Uncategorized Archives - Page 7 of 118

BIRN Serbia Holds Debate on Country’s Media Future

Traditional media in Serbia will have to adapt to new media and learn from them in order to survive on the market, a BIRN Serbia debate entitled ‘Media in Serbia in 2020’ was told.

The debate was held on November 26 at the Radisson Blue Old Mill Hotel in Belgrade as part of the NGO congress Serbian Visions.

Ana Martinoli from the Faculty of Dramatic Arts told the debate that Serbia is very far from other countries in terms of the media scene.

“Media in other countries are considering how to educate their audience, which is not the case in Serbia. In Serbia, media lost their function and credibility,” Martinoli said.

She added that Serbia lacks an independent regulatory body and that it is not true that the good journalists don’t exist, but there is no place for them in the traditional media.

Strahinja Calovic, creator of the Facebook parody page Aca Information, said that the audience is faced with a large amount of information both in traditional and new media.

But added that media have not yet realised how large an audience they can attract online.

Marko Drazic, editor of the satirical web portal njuz.net, expressed the belief that the public would pay for good content in the future.

“I hope a group of journalists will gather and establish media which will be interesting and important enough for people to pay for,” he said.

Marko Marjanovic, a journalist from the portal tegla.rs, said he believes that it would be good for people who work in media to be open to new ideas and to listen to their audiences.

“It doesn’t matter whether we watch the news on the internet or television. There is an audience for everyone, it just depends how we talk to them,” said Marjanovic.

BIRN Albania Seeks Investigations on Local Government

Grants offered for three journalists to cover local government corruption and abuse of power stories as well as mentoring by experienced editors.

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network in Albania launched a call for investigative stories on local government on November 27th.

The call is part of the project “Strengthening the Local Partnership between Media and Civil Society”, while the grants are supported by Leviz Albania and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.

Three journalists will be awarded grants to cover their expenses while conducting investigations and writing their stories on local government.

The journalists will have some three months to dig deeper and research their ideas, and will also have the opportunity to work with experienced editors as mentors to guide them through the process of writing in accordance with BIRN standards.
The call only applies to journalists from Albania and closes on December 18th.

Click for more information about the application procedure, with details in Albanian.

Thirrje për artikuj investigativë në fushën e Pushtetit Vendor

Thirrja organizohet nga Rrjeti Ballkanik për Gazetarinë Investigative në Shqipëri (BIRN Albania), si pjesë e projektit të saj “Forcimi i partneritetit vendor midis medias dhe shoqërisë civile”, të mbështetur nga LëvizAlbania dhe Rockfeller Brother Fund.

Nëpërmjet këtij konkursi tre (3) gazetarë investigativë do të përzgjidhen për të prodhuar artikuj investigativë në fushën e pushtetit vendor, në bashkëpunim me shoqërinë civile. Fituesit do të përzgjidhen nga një juri e pavarur e përbërë nga gazetarë me eksperiencë dhe ekspertë në fushën e mirëadministrimit të pushtetit vendor.

Aplikantët e përzgjedhur, të cilët do marrin një bursë prej 1,200 USD (minus taksën të ardhurave personale), do kenë në dispozicion një periudhë tre mujore për të përfunduar investigimin e tyre dhe përgatitjen e artikullit për publikim.

Kandidatët fitues pritet që të angazhohen dhe të përmbushin të gjitha detyrimet në lidhje me investigimin, siç janë: takimet e shpeshta me redaktorin, publikimin e tekstit në faqen e BIRN Albania www.Reporter.al dhe gjithashtu në www.BalkanInsight.com, si dhe respektimin e standardeve të gazetarisë investigative dhe etikës profesionale.

Kandidatët duhet të formulojnë një propozim të detajuar për konkursin. Propozimet duhet të kenë për qëllim ekspozimin e rasteve konkrete të korrupsionit, pandëshkueshmërisë dhe mungesës së zbatimit të ligjit në pushtetin vendor.

