I Know When To Leave

Hopefully this is a carefully considered policy by the new Belgrade city authorities which will allow the right person to prove herself in the right place.

Lila Radonjic spent her entire 25 year career as a journalist in Studio B. She left the station voluntarily in 1993 because of the internal clashes at the time and the changes in station policy which was a big surprise to her. "All this time I had a capricious idea of returning to Studio B." The offer that made her wish come true came from the Zajedno coalition on Sunday, February 23. She won’t mention the names of the people she spoke to and says she doesn’t know whose idea it was or why. "Over the past few months, no one talked to me about whether I want to go back to Studio B or whether I have any ideas about it".

VREME: How did the negotiations go?

RADONJIC: "That was a few hours on the telephone. The problem was that Zoran Ostojic (the station’s new director) was in the US and he was also surprised by the idea. Zajedno was on the other end of the line and I assume they got the idea while looking for someone who wouldn’t draw disputes from anyone. To me, the offer was a surprise. The two of us did want to go back to Studio B as do many of the people who left the station in the past few years. Also, we made it clear that there would be no changes unless everyone who wants to come back is allowed to do so. As far as I know, none of the people who created the image of Studio B is an MP or a party leadership member."

VREME: What is like going back after three years?

RADONJIC: "This is only my second day on the job. The crews that went through here all brought in their own people. Then the crew chiefs left, leaving their people behind. I’m glad of the many young people. In itself that means nothing but it’s promising. I think that the will exists to take part in waking up some new energy. We’ve met and defined jobs already. I have to get back in the game as well, to explain what’s expected. In simple terms, they have to start thinking freely."

VREME: There are reports that you’re counting on the old staff viewers know. Who are you expecting to return?

RADONJIC: "There were many different cases; dismissals, compulsory leave, people leaving on their own or being pushed into some corner. I can’t say for sure because I’ve only just started talking to people. Studio B has been ruined in terms of personnel in the meantime and the main condition for Ostojic and myself to return was to allow us to create a team that will really help restore Studio B."

VREME: What does that mean for the people who came or were brought to Studio B in the meantime?

RADONJIC: "There won’t be any firing but that does mean that they came in with one crew and they’ll now have to prove themselves to this new crew. On equal terms of course. We’ll make a professional selection without firing anyone. That’s inevitable because the job can’t get done otherwise, regardless of emotions."

VREME: In all fairness, you could say that Studio B worked hard to destroy itself over the past few years. What does the return of Studio B to "what it once was" actually mean?

RADONJIC: "I’m not idealizing the image of Studio B as it was once. It was a program based on enthusiasm and all kinds of things happened, from the airing of a report on Arkan’s fighters, the never resolved theft of our TV equipment, Dafina and Jezda (owners of two pyramid scheme banks which went bankrupt, leaving many people with no savings at all) who were practically promoted on Studio B. I was the news desk editor, I tried to keep those shows autonomous. The moment I thought that autonomy was lost, I left. Many people think just anyone can buy air time on commercial TV stations but let’s see what, under what conditions and at what price, and let’s see if the editors will stand behind that show. I believe the spirit of Studio B has to be restored: quick reactions, objective reporting, an easy interpretation. In general, the station must go back to its initial sources of energy, i.e. the knowledge that we’re doing everything for ourselves. When I say the spirit of Studio B I mean that I would most like it to resemble what happened in Belgrade and Serbia over the past few months. I’d like to capture what we call wisdom, energy, beauty, persistence, smiles, wit and also paint a true image of reality."

VREME: The ownership of Studio B was resolved in a number of different ways over the past few years. What are the problems that still remain?

RADONJIC: "The question of ownership is not under dispute by us in the station. Last year’s nationalization is illegal by anyone’s standards, and I won’t even say how unjust it was. The only question now is to what level the 17% of the station the state owns will grow to. As for our broadcasts, we’ve taken the federal government’s statement that it will review all frequency licenses as a serious threat. I don’t know how much it knows about us and others but I do know that the entire management team here will have to deal with it.

Finally, we should also think about our relationship with the new city authorities. I’m afraid of an indisputable need to appear in public because we know the position the Zajedno leaders were in as well as other party leaders and intellectuals. There is a hunger for media space and I’m afraid there’s going to be a lot of demand. I’m not siding with the opposition, I am the opposition because a journalist has to be the opposition to a bad education system, bad university, destroyed economy. I’m don’t want to speak for Ostojic, but the conditions for us to accept the job are clear: let us work and not interfere in our programming.

Our attitude will be open to the opposition in Belgrade and the authorities in the republic. We’re counting on Studio B being the place where the public round table will be possible."