Balkan Journalism Fellowship Opens in Vienna

This year’s Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence gets underway, as ten journalists attend an opening seminar in the Austrian capital.

The 2011 Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence programme got under way on Tuesday, as ten journalists from across the region attended an opening seminar in Vienna.

Speakers included Christoph Prantner, head of the foreign desk of Der Standard, the leading Austrian daily newspaper and Igor Stiks, writer, academic and post-doctoral research fellow at the University of Edinburgh’s Europeanization of Citizenship in the Successor States of the Former Yugoslavia faculty.

This year’s event is being held at the Hub Vienna – a new meeting space in the centre of town that describes itself as “an inspiring place for people with ideas for a better world to work, meet, learn [and] connect”.

“I was impressed with the Hub Vienna venue – it’s a new way of organising seminars that puts people in a different mood because you don’t feel like you are at a seminar. You feel you are not supposed to just listen – it makes you want to participate actively in discussions,” said Jelena Kulidzan, a fellow from Montenegro.

“I was also impressed by Igor Stiks’ address; he was a very good speaker who managed to make a long and detailed presentation on complex citizenship issues accessible and gripping. I also enjoyed Christoph Prantner’s presentation, it is nice to find out how other media function and see everything they need to ensure they reach and maintain high editorial standards.”

World Press Freedom Day

Dollores Benezic, a fellow from Romania, pointed out the first day of the seminar coincided with World Press Freedom Day.

“Today was a very good World Press Freedom Day. I heard about a newspaper [Der Standard] that sounds like THE newspaper for me. These days in Romania, one hears constantly about curbs on media freedoms, publications going bust and controversial media buyouts,” said Benezic.

“So for me, a journalist from Romania, the first day of the seminar was a kind of breath of fresh, optimistic air. The Der Standard presentation was motivating and gave me hope that there is still a free media in the world.

“Igor’s research into citizenship in eastern Europe was also very interesting, as was the story of Erste Foundation’s beginnings,” she said.

Juliana Koleva, a fellow from Bulgaria, said: “Usually I’m a bit stressed on the first day of seminars, today was different and I think we managed to form a good team from the first day. I am also very impressed by other fellows’ topics and background – which is very interesting and useful for me.

“I also felt we were part of the proceedings, and not just passive listeners. I was impressed by Boris Marte from Erste Foundation; his explanation of how they manage to run all these projects across the region without imposing external directives and rules seems particularly helpful for the countries involved.”

The seminar continues until the end of the week, and speakers on Wednesday will include Zenet Mujic, senior adviser to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe representative on media freedom and Eric Karstens, business development director at the European Journalism Centre.

The fellowship has been running for five years and the journalists taking part in this year’s programme are as follows:

Elira Canga from Albania
Ahmed Buric from Bosnia
Juliana Koleva from Bulgaria
Ruzica Matic from Croatia
Selvije Bajrami from Kosovo
Slobodanka Jovanovska from Macedonia
Jelena Kulidzan from Montenegro
Dollores Benezic from Romania
Dejan Anastasijevic from Serbia
Stevan Dojcinovic from Serbia

The Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence, an initiative of the Robert Bosch Stiftung and ERSTE Foundation, in cooperation with the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network.

Life in Kosovo discusses the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue

Life in Kosovo broadcasts a debate on the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia.

What are the attitudes of Serbian citizens and the opposition regarding the dialogue? Who represents the interests of the Serb community in this dialogue, Prishtina or Belgrade? Is there a possibility to find a solution to the problems of the citizens of both these countries through this dialogue?

To discuss these and other issues related to the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, Jeta Xharra has invited the following panelists:

Edita Tahiri, Kosovo’s deputy prime minister and head of the Prishtina dialogue team;
Augustin Palokaj, Brussels correspondent from the daily newspaper Koha Ditore;
Natasha Kandic, from the Regional Commission for establishing and disclosing the facts about war crimes committed in the former Yugoslavia, RECOM;
Slobodan Petrovic, Kosovo’s deputy prime minister.

After the debate, BIRN broadcasts a report by journalist Muhamet Hajrullahu, which reveals how the European Commission Liaison Office was disappointed with the municipality of Prizren, since the latter has not respected the agreement for the construction of a sports’ fields.

Whereas, in the health sector, journalist Alban Selimi presents a report, which shows that institutions are not undertaking appropriate measures to avoid the problem of ticks that residents of the Malisheva region face.

