As of 1997, there were 408,000 main line telephones in use and 12,362 mobile cellular phones. Though most media are government owned, an independent television station, A-1, broadcasts from Skopje. As of 1998, there were 29 AM and 20 FM radio stations. There were 31 television stations as of 1995. In 2000 there were about 205 radios and 282 television sets for every 1,000 people. About six Internet service providers served 100,000 users in 2001.
Several daily newspapers are published in Skopje, as well as a number of periodicals. Newspapers in Albanian and a Turkish language paper are available nationally and subsidized by the government, including the Albanian-language Flaka e Vlazermit ( Flame of Brotherhood ) and the Turkish language Birlik. In 1994 Delo, a new weekly with reportedly nationalistic leanings, began publication. As of 2002, the leading newspapers were Nova Makedonia (circulation 25,000) and Vecer (29,200).
The constitution forbids censorship and the government is said to respect this in practice. However, the government has restricted certain parts of the media during civil conflicts.
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