Prioritet në përzgjedhje do i kushtohet propozimeve të cilat përfshijnë një nga temat e mëposhtme, të sygjeruara si prioritare gjatë një tryeze të rrumbullakët midis gazetarëve dhe përfaqësuesve të shoqërisë civile të organizuar nga BIRN Albania:

– Problematikat në riorganizimin dhe ofrimin e shërbimeve të decentralizuara dhe të barabarta ndaj të gjithë qytetarëve të bashkisë, pavarësisht zonës së banimit;

– Problemet e shërbimit të gjendjes civile nëpër bashkitë e vogla dhe njësitë administrative;

– Problematika në menaxhimin, mirëmbajtjen dhe furnizimin me pajisjet e nevojshme të institucioneve arsimore, shëndetësore, të zgjarrfikësave, etj;

– Mungesë transparence në vendimmarrje, e cila mund të përfshijë mungesë të njoftimeve dhe konsultimeve publike ose moszbardhje të vendimeve nga bashkia ose këshilli bashkiak;

– Favorizim, nepotizëm ose mungesë transparence në marrëdhënie të ndryshme kontraktuale; Kontratat me negocim ose tenderët me vetëm një konkurrent efektiv;

– Keqmenaxhim i burimeve natyrore ose aseteve publike;

– Ndryshime jo transparente në administratën lokale ose në emërime;

– Raste korrupsioni ose abuzimi me pushtetin në administratën vendore.

Aplikantët mund të dërgojnë më shumë se një aplikim, por vetëm një propozim për kandidat do të përzgjidhet.

Të drejtën për të aplikuar e kanë të gjithë gazetarët në Shqipëri, të punësuar pranë mediave të tjera apo në profesion të lirë.

Kandidatëve u kërkohet të dërgojnë propozimet e tyre në formularin e aplikimeve (Kliko këtu për formularin), një CV dhe tre shembuj të punës së tyre me email në: [email protected]

Afati i Aplikimit: 18 Dhjetor, 2016

Kandidatët e përzgjedhur do të njoftohen deri më datë: 25 Dhjetor, 2016

Documentary Co-Produced by BIRN Wins Award

The documentary ‘Flatland without Birds?’, about illegal hunting in Serbia, was named the best Serbian film at the Belgrade International Green Culture Festival, Green Fest.

The documentary by Dragan Gmizic, co-produced by BIRN Serbia and Greenfield Productions, examines how the hunting of turtle doves and quail is organised in Serbia, and asks how it can be controlled.

The film follows activists from the Bird Protection and Study Society of Serbia as they investigate the issue.

They find that each year in Serbia tens of thousands of these birds are being killed illegally.

Hunting inspectors, police and government officials usually turn a blind eye to the problem because they don’t care whether birds that inhabit the flatlands disappear or not.

The documentary was aired on TV N1, TV CG and Al Jazeera Balkans.

‘Flatland without Birds?’ was financially supported by BIRN.

BIRN Albania Holds Workshop on Local Government

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network in Albania held a roundtable on exposing corrupt practices in local government, bringing together representatives of civil society, experts and journalists.

The roundtable held on November 18 in Tirana was part of a programme called ‘Exposing Corruption in Albania’, which is financed by the Open Society Foundation in Albania (OSFA).

The project aims to expose corruption cases in local government by bridging the gap between civil society and investigative journalists, in order to uncover abuses of power.

About 25 representatives of non-governmental organisations and journalists discussed the topics to be investigated, which ranged from tax collection to the delivery and procurement of services by local government units.

The participants at the roundtable also listed corrupt practices in the procurement of waste collection and recycling services, concessionary agreements and their impact on the public, logging contracts and conflict of interests in employee recruitment schemes as topics of concern.

The topics highlighted by the NGOs will be listed in BIRN Albania’s upcoming call for investigative stories in the field of local government.

Seven Serbian Local Authorities to Continue Budget Project

Seven of the ten municipalities that took part in the project designed to draw citizens into decision-making on local budgets in 2015 and 2016 are carrying on with the project in 2017.

Following the successful completion of the Participatory Budgeting Project, which was jointly implemented by BIRN Serbia and NALED (National Alliance for Local Economical Development), funded by the European Union, seven local governments in Serbia are to continue with the project in 2017.

During 2015 and 2016, ten municipalities completed all activities with the aim of introducing the practice of public participation in the decision-making process on local budgets.