At the end of the show, journalist Edona Musa reveals the problem of residents of villages in Lipjan, who do not have a sewage system.

BIRN Conference Addresses Integration of South Serbia

Over 100 people from Serbia and abroad have gathered in Belgrade at a high profile BIRN conference on the integration of minority communities from South Serbia into the country’s wider society and institutions.

Under the name ’Integration: Combining Ethnic and Democratic Principles’, BIRN Serbia organised on Wednesday an international forum that aims to serve as a platform for the domestic and foreign public to gain insight into current developments in the region, and for those involved in initiatives in the area.

Mr. Ivica Dacic, Deputy Prime Minister in the Serbian Government, Mr. Bill Longhurst, Charge d’Affaires of the UK embassy in Serbia, Mr. Riza Haljimi, Member of the Serbian Parliament, Mr. Thomas Moore, Acting Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia and Ms. Gordana Igric, BIRN Regional Director, opened the debate.

The forum, organised under the auspices of the British Embassy in Belgrade and the Balkan Fund for Democracy, features two panels. The first focuses on education as the cornerstone of successful integration. Participants in the second panel will discuss the effectiveness of international aid sent to the region.

The first international forum on the development of South Serbia and possibilities for the increased integration of ethnic Albanians into Serbian state institutions was organised by BIRN Serbia in April 2010 in Belgrade on the occasion of the first anniversary of the reinstatement of the Coordinating Body for South Serbia.

The conference was entitled ‘South Serbia: From Frozen Conflict to Sustainable Solutions: Opportunities for Long-Term Integration and Development of the Region’.

The southern Serbia municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac, and Medvedja are home to the country’s largest ethnic Albanian population and are among the least developed in Serbia. High unemployment rates and an average wage lower than the state average of about 350 euros are two of the many challenges facing the area.

In 2000 and 2001, the region was the scene of an armed conflict between state security forces and local ethnic Albanian militants in the Liberation Army of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja.

 

Economic Development, Education Needed in South Serbia

A Serbian MP from South Serbia says that the region needs economic development and improvements to education, in a speech at a BIRN conference on the integration of the area.

Riza Halimi, the only ethnic Albanian MP in the Serbian Parliament, said that the economy and education are the most crucial areas in need of improvement in South Serbia, during a speech at a conference on the integration of minority communities in South Serbia into the country’s wider society and institutions.

South Serbia is home to the country’s largest ethnic Albanian population and is among the least developed regions in Serbia. Extremely high unemployment rates and an average wage lower than the state average of about 350 euros are two of the many challenges facing the area.

Halimi said that economic situation has worsened since 2001 and that the recognition of diplomas is one of several unresolved issues.

“There is no perspective for a future here, which is why the majority of asylum seekers are from here,” he said. “They are not political asylum seekers but those who failed to find a solution to their problems in their hometown and are now looking for it in EU member states,” he added.

Thousands of Serbian citizens from south Serbia have attempted to seek asylum in EU states since Serbia was granted visa-free travel to the EU in December 2009.

Halimi was speaking at a conference in Belgrade that gathered more than 100 Serbian and foreign participants to address the pressing issues facing South Serbia.

Under the name ’Integration: Combining Ethnic and Democratic Principles’, BIRN Serbia organised on Wednesday an international forum that aims to serve as a platform for the domestic and foreign public to gain insight into current developments in the region, and for those involved in development initiatives in the area.

The forum, organised under the auspices of the British Embassy in Belgrade and the Balkan Fund for Democracy, was opened in Belgrade’s Sava Centre by BIRN regional director Gordana Igric.

Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic also addressed the movement north over the past year as people escaped a difficult economic situation in south Serbia and sought asylum in the EU.

“They are seeking asylum, forgetting that it is a political category,” he said. Dacic went on to say that more than 95 per cent of those people have been rejected as they do not suffer political persecution.

In an effort to counter this, Dacic said, the government is investing greater efforts to integrate minorities into state institutions and improve their prospects for the future.

Milan Markovic, Serbia’s minister of human and minority rights, public administration and local-self government, explained that the government is working hard to release books in the Albanian language.

“The national minority council has recently been established and this is the body which is supposed to take over the issue and try to resolve it,” Markovic said.

