Remembering Tanjug

Historically, the role of journalism in society is bound to prevailing conceptualization freedom press, specific societal, institutional, and material conditions news production. This study explores self-perceptions journalists working period socialist Yugoslavia synthetizes their recollections journalistic orientations performances with respect journalism’s place society. The based on oral history interviews former journalists, who worked also as editors foreign correspondents from late 1950s 1990s at agency Tanjug, which was considered information backbone federal media system had considerable international relevance. By combining ‘journalistic roles’ studies well ‘occupational life history’ research this historical makes twofold contribution. First, it identifies adaptive strategies remembering used by interviewed legitimize themselves professionals relevant interpreters SFRY journalism. Second, reveals more nuances within common, often simplified understandings collaborators power during socialism, highlights roles privileged disseminator, monitoring analyst, educator manifestations collaborative function