Skopje, 10 November 2022 (MIA) – Free and independent media are a pillar of democracy and a prerequisite for inclusive development of society. The rapid spread of information and disinformation through internet platforms creates entirely new trends of informing in traditional media as well, which, unfortunately, leads to sensationalism and superficiality often having the upper hand over investigative journalism and the distribution of accurate and relevant information. Therefore, there is an increasing need for independent and responsible regulatory bodies, which have a significant role to play in promoting and maintaining freedom of expression, respect for diversity and protection of marginalized groups in media reporting, said President Stevo Pendarovski at the opening of a regional conference organized by the Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Media Services (AVMU) on Thursday. The conference is held on occasion of the 25th anniversary from the establishment of AVMU's predecessor, the Broadcasting Council. According to the President, through the opening of the EU accession negotiations, AVMU will face new responsibilities and challenges related to the harmonization of the legislation with the EU’s legislation in the field of media. “In the past few reports, the European Commission has noted improvement in the media space and a proactive approach by the media regulator in encouraging media plurality, dedication to improving professional media standards and promoting media literacy. Considering the necessity for these trends to continue, work should be done to intensify media reforms, but also to secure the independence and financial stability of the public broadcasting service and the media regulator. All of this is important for progress in the media space and the European standards for freedom of expression and informing, which together affect the overall democratic development of the country,” said Pendarovski. EU Ambassador to North Macedonia, David Geer, said the bilateral screening will begin Friday, with which each sector will thoroughly be examined, and which is above all focused on reforms set to bring about gradual but progressive improvement in the lives of the citizens. In the media field, the EU report for the country has noted, said Geer, moderate preparedness and limited progress in the past year, with concrete proposals for the strengthening of media regulators and the public broadcasting service, on which it is necessary to act immediately. “The EU has provided support for media reform, during the 2015-2020 period the EU supported projects which included media and civil society, with grants of over EUR 3 million in order to improve media literacy, investigative journalism and critical thinking. There are new projects financed by the EU by over EUR 40 million in support of the national legislation and its harmonization with EU regulations. This concerns the independent media regulators, the public service and media associations for the rights of journalists,” said Geer. According to AVMU director of Zoran Trajchevski, the regulatory body, which is the oldest in the country and one of the oldest in the region, has an especially important role to play in the protection of media freedom, freedom of expression and in creating a free space for sharing different opinions and ideas without censorship. “The idea for media regulation was based on the vision of a modern European regulation set to establish equal rules for a fair game, i.e., set the foundations for the improvement of freedom of expression and media pluralism, and contribute to further democratization and professionalization of Macedonian media. A quarter of a century existence is a sufficient indicator of the successful work of the Macedonian media regulators in encouraging freedom of speech and media literacy, protection and development of pluralism, protection of the national interests, but also of the interests of the citizens in the area of audio and audiovisual media services,” said Trajchevski. Representatives of the media regulatory bodies of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Albania and Bulgaria attended the conference in Skopje. ad/ik/