He went on to say that affirmative action takes place in employment in public institutions. Language is a barrier, he noted, but both Serbs and ethnic Albanians discriminate against each other in government bodies.

Education Minister Zarko Obradovic stressed his ministry’s willingness to improve the educational system in south Serbia and ensure that the communities in the region can access their rights.

“In order to reach this goal, we need to have professional educators as well as money, just wishing is not enough,” he said.

Members of the diplomatic corps and international organisations in Serbia also took part in Wednesday’s conference. They commended goals which have been reached while encouraging the Serbian government to continue its efforts.

Bill Longhurst, chargé d’affaires in the British Embassy in Belgrade, noted several positive improvements which had been made. These include establishing a multi-ethnic government in Bujanovac, one of the municipalities in south Serbia, promising steps in the field of education and healthcare, and the formation of the national minority council.

Thomas Moore, acting head of the OSCE mission to Serbia, told forum participants that the climate has changed regarding the integration of ethnic Albanians in South Serbia.

He said that the Coordinating Body for South Serbia, which organises cooperation between local and state bodies, is working on several important issues, including a multi-ethnic university in Bujanovac, a maternity ward in Presevo and resolving issues surrounding the use of Albanian language.

“The OSCE remains committed to providing whatever support Serbia needs on its progress towards the EU,” he said.

 

Pace of Integration in South Serbia ‘Not Satisfactory’

Representatives of ethnic Albanians from South Serbia are not satisfied with the pace of the region’s integration into wider Serbian society and institutions.

Shaip Kamberi, mayor of Bujanovac, and Ragmi Mustafa, mayor of Presevo, said that they do not think that Belgrade is investing enough effort to resolve issues in South Serbia, including a strugging economy.

The mayors, who lead two of the main cities in South Serbia, spoke at a BIRN panel discussion entitled Integration – The Way Forward.

The panel is part of BIRN’s second international forum on South Serbia entitled Integration: Combining Ethnic and Democratic Principles, held on Wednesday in Belgrade.

The southern Serbia municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac, and Medvedja are home to the country’s largest ethnic Albanian population and are among the least developed in Serbia. High unemployment rates and an average wage lower than the state average of about 350 euros are two of the many challenges facing the area.

In 2000 and 2001, the region was the scene of an armed conflict between state security forces and local ethnic Albanian militants in the Liberation Army of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja.

Representatives from Serbia’s state government also participated in Wednesday’s forum, along with international organisations and embassies.

Danijela Nenadic from Serbia’s Coordination Body for the municipalities of Bujanovac, Presevo and Medvedja told conference participants that “we are facing the problem of donor assistance slowly drying up.” She also pointed to the importance of listening to local stakeholders.

Beatrice Meyer, Country Director for the Swiss Cooperation Office, also said that donor aid is decreasing, which is not a positive sign.

“Sometimes we have the feeling that the state is reducing efforts when we are on the ground,” she added.

Graeme Tyndall, Programme Manager for the European Partnership with Municipalities, believes that the Serbian government needs to bring in the private industry to explore ways to improve integration in the region.

Media caught between local needs and national policies

Monitoring of the public perception of the quality of media reporting in minority languages, initiated in February in the municipalities of Bujanovac and Presevo by BIRN Serbia, was the topic of a debate which took place yesterday in Bujanovac, and which was hosted by the OSCE.

As part of the survey,  people were able to directly and openly express their views about the local media.

The aim of the debate was to evaluate the content, accuracy and  objectivity, of the local media who are reporting in Albanian language, and to assess the overall quality of journalism.

The results are intended primarily for use by the local media, as well as to produce guidelines for the production of quality newspaper content that will fully meet the needs of local people.

The research is part of a project supported by the British Embassyin Serbia,  ‘Raising awareness and intensifying dialogue as a means to prevent potential conflicts’.

Birn Serbia representative Tanja Maksic said that the preoject had helped to initiate discussion among people in Bujanovac because it had directly sought out their views on the content in the local media.

She said that BIRN Serbia’s objective was to obtain data on the authenticity, quality and objectivity of the media. The method used in the research were focus groups which sought the views of people from a range  of socio-economic groups.

The point, she said, was that to show how important it is to preserve the media in the Albanian language and also that the minority media are essential for the preservation of  the identity of minorities.

“Local media are constantly competing for audience share and have not been doing too well in the face of competition from the national media who have undisputed primacy” – said Maksic.

