News
Monthly Monitoring Highlights – discrimination and sensational reporting
Throughout the month of August, the RDN monitoring team has detected a range of hateful narratives and discourse. This month we have seen hatred based on gender, disabilities, sexuality, and ethnicity; as well as sensationalism in the media. Gender discrimination in Serbia Ivana Parlić, a Member of Parliament coming from the People’s Party recently took …
TROLL OF THE MONTH: Kosovo MPs Rrahmani and Balje, and the head of Prizren’s Islamic Community Berisha
The Balkan Troll of the Month is an individual, a group of individuals or a media outlet that spreads hate based on gender, ethnicity, religion, or other diversity categories. The Balkan Troll is selected based on hate speech incidents identified across the Western Balkans region. This month’s Troll are two members of Kosovo parliament Eman …
IN DEFENCE OF DIGNITY
In a world filled with increasing awareness and understanding about autism and related neurological conditions, it is deeply disheartening and concerning to come across remarks that not only showcase ignorance but also perpetuate harmful stereotypes. In a recent incident that has sparked a public outcry in North Macedonia, a private individual named Ranko Srbakoski took …
TROLL OF THE MONTH – SELECTION CRITERIA
The goal of the Reporting Diversity Network 2.0 monitoring is to identify and document the most significant cases (‘incidents’) of hate speech and divisive discourses in the Western Balkans media. Incidents are defined by the speaker regardless of where they occurred, but monitoring refers to their media coverage. They can originate in the Parliament, party …
MEDIA MONITORING REPORTS: Hate speech in the Balkans mainly targets ethnicity, gender identity and sexual orientation
According to the media monitoring reports produced within the Reporting Diversity Network 2.0 project, three categories were identified as the main target of hate speech: ethnicity, gender identity and sexuality. These three categories which were the result of monitoring 465 single incidents across the region, make up more than fifty percent of cases (53,13%). Within …
RDN’s request for moderation of the comments under the Serbian portal N1 post
User-generated comments below articles of famous media outlets in the Western Balkans can become a way of spreading harmful narratives. Even when the media content is produced in line with all professional standards, the comment sections, when left unmoderated, can still disturb the general public. Simultaneously, the media have the power and the responsibility to …
Monthly Monitoring Highlights – genocide denial and hatred based on gender
Throughout the month of July, the RDN monitoring team has detected a range of hateful narratives and discourse. This month, we have seen hatred based on ethnicity and gender along with the unsettling occurrence of genocide denial, coinciding with the commemoration of the Srebrenica genocide. Genocide denial in Bosnia and Herzegovina July 11th marks Srebrenica …
TIMEOUT
CHALLENGING THE DOMINANCE OF MEN IN SPORTS JOURNALISM. Qëndresa Krelani found herself at the center of heated public debate back in 2021. A sports journalist with two decades of experience, Krelani was part of a panel on Sporti Total, a KTV sports show alongside Llapi Football Club’s coach Tahir Batatina, Drenica Football Club’s former coach …
TROLL OF THE MONTH: Glorification of war criminals
The Balkan Troll of the Month is an individual, a group of individuals or a media outlet that spreads hate based on gender, ethnicity, religion, or other diversity categories. The Balkan Troll is selected based on hate speech incidents identified across the Western Balkans region. July 11th marks the Srebrenica Memorial Day. Ruled as genocide …
Press Council accepted our complaints!
The fight for a better media environment is long and difficult, but small wins along the way keep us motivated. After two mass shootings befell Serbia in just a few days in May, Media Diversity Institute Western Balkans warned of the harmful effects of unprofessional and sensationalist media coverage. A few hours after the shooting …
Monthly Monitoring Highlights – homophobia and other hateful narratives
Throughout the month of June, the RDN monitoring team has detected a range of hateful narratives and discourse. This month, we have seen hatred against LGBTQ+ individuals alongside religious, ethnic and gender discrimination, but also attacks on journalists and media due to ethnic intolerance. Anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric in Bosnia and Herzegovina and North Macedonia This month, …