   
|
|
SLOVENIA
The Constitution provides for
freedom of thought, speech, public association, the
press, and other forms of public communication and
expression. Lingering self-censorship and some indirect
political pressures continue to influence the media.
The press is
now a vigorous institution emerging from its more
restricted past. The media span the political spectrum.
The major media do not represent a broad range of ethnic
interests, although there is an Italian-language
television channel as well as a newspaper available to
the ethnic Italian minority who live on the Adriatic
Coast. Hungarian radio programming is common in the
northeast where there are about 8,500 ethnic Hungarians.
Bosnian refugees and the Albanian community have
newsletters in their own languages.
Four major
daily and several weekly newspapers are published. The
major print media are supported through private
investment and advertising, although the national
broadcaster, RTV Slovenia, enjoys government subsidies,
as do cultural publications and book publishing. There
are seven television channels, four of which are
independent private stations. Numerous foreign broadcasts
are available via satellite and cable. All major towns
have radio stations and cable television. Numerous
business and academic publications are available. Foreign
newspapers, magazines, and journals are widely available.
In theory and
practice, the media enjoy full freedom in their
journalistic pursuits. However, for over 40 years
Slovenia was ruled by an authoritarian Communist
political system, and reporting about domestic politics
may be influenced to some degree by self-censorship and
indirect political pressures.
The election
law requires the media to offer free space and time to
political parties at election time. Television networks
routinely give public figures and opinion makers from
across the political spectrum access via a broad range of
public interest programming.
The
Constitution provides for autonomy and freedom for
universities and other institutions of higher education.
There are two universities, each with numerous affiliated
research and study institutions. Academic freedom is
respected, and centers of higher education are lively and
intellectually stimulating.
|
