On May 28, 2004, Nikolaidis's highly charged piece titled "Dželatov šegrt" (Executioner's Apprentice) was published as part of his regular column in "Monitor" weekly magazine. In it, he targeted film director Emir Kusturica, denouncing him, among other things, as one of the "biggest media stars of the time when Milošević's war propaganda propped people who had something stupid but patriotic to say and created news for people who were insensitive to human suffering, blind to their own guilt, and finally stupid enough to believe in their own righteousness".