Consultant, Dragan Kramer said that local media structures were created out of the old system of Yugoslav Radio-Television News because they regulating news in a way that is rarely broadcast local news at the beginning of the program, which should be the other way around.

“News should conclude with the order and what is published must be localized because the privatization of television has a huge impact on the coverage and quality of content – said Kramer.

He added that local media are more focused on securing advertising and making profit than on quality content, and that this was clear  evidence of mismanagement.

Kramer said that the people require much more  from the local media than they can provide to them, and so they want to compensate for the disadvantages that they deprive the national media.

“Radio is the ideal tool of local reporting and in combination with the Internet is an almost a perfect combination for transmitting local information very quickly and it is possible to secure a large audience, even though TV is intrinsically the most powerful media, ” said Kramer.

He noted that there are very few media networks and associations and limited exchange of programming, and that local media were trying to develop in-house programming, something which he said could be financial suicide in the long term, and that whilst in the short-term there might be ratings improvement there were insufficient resources in the longer term.

He predicted that digitisation would lead to liberalisation of the media, and that those who had the resources for production would survive locally but that others stood to fail.

Editor Zoran Stanojevic from RTS’s “Oko” Magazine programme said that the problems in the media on the local level are mirrored in the national media, which also suffered from a lack of money and  manpower, and that the single difference was that that national media work on a larger scale.

Stanojevic emphasised the value of the licence fee paid by citizens for RTS programming without which he said  public service broadcasting could not fulfill its role.

“News is the largest market, and Belgrade is the biggest source of news, thus, more than half of the RTS programme is produced, deals with and works in Belgrade” – he said.

He added that the media should find how to make local news  interesting to people who are not from the region and that it was necessary for journalists seek out issues that would be interesting to  people who have an interest in similar problems in different cities.

“In Serbia, there is a lack of ideas for quality programming.  It has never been a problem to provide the technology – the problems are with ideas and quality manpower. When you solve that problem, the situation at the local level will be better. The state should recognise this and do everything to provide assistance to the local media,” said Stanojevic.

At the meeting, representatives of local media focused on the financial aspects and the balance of views was that the main problem was not as Stanojevic said, wholly a lack of ideas, but also one of resources.

Particularly referring to problems at the local level, participants felt that pressure should be brought to bear on local authorities who have significant  impact on the content that is broadcast.

They talked about the lack of programme schedules at local TV stations that where there are schedules these are often not followed. The noted that news is often taken directly from agencies’ websites, and that local stories are often not well covered. The public is very rarely interviewed, footage is sometimes irrelevant to the stories creating confusion and a bad image.

Emphasis was placed in the fact that journalists never really investigated problems, that socio-economic issues are completely ignored, and that many journalists are not paid and in many cases, news programmes go out with content downloaded from stations in Tirana.

Media representatives from Bujanovac objected  to the output of  RTS saying that because they only run reports from this part of Serbia that feature conflict and hot spots.

Initiation of the training – How to Write for CULTURE WATCH Online Magazine

The training “How to Write for Culture Watch Online Magazine” began today in Pristina. Thirteen journalists from the region are participating in the event, part of the Balkan Initiative for Cultural Cooperation, Exchange, and Development. Their active involvement will help establish a positive environment for policy makers in-country and abroad to create policies that speed up the region’s European-oriented transition.

The training will continue tomorrow, while on the last day- March 19, 2011- the conference “Culture in the media” will be held.

The Balkan Culture Watch Strengthening Project, BCWSP, funded by European Cultural Foundation, is a “build-on” project that complements the existing 3-year BICCED programme (funded by the SCP). The project brings together different shareholders (editors, trained journalists and other cultural associates) in order to better connect regional cultural institutions and journalists, highlighting activities and main issues through analysis and disseminating the information on the regional level through local media outlets and internationally via Web sites.

This project aims to involve government officials and policy makers and work to improve the situation in the region by strengthening cultural life and cross-cultural cooperation as an important element of a participatory, open, and dynamic civil society.

Pristina Culture Watch Training

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network is organising a training session for journalists – How to write for Culture Watch Online Magazine – as a part of the Balkan Initiative for Cultural Cooperation, Exchange and Development, BICCED, project. The training will be held in Pristina, from March 17 to 18 and will involve journalists from across the region.

