entered Studio B TV to switch off its broadcast antenna on Thursday, interrupting an address to viewers by Milorad Roganovic, the station's chief editor."Only stupid authorities like these can deprivatize something that existed successfully for six years as a private company," said Roganovic, who was ousted. "Who is now going to invest in Serbia when there's obviously complete uncertainty for private companies?" he asked.
The government launched a similar takeover in 1994 when journalists from the independent daily newspaper Borba were forced out of the company. Those journalists founded a separate daily, called Nasa Borba, but circulation has remained low due to high paper prices and distribution difficulties.
Studio B was founded in 1972 as a state-run radio station with a liberal streak. It was allowed to privatize in 1990.
Still, Studio B journalists were under constant pressure because of critical reports on the nationalist regime headed by Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic.
Several other independent television stations remain in Serbia, but most carry only entertainment programs.
Studio B returned to the air later, broadcasting music videos.