This year SEEMF was focused on the role of the media in times of global insecurity. War time journalism, cross-border cooperation in investigative journalism and the responsibility of the media in crisis situations were among the main topics of the conference. The event was organized by the KAS Media Programme South East Europe together with the South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) and the Central European Initiative (CEI).
Oliver Vujovic, Secretary General of SEEMO, Hendrik Sittig, Director of the KAS Media Programme, and Nina Kodelja, Deputy Secretary General of CEI, opened the conference. In his speech, Hendrik Sittig reminded the audience that a war is currently raging in Europe - triggered solely by Russia and its president. He clarified that in the spirit of a free and democratic Europe, it is important that Ukraine wins the war and therefore it is necessary to do everything to achieve this. In addition to the three main organisers, Radka Betcheva, representative of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) for Central and Eastern Europe, also welcomed the audience.
From Bosnian side, Darja Softic-Kadenic, Minister of Justice and Administration of Canton Sarajevo, delivered welcoming speech. She emphasized that the global crises also affect Bosnia and Herzegovina. She highlighted the positive aspects of the media sector in Bosnia, but also pointed out the deficits and problem areas that urgently need to be improved.
The opening discussion on the first evening was focused on the media situation in the host country Bosnia and Herzegovina. Representatives from the public broadcaster, academia, various media organizations and the European Union Special Representation drew a picture of the current difficult developments and gave examples of problems in the country.
The second day began with a keynote address by Maja Sever, President of the European Federation of Journalists. She emphasized the importance of press freedom and journalists' independence for democracy. The first panel dealt with the topic " War time journalism - reporting, journalists' safety, ethical standards". Narratives of journalists in conflict zones - from the Yugoslav wars in the 1990s to the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine - presented various aspects of their specific assignments: the search for truth, safety, risk, ethics, professionalism and approaches to assignments in crisis zones. The next panel focused on the topic of "Cross-border cooperation – the future of investigative journalism?". Proven experts in this field from various European countries and media outlets presented the perspectives and challenges of transnational cooperation when it comes to investigative reporting. The last panel addressed the "Responsibility of Media in Times of Crisis: Watchdog vs Megaphone". The main point of discussion was the question of how journalists can balance their responsibility to challenge social crises with their role as a monitoring medium.
As part of a good tradition, there was again the so-called wake-up talk after lunch this year. This time Radu Magdin, global analyst and consultant from Bucharest, spoke about "Hacking a Politician's Mind for Good?".
The last part of the Forum this year was the presentation of the documentary film "The Lonely Long-Distance Runners: Four Media Stories from the Balkans", initiated and financed by the KAS Media Programme and produced by the well-known production company AgitProp from Sofia. The film shows the difficult work of investigative journalists and media managers from South East Europe and the challenges they face.