Seven of them have since made a further commitment to continue the Participatory Budgeting Project in 2017.

In line with this decision, a working meeting with representatives of local communities was held in September 2016 to exchange previous experiences, define possible obstacles and plan implementation of a new project cycle in 2017.

Municipalities that have started activities on the project are Pirot, Ruma, Sabac, Knjazevac, Sremska Mitrovica, Sombor and Pancevo.

The process of collecting proposals from citizens in these communities is already complete and the next steps are public surveys, public hearings on the budget and approval of budgets for next year.

From December 2014 to June 2016, about 16,000 people participated in the Participatory Budgeting Project. Municipalities taking part in the project assigned nearly 800,000 euros of their 2016 budgets for financing 53 projects that were chosen as the best among 2,400 proposed. Citizen Budget Guides for 10 municipalities have been drawn up, aiming to simplify and make the way budgets are created and how public money is spent easier to understand.

BIRN Albania Journalist Wins CEI SEEMO Award

Lindita Cela wins prestigious prize for ‘hard-hitting investigations’ into organised crime and corruption in Albania.

The Central European Initiative and the South East Europe Media Organisation, in special partnership with the Media Program South East Europe of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, on Wednesday announced that BIRN Albania journalist Lindita Cela is the winner of the CEI SEEMO Award for Outstanding Merits in Investigative Journalism 2016 in the category of “Professional Journalists”.

For over more than 15 years as a reporter she has been covering complex stories with a major impact in Albanian society, showing impressive courage and determination.

“Cela was awarded for her overall professional achievements and hard-hitting investigations exposing corruption scandals in the highest levels of power as well as revelations on Albania’s organised crime networks, stretching from the Accursed Mountains to the streets of Brussels,” the Central European Initiative said.

This year’s CEI-SEEMO prize in the category of “Young Professional Journalists” went to Artsiom Harbatsevich, from Minsk, Belarus. He has worked at Intex-press and Nasha Niva and was awarded for his investigative reporting that had significant impact on and repercussions for his country.

A Special Mention was assigned to Iurie Sănduță, director of RISE Moldova and member of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, OCCRP.

Çela and Harbatsevich will receive the awards offered by the CEI -4,000 and 1,000 euros respectively at the South East Europe Media Forum in Belgrade, Serbia, on 21-22 November 2016.

Young Danish Journalists Visit BIRN BiH

Journalists and students who work with Danish daily newspaper Politiken visited BIRN BiH in Sarajevo.

BIRN BiH editor Denis Dzidic met 18 students and journalists from Denmark on November 12 and gave them a two-hour presentation on the organisation and the everyday work of its journalists.

Dzidic spoke about the experience and knowledge that BIRN BiH has gained so far, its transitional justice archive, and the challenges facing investigative reporting in general.

The journalists expressed particular interest in finding out about criminal cases in the fields of corruption, terrorism and organized crime, as well as the challenges associated with this type of investigative journalism in Bosnian society.

Dzidic also told the young journalists how local and regional media republish with BIRN BiH’s articles on a daily basis, pointing out that independent, professional and unbiased journalism is the only way to get such a good response and to gain the trust of counterparts at other publications.

BIRN BiH will continue to organize international training sessions for young journalists.

On November 17, it will present its work to participants in a study tour organized by the European Commission.

Al Jazeera Interviews BIRN on ‘Censorship in Serbia’

BIRN was featured in Al Jazeera English’s weekly ‘Listening Post’ media programme as part of a report on alleged censorship in Serbia.

BIRN Serbia’s award-winning journalist Aleksandar Djordjevic was one of the interviewees in Al Jazeera English’s weekly ‘Listening Post’ media programme on November 6.

The report deal with alleged media censorship and government control of the press in Serbia, as well as the financial and professional challenges that newsrooms and journalists in the country face.

Djordjevic spoke about an exhibition that the ruling Progressive Party organised last summer to promote its case that there is no censorship in Serbia because critical media a free to ‘lie’.

“The problem with the current ruling party and its allies is that they do not understand a basic premise – not all negative reports or criticism about those in power should be considered a lie,” Djordevic told Al Jazeera.

“The name of the exhibition, ‘Uncensored Lies’, shows how those in power do not understand the clear difference between lies and criticism,” he added.

