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Technology innovations and journalism community are challenged by alternated process of content production, interaction with the audience, economic crisis and saturated media market. Taken together these factors impose a need to reassess capability of the printed public media in Serbia to follow global trends. Research results published in this article indicate that both owners and media managers of the four publicly owned print media in Serbia are looking for the appropriate adjustment model, facing at the same time under-qualified personnel, obsolete technical infrastructure and lack of investments. It was quite expected that public media owners during the adjustment process consider the state as both supporter and protector, since large portion of their business depends on the financial support handed over by the government or municipalities budgets. However, chivalrous role of the state is also being perceived by the public print media representatives within the process of creating comprehensive and respected regulatory framework, that will treat each media as equal competitor in the media game. In the fight for survival newspapers in Serbia are additionally overwhelmed by the technological revolution, leading in direction of an impression that media system is not developing appropriate mechanisms in order to overcome external difficulties. Therefore, the existence of the oldest mass media is being seriously questioned, both globally and locally. ; Tehnološke inovacije i izazovi za novinarsku profesiju, drugačiji proces proizvodnje sadržaja u interaktivnom odnosu sa publikom, opterećenost ekonomskom krizom i zasićenim tržištem, nameću potrebu za preispitivanjem sposobnosti štampanih javnih glasila u Srbiji da odgovore na ove izazove. Rezultati ovog uzorka pokazuju da su u četiri štampana lista vlasnici ili predstavnici medija u potrazi za adekvatnim modelom prilagođavanja, suočeni sa nedovoljno osposobljenim kadrom i veoma malim budžetima za ulaganje u infrastrukturu, jer posluju na granici preživljavanja. Sasvim očekivano, vlasnici javnih glasila državu vide kao zaštitnika i oslonac u procesu prilagođavanja, jer velikim delom njihovo poslovanje zavisi od visine sredstava izdvojenih iz državnog ili budžeta lokalnih samouprava. No, paternalističku funkciju države predstavnici javnih štampanih medija sagledavaju i u stvaranju celovitog i delotvornog regulatornog okvira, koji će sve medije tretirati kao ravnopravne aktere medijske utakmice. U borbi za opstanak štampana glasila u Srbiji su suočeni sa tehnološkom revolucijom, pa se čini da medijski sistem u tranziciji ne poseduje adekvatne mehanizme za prevazilaženje spolja nametnutih poteškoća. Samim tim ugrožen je opstanak najstarijeg medija, kako na nacionalnom, tako i na lokalnom nivou.

The aim of this paper is to examine the level of achieved freedom of the media in Serbia, as well as the willingness of the journalistic community to resist external pressures and provide an answer to their basic professional mission with objectivity, timeliness, comprehensiveness and truthful reporting. Observation of the current professional developments is done through the type of media system that is characteristic of all post-communist countries. The answer to the question of whether after two decades of transition in Serbia there is an appropriate socio-political climate for achieving the ideals of journalism as defined by normative standards, will be sought through the operationalization of three sets of key indicators. The effects of political and economic pressures on the media, market conditions, as well as relevant standards within the professional community are considered through the use of structuralistic argumentation. With regards to the methodology, the work is based on secondary analysis of quantitative data obtained in the survey of journalists/editors and owners/managers, as well as, qualitative analysis of statements from four focus groups. Comparing the results of this study with the relevant indicators that measure press freedom, we can conclude that journalism has not reached the potential to guard democracy in Serbia. The current situation results in a politicized media system, the parallelism of political and economic pressures on the media, the dominance of sensationalism and tabloidization trend, and the journalistic profession without a clearly defined identity. ; Cilj ovog rada je da preispita nivo dostignutih sloboda za rad medija u Srbiji, kao i spremnost novinarske zajednice da se odupre spoljnim pritiscima i odgovori na osnovnu profesionalnu misiju objektivnim, pravovremenim, potpunim i istinitim izveštavanjem. Aktuelna profesionalna zbivanja neophodno je posmatrati kroz tip medijskog sistema koji je karakterističan za sve postkomunističke zemlje. Odgovor na pitanje da li nakon dvodecenijske tranzicije u Srbiji postoji adekvatna društveno-politička klima za ostvarenje ideala novinarstva definisanog normativnim zahtevima, potražićemo operacionalizacijom tri seta ključnih indikatora. Dejstvo političkih i ekonomskih pritisaka na rad medija, uslovi tržišta, kao i važeći standardi unutar profesionalne zajednice razmatraju se upotrebom strukturalističke argumentacije. Metodološki, rad je baziran na sekundarnoj analizi kvantitativnih podataka dobijenih anketiranjem novinara/urednika i vlasnika/menadžera, kao i kvalitativnom obradom izjava iz četiri fokus grupe. Komparirajući rezultate ovog istraživanja sa relevantnim indeksima koji mere slobodu medija, možemo zaključiti da se novinarstvo još uvek ne može smatrati 'doraslim' čuvarom demokratije u Srbiji. Ovakvo stanje uzrokuje politizovan medijski sistem, paralelizam političkih i ekonomskih pritisaka na rad medija, dominacija senzacionalizma i trend tabloidizacije, kao i činjenica da je novinarska profesija bez jasno određenog identiteta.