No. 2, issued January 10, 1997

The OBN Update is a brief newsletter which aims to provide all those interested with a snapshot of developments in the Open Broadcast Network. The update is produced jointly by the Office of the High Representative (OHR) in Sarajevo and the OBN Project Assistance Team (PAT). The PAT's project document and business plan outlining a strategy for Phase Two of the OBN have now been finalised. The document, which encompasses the two calendar years of 1997 and 1998, and ends with the network at economic self-sufficiency, contains provisions on ownership, technical development, programming and personnel. It also includes a detailed proposal for consolidating the affiliate station in Banja Luka. Key elements in the strategy to strengthen the OBN include increasing the financial support for the network's affiliate stations, designing programming that balances the news and public affairs strengths of the network with entertainment formats acquired from international sources, affiliates, co-production and network production. The proposed business plan envisages establishing a correspondent bureau relationship to international news organisations and including international, regional and BiH corporations in the advertising and sponsorship revenue. The plan also proposes management and financial structures to guide the network's growth and a Bosnia-based transitional trusteeship entity to own the network's assets during its move to economic viability. On the technical side, infrastructure enhancements are proposed to: expand the network's broadcast reach, equip the central network facility and the Banja Luka bureau for professional production, provide emergency back-up against power outages and equipment failures, provide OBN with digital editing capacity, and develop a comprehensive maintenance plan and center. With regard to Banja Luka, the proposal calls for the setting up of an independent local TV station with an authentic local image, addressing local audience needs and problems within a BiH perspective and operating as a full OBN member replacing the current local correspondent office which produces reports for the nightly news show. The proposal has now been distributed to current and potential donors who will be meeting in Brussels on 22 January 1997. A failure in the satellite up-link system led to the OBN going off air for five days at the start of the new year. The fault, mainly a result of the severe weather conditions, was both detected and repaired by the local OBN engineers, and the network has now resumed its broadcasting as normal. During its absence, however, a series of speculations appeared in unfriendly quarters of the local press who suggested that there was a political and financial background to the blackout, some going as far as to predict that this was the end of the OBN. In a letter to local papers, Konstantin Jovanovic, the network's news director, addressed these reports adding that the network will endeavour in its efforts to "break through the information inter-Entity boundary lines" in Bosnia and Herzegovina despite these attacks. The blackout did have a silver lining giving the network a tangible proof of its ratings and popularity as viewers from all over the country (Sarajevo, Zenica, Visoko, Banja Luka, Tuzla, Gracanica, to name but a few) continued to phone in, express their support and inquire as to when the programming would resume. Many commended the network for its work so far while others requested that steps be taken to ensure wider coverage and longer broadcasting hours. The audience's mood and feelings were best summed up by one viewer from Tuzla who described the network as the "only TV station we want to watch and the one 'they' hate to see us watch" before concluding that this was "the only true Bosnian TV station in the country". In his letter, Jovanovic thanked all the viewers who contacted the central studio and promised their queries and requests would be addressed. Other news: The London Financial Times ran a report on the OBN just before Christmas, under a "Good News" logo. The article, headlined Reprogramming a country for peace, described the network as the one broadcaster operating "with the aim of bridging the divisions [in BiH]". The piece covered the difficult birth of OBN and charted developments within the network since highlighting the fact that "the network's experience underscores the difficulties of implementing any attempts to link the two entities [in BiH] - from something which seems as insignificant as vehicle license plates to something as important as political structures". It concluded with a comment from US journalist Michael Montgomery, himself a veteran of the region and a seasoned media monitor, who said the network is "the only Bosnia-wide project that has seen even a modicum of success". The pilot programme for the network's show dealing with issues related to refugees and displaced persons was aired on 8 January to favourable reviews. The show, filmed in Croatia, Germany and BiH, will aim to give a voice to the people most affected by this problem - the refugees and displaced persons themselves ensuring that their message can get across to the relevant authorities. The producers will be working closely with the various refugee and displaced persons associations, both in country and abroad, in order to stay in touch with their needs. OBN has reached an agreement with the international music channel MTV which has agreed to offer OBN rights to two hours a day of its top-rated youth audience programming for the next three months free of charge. The OBN Project Assistance Team Tel. 387 71 460 536 Fax 387 71 460 534 Office of the High Representative Public Affairs Office Tel. 387 71 447 275 Fax 387 71 447 420

Office of the High Representative