Among the news reports on display at the ‘Uncensored Lies’ exhibition was an investigative story written by Djordjevic.

“The story revealed irregularities in the awarding of a state tender which possibly cost taxpayers 120 million euros. The EU deemed the story to be award-winning investigative journalism. Serbia’s Interior Minister put it another way: He said that he could not believe that the EU would fund news outlet that lies,” Al Jazeera reported.

However, EU foreign affairs spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic told the programme that the Brussels has no political agenda when awarding grants to media.

“The rules under which we support the independent media are extremely clear – we do not intervene into editorial policy in any way which in turn means that the views presented by those that win the grants are theirs only,” Kocijancic said.

Read more about the campaign against BIRN led by the Serbian government and pro-government media on our page BIRN under Fire.

Thirrje për artikuj investigativë në fushën e Drejtësisë

Thirrja organizohet nga Rrjeti Ballkanik për Gazetarinë Investigative në Shqipëri (BIRN Albania).

Nëpërmjet këtij konkursi tre (3) gazetarë investigativë do të përzgjidhen për të prodhuar artikuj investigativë në fushën e sistemit të drejtësisë. Fituesit do të përzgjidhen nga një juri e pavarur e përbërë nga gazetarë me eksperiencë dhe ekspertë në fushën e drejtësisë.

Aplikantët e përzgjedhur, të cilët do marrin një bursë prej 1,200 USD (minus taksën të ardhurave personale), do kenë në dispozicion një periudhë tre mujore për të përfunduar investigimin e tyre dhe përgatitjen e artikullit për publikim.

Kandidatët duhet të formulojnë një propozim të detajuar për konkursin. Propozimet duhet të kenë për qëllim ekspozimin e rasteve konkrete të pandëshkueshmërisë dhe korrupsionit në sistemin e drejtësisë.

Prioritet në përzgjedhje do i kushtohet propozimeve të cilat përfshijnë një nga temat e mëposhtme, të sygjeruara si prioritare:
– Raste të pasurimit të pajustifikuar ose fshehje të pasurisë nga ana e gjyqtarëve ose prokurorëve;
– Raste korrupsioni dhe konflikti të interesit në organet hetimore ose gjyqësor;
– Rastet e mosfillimit, apo të pushimit të procedimit penal nga prokurorët, në rastet kur kallëzimi është bërë nga institucionet publike (ILDKPKI, KLD, KLSH);
– Risitë e hetimit pasuror të gjyqtarëve dhe prokurorëve sipas legjislacionit të ri të reformës në drejtësi dhe sfidat e procesit të vetingut;
– Rastet e vonesës se paarsyeshme të shqyrtimit te çështjeve te rëndësishme nga gjykatat;
– Promovimi i gjyqtarëve ose rastet e karrierës se anëtareve te KLD-se, gjatë kohës që ata janë në këtë detyrë;
– Shkaqet e ndryshimit të rezultateve të ndryshme nga inspektimet e njëkohshme të Inspektoratit te KLD-se dhe Inspektoratet e Ministrisë së Drejtësisë, dhe problemet e shkaktuara nga këto mospërputhje të inspektimeve të dyfishta;
– Si përfshihen në garë kandidatët për Gjykatën e Larte, apo Gjykatën Kushtetuese, etj.
– Arsyet e mosfllimit të procedimeve të pushuara për shkak të imunitetit parlamentar, tashmë që ky imunitet është shfuqizuar me ndryshimet kushtetuese të vitit 2012.

Aplikantët mund të dërgojnë më shumë se një aplikim, por vetëm një propozim për kandidat do të përzgjidhet.
Të drejtën për të aplikuar e kanë të gjithë gazetarët në Shqipëri, të punësuar pranë mediave të tjera apo në profesion të lirë.

Kandidatëve u kërkohet të dërgojnë propozimet e tyre në formularin e aplikimeve (Kliko këtu për formularin), një CV dhe tre shembuj të punës së tyre me email në: [email protected].

Afati i Aplikimit: 25 Nëntor, 2016
Kandidatët e përzgjedhur do të njoftohen deri më datë: 5 Dhjetor, 2016