The online training held on August 7 aimed to equip the participants with practical skills and tools to create impactful, community-driven investigations related to corruption.
Karla Junicic, BIRN’s Hub Coordinator for Engaged Citizen Reporting, led the sessions and guided participants through the core concepts of engagement journalism.
Junicic introduced attendees to crowdsourcing techniques, storytelling approaches, and methods to identify and involve communities in journalistic work.
“Make sure to know the reasons behind your crowdsourcing and explain to your citizens what you’re looking for – their precise input and experiences are what fuels your stories,” she emphasised during the session.
Participants learned how to design and execute audience-engagement strategies, including pre-research, crafting callouts, design questionnaires, data analysis of responses, and produce stories based on community input.
Practical examples were shared from Balkan Insight and other regional outlets, covering topics such as the education system’s shortcomings, digital rights and social abuse cases– all demonstrating how marginalised voices can be amplified through engaged journalism.
The second segment of the training focused on the practical use of the Audience-engaged journalism tool for citizens reporting corruption (CER Tool), which BIRN developed to support secure, anonymous submissions of corruption and abuse reports. The tool is designed to bridge the gap between journalists and the public, enabling safer and more efficient communication and evidence-gathering processes.
In the final part of the training, participants drafted engagement-focused story ideas centred around corruption-related topics.
This training formed part of the project Society against Corruption in Montenegro and the Western Balkans region, which addresses the pervasive issue of corruption in the Western Balkans region, particularly focusing on Montenegro and Kosovo.
By enhancing citizens’ engagement, strengthening media and civil society reporting, and promoting accountability, the initiative aims to empower communities to combat corruption more effectively.
Through targeted subgrants, capacity building, investigative journalism and policy advocacy, the project seeks to raise awareness, foster constructive engagement, and drive tangible reforms in governance and anti-corruption practices across the region.