This is the best summary I could come up with:

Journalists are accusing North Macedonia’s ruling party and opposition of banding together to restrict press freedom, ahead of an election in the Balkan country.

It can also be used as a tool to reward or punish media outlets based on their coverage of government activities, which ultimately creates a hostile environment for independent journalism and undermines the watchdog role of the press, one leading domestic journalist said.

“It’s an attempt to return state advertising to the media before the elections,” Mladen Čadikovski, president of North Macedonia’s Association of Journalists, told POLITICO.

“All that is carried out through a shortened procedure and by abusing the European flag,” he said, adding that the amendment was falsely presented as complying with EU media laws, which the candidate country would have to adopt eventually if it becomes a member of the bloc.

“That’s how you influence editorial policies and stay on good terms with television stations that decide how you come across in campaigns,” Dimitrov told POLITICO, adding that the “government sold the legislation as in sync with EU directives” to rush it through parliament swiftly.

Journalists Without Borders ranks North Macedonia 38th globally on its press freedom index — ahead of EU member Croatia and other countries in the region.

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