Lecture (Un)REM-edying the Media in Serbia

(Un)REM-edying the Media in Serbia is the title of the lecture to be delivered by Professor Dubravka Valić Nedeljković, a member of the Council of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM), on Tuesday, 17 November, at noon, in the SASA Hall 2.

REM is an independent regulatory body established by law that oversees media service providers and safeguards the public interest, media pluralism, freedom of expression, and the rights of media users.

However, the work of REM and its predecessor, the Republic Broadcasting Agency (RBA), has been marked by controversy, political pressure, controversial decisions and inaction for more than two decades. The REM Council was dissolved in 2024, and a new Council was formed in July 2026, following complex procedures and disputes over member elections. Currently, the Council has eight members, while the representative of the Council of National Minorities was to be elected by the end of October 2026.

This deadlock was briefly broken with the election of the President of the Council, creating the conditions for the regulator to resume its work after a two-year hiatus. What does this apparent breakthrough really mean? How has the history of the RBA and REM, together with a series of questionable decisions, led to the current situation of controversy and turmoil?