The training sessions, will be followed later by on-the-job training from BIRN’s experienced editorial team to help the journalists toproduce articles focusing on cultural policy throughout the region, which will be published in the dedicated culture section of BIRN’s Balkan Insight web site – www.BalkanInsight.com

The two day training programme will focus primarily on developing the journalists’ skill set, and will be led by Ana Petruseva, BIRN Macedonia Director and Gordana Igric, BIRN Regional Network Director who will guide the team through five distinct types of articles, writing style, writing tips, and the use of quotations and sources. Another session will focus on news and analytical writing,helping the journalists to define news analysis, understand the difference between news and news analysis, the composition of news analysis. The session will close with an exercise to test the journalists’ understanding.

Our web director Milos Milosavljevic will host a session looking at Online Journalism and the use of social networks where journalists will have learn the specific skills necessary for writing for the web, methods and techniques to promote their stories and the use of the web for research and collaboration.

The programme will conclude with the commissioning of articles which the journalists will work on in clooaboration  with their local editors in the weeks to come. This training represents the first step in BIRN’s programme to create positive environment for policymakers in-country and within institutions abroad to develop policies that move forward the region’s European transition.

Objective, balanced, and accurate reporting on aspects of cultural policy and other related themes including human resources in culture, transfer of ownership, heritage,the  tourist potential of culture is a key component of that process.

Professionalism in the Local and Minority Media

Experts, media professionals and civil society representatives got together for the first in a series of debates focused on media reporting in a multi-ethnic environment, organised by BIRN and OSCE in Novi Pazar:

The media and the commercialisation of state aid – ensuring the rights of minorities to information and free expression

Media focused on minority communities have special status in the country’s broader media system. Their existence is important for political and social pluralism and diversity of society, and their impact on the  preservation of minority cultures and languages and their ability foster tolerance and multiculturalism can not be over-stated.

Most minority media houses receive some sort of state aid or support  as the majority would otherwise  not be commercially viable.

The aim of the meeting was to answer the question of whether athe current climate allowed the Bosniak media to produce quality information and free expression and fostered healthy competition amongst media companies.

The roundtable in Novi Pazar therefore had to serve two purposes: 1) to map the key issues/problems local media face in providing information in minority languages and 2) devise a set of recommendations for members of the Council.

The roundtable was attended by about more than 50 participants, including representatives from  almost every media house in Sandzak.

In a very lively discussion, which lasted nearly three hours, despite the presence of a range of participants with very different viewpoints, the meeting was very constructive.

The difficult economic situation in Serbia, means that we are likely to see layoffs of journalists and the closure of newspapers, and continuing political and economic pressures on freedom of speech and all the participants agreed that local and minority media were likely to suffer disproportionately.

Special emphasis was been placed in the discussion on minorities’ rights to quality reporting at both a local to national level. Participants felt that this in area the Government seemed unwilling to respond and make the radical changes necessary to show significant results.

There was much discussion  about the transformation of ownership of the media in Serbia, which the speakers felt had, for almost ten years taken place without controls to guarantee legality and fairness, and on the Law on Public Information, adopted in 2003, which envisages the privatisation of all media, except for RTS, which was transformed into a public service broadcaster.

The speakers on this topic were Dragana Nikolic-Solomon, Head of the Media Department of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Sasa Mirkovic from ANEM, Zuzana Serences from NDNV and Goran Karadzic, from the RRA.

Dragana Solomon, expressed the hope that the participants would be able to provide the quality of news necessary  from professional media houses and that desired by the public and also “how to provide professional and objective reporting in accordance with the rights of minorities. “

She noted that the quality of content was especially crucial, given current problems, and said that an independent editorial policy and independent funding was necessary for the sustainability of the local media.

The roundtable was organized by the OSCE Mission to Serbia and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network,BIRN,  with the assistance of the British Embassy in Serbia.

Journalists selected for Pristina Culture Conference

The Balkan Investigative Regional Reporting Network is pleased to announce the journalists who have been selected to participate in the second round of the Balkan Initiative for Cultural Co-operation, Exchange and Development project.

The project aims to improve the situation in the region by strengthening cultural life and cross-cultural cooperation as an important element of a participatory, open and dynamic civil society

A training programme,  “How to Write for Culture Watch Online magazine?“ will be held in Pristina on March 17 and 18.

