The Relationship between Television and the ruling Authorities in the Western Balkans

This article, originally published in Bulgarian in a 2022 academic collection, and now translated in English, provides a critical analysis of the complex dynamics between television broadcasters and political power in the Western Balkan region (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Montenegro). The study highlights the alarming trend of "media capture", where state actors and political elites exert systemic pressure on both public and private media to ensure biased coverage and "political tranquility." By examining specific case studies from 2019 to 2022 - including anti-journalistic rhetoric, legal harassment (SLAPPs), and the strategic use of state advertising - the paper documents the erosion of media pluralism. It further explores how the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these vulnerabilities, undermining the media's fundamental role as a democratic watchdog.