Miodrag "Miško" Perović (born in
Belgrade) is a
Montenegrin journalist, media publisher, university professor, political activist, and businessman.
Most notable for starting various media outlets in Montenegro during the 1990s and 2000s such as FM radio station
Antena M, weekly newsmagazine ''
Monitor'' (1990), daily newspaper ''
Vijesti
''Nezavisni dnevnik Vijesti'' (; English translation: ''News'') is a Montenegrin daily newspaper.
The paper is published and managed by an entity called Daily Press d.o.o. - a limited liability company based in Podgorica. The company's ownership ...
'' (1997), and television station
TV Vijesti (2008), Perović is a political opinion maker in Montenegro. His influence and prominence is also exerted through his family - his sister
Milka Ljumović
Milka is a brand of chocolate confectionery, originally made in Switzerland in 1901 by Suchard. It has then been produced in Lörrach, Germany for the past 100 years. Since 2012 it has been owned by US-based company Mondelez International, when ...
is a well known Montenegrin banker and the founder of
Crnogorska komercijalna banka (CKB), which was sold to Hungarian
OTP Group in late August 2006 for
€105 million.
Perović was also a fierce proponent for the formation of a Montenegrin cultural society, today known as
Matica crnogorska. He was a founding member and was chosen as the vice-president on 22 May 1993 during its founding assembly, but soon resigned because of
Božina Ivanović's election to the position of president.
Though lauded for the anti-war stance of his media outlets during the early 1990s while armed conflicts raged throughout the Balkans as well as their pointed criticism of the pro-
Milošević authorities in Montenegro led by
Milo Đukanović
Milo Đukanović ( cnr, Мило Ђукановић, ; born 15 February 1962) is a Montenegrin politician serving as the President of Montenegro since 2018, previously serving in the role from 1998 to 2003. He also served as the Prime Minister ...
,
Momir Bulatović
Momir Bulatović ( sr-cyr, Момир Булатовић; 21 September 1956 – 30 June 2019) was a Yugoslav and Montenegrin politician. He was the first President of the Republic of Montenegro from 1990 to 1998, after which he served as the Pr ...
, and
Svetozar Marović
Svetozar Marović ( sr-cyr, Светозар Маровић; born 31 March 1955) is a Montenegrin lawyer and politician who served as the last head of state and head of government of Serbia and Montenegro from 2003 until Montenegro's declaration ...
, Perović has also frequently been criticized by various public figures in Montenegro for "switching sides" in 1997 following the split in ruling
DPS party and providing open support to Milo Đukanović.
Early life
Born in Belgrade where his father attended professional development courses at the time, Perović's paternal family hails from Bare Radovića village in Lower
Morača Valley. He left Belgrade as an infant of 3–4 months joining his father first in
Kolašin
Kolašin (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Колашин, ) is a town in northern Montenegro. It has a population of 2,989 (2003 census). Kolašin is the centre of Kolašin Municipality (population 9,949) and an unofficial centre of Morača region, named af ...
. Then in
Morača Monastery
The Morača ( sr-cyrl, Морача, ) is a major river in Montenegro that originates in the northern region in Kolašin Municipality under Mount Rzača. It meanders southwards for before emptying into Lake Skadar. Its drainage basin covers . ...
, and finally in
Titograd
Podgorica ( Cyrillic: Подгорица, ; lit. 'under the hill') is the capital and largest city of Montenegro. The city was formerly known as Titograd ( Cyrillic: Титоград, ) between 1946 and 1992—in the period that Montenegro f ...
where Perović spent his formative years.
He returned to Belgrade for university studies, graduating from the
University of Belgrade
The University of Belgrade ( sr, / ) is a public university in Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia.
Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it merged with the Kragujevac- ...
, and later getting a
MSc and
PhD PHD or PhD may refer to:
* Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification
Entertainment
* '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series
* ''Piled Higher and Deeper
''Piled Higher and Deeper'' (also known as ''PhD Comics''), is a newsp ...
from the same institution.
Career
In spring 1999, during NATO bombing of FR Yugoslavia, Perović's radio station Antena M refused to respect the orders under the federal state of emergency act that stipulates strict broadcasting rules under the wartime circumstances. Instead, Antena M continued carrying Western foreign service programmes such as
Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a United States government funded organization that broadcasts and reports news, information, and analysis to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Caucasus, and the Middle East where it says th ...
,
Voice of America
Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is the state-owned news network and international radio broadcaster of the United States of America. It is the largest and oldest U.S.-funded international broadcaster. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content ...
,
BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
, etc. contrary to Yugoslav army requests. In an editorial in his magazine ''Monitor'', he also urged Montenegrin government to stage a de facto coup by seizing control of the federal army bases located in the republic. Soon the Yugoslav army charged Perović on two counts - smearing the reputation of
FR Yugoslavia
Serbia and Montenegro ( sr, Cрбија и Црна Гора, translit=Srbija i Crna Gora) was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...
and sabotaging the fight against the enemy - and issued a warrant for his arrest.
In late April 1999, he shut down operations at both Antena M and ''Monitor'' rather than submit to military censorship and also went into hiding. On request from Montenegrin state security service chief Duško Marković, and Montenegrin president Đukanović, on May 12, 1999 Perović left the territory of FR Yugoslavia and relocated to Rome, Italy until the dust settled. After spending time in Italy and France, less than a month later, on June 6, he came back to Montenegro and couple of days later voluntarily appeared before the military court.
During the early 2000s, Perović became the vice-president of
Doclean Academy of Sciences and Arts (DANU).
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Perovic, Miodrag
Montenegrin journalists
Male journalists
Montenegrin educators
University of Belgrade alumni
Writers from Podgorica
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)