The journalists’ active involvment in the training and conference session, organised as part of  the project, will be essential to the project as it explores the coverage of cultural policy issues, the understanding of cultural policy issues and the challenges faced by the media in presenting these issues to the public.

The event will additionally serve to strengthen transnational co-operation between media and culture experts from across the region. The Balkan journalists selected are:

–    Aneta Risteska, Macedonia
–    Besiana Lushaj, Albania
–    Besiana Xharra, Kosovo
–    Ernest Zavila, Bosnia-Herzegovina
–    Gordana Andric, Serbia
–    Klimentina Ilievski, Macedonia
–    Maja Nedelkovska, Macedonia
–    Marjola Rukar, Albania
–    Milan Lisica, Serbia
–    Nejra Aganovic, Bosnia-Herzegovina
–    Nemanja Cabric, Serbia
–    Shengjyl Osmani, Kosovo
–    Zvjezdan Zivkovic, Bosnia-Herzegovina

Some of the journalists participating in the BICCED project will also take part in the JournArt project implemented by the Centre for Media Activities from Macedonia. The JournArt assessment and production project (JAAPP), is a partnership between TV professionals, workers in the culture sector, and artists from Bosnia, Serbia and Macedonia that aims to enhance the quality and the quantity of media coverage of culture and the arts.

Life in Kosovo Discusses High Interest Rates for Loans

Tonight, representatives of banks and local institutions in Kosovo will discuss what is stopping interest rates for loans falling.

Are banks really a success story in Kosovo? What do bank leaders need from the state to lower rates? Why do Kosovars have to pay higher interest rates compared to others in the region? Is there any agreement between banks in Kosovo to keep this rate?

 

Why did the Kosovo Competition Commission begin an investigation concerning banks\’ interest rates? Is there space for involvement of new banks in the market which would offer lower interest rates?

To discuss these and other issues related to the banks, Jeta Xharra has invited the following guests in the studio:

Florin Lila, from ProCredit Bank ,
Robert Wright, from Raiffeisen Bank,
Vullnet Latifi, from the Bank for Business
Bedri Hamza, Minister of Finance
Lavdim Hamiti, economics journalist at the daily newspaper Zëri,
Ahmet Krasniqi, from Kosovo Competition Commission.

After the debate, journalist Muhamet Hajrullahu reveals how tenders are given by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority.

 

Who has tried to give an 800,000 euros tender at the TRA without following all legal procedures? What does the Procurement Review Body, the TRA, and the senior procurement official who was suspended by TRA for this tender say about this issue?

 

At the end of the show, journalist Alban Selimi looks at the measures taken against the doctor Haqif Sadiku, who has not respected the work schedule at the Family Medical Centre, whose case was discussed in the last Life in Kosovo show.

 

The report also investigates the reasons why the health inspectorate has not noticed this irregularity earlier.

Initiation of Balkan Culture Watch Strengthening Project

Balkan Investigative Regional Reporting Network has launched its Balkan Culture Watch Strengthening Project, funded by the European Cultural Foundation (ECF). The BCWSP project is a “build-on” project that complements the existing three-year “Balkan’s Initiative for Cultural Cooperation, Exchange and Development Project” (BICCED, funded by the SCP), which aims to support a constant production of analytical reporting on culture-related developments in five countries (Serbia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Kosovo) through a monthly newsletter (Culture Watch / CW), and support the media in the region with coverage of culture by offering analytical reports free of charge.

This project aims to involve government officials and decision makers and work to improve the situation in the region by strengthening cultural life and cross-cultural cooperation as an important element of a participatory, open, and dynamic civil society.

The project’s first event will comprise Advisory Board meeting, conference and training “Culture in the Media”, which will be held in Pristina from March 17 to 19 2011. The participants in the conference will include editors, journalists, and experts in culture from Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Serbia.

The conference aims to explore the coverage of cultural policy issues by the media, as well as the understanding of cultural policy and the challenges in presenting these issues to the public. Furthermore, the conference will include working sessions which will provide the opportunity for an exchange of opinions between the 15 editors and 15 journalists participating in the gathering, as well as a number of cultural experts. The conference is organised by BIRN and the Centre for Media Activities, CMA, from Macedonia.

Following the conference, the project will continue to provide support to media outlets through the sharing of analyses produced as part of Culture Watch, the collection of feedback from relevant ministries and cultural organisations, and analysis.