Grantees Praise Benefits of BIRN-Led ‘Engaged Citizens Reporting’ Tool

Users of the BIRN reporting tool say it has transformed the way they communicate with their audiences who feel empowered by helping shape the content of their own media.

It is a new method in a new time of doing journalism,” Dorjana Daka, editor of Albanian newsportal Informimi, told BIRN, describing what the Engaged Citizens Reporting tool, ECR, has brought to her outlet.

The impact of the project led by Balkan Reporting Network BIRN on journalism in the region has been significant.

From December 2020, 51 media outlets from six Balkan countries used the tool to change the way they communicate with citizens, investigate stories and publish their findings.

“Through the project, we saw that citizens want concrete, direct, communication with journalists, they want to point out the problems they are facing, and they want someone to investigate them, since they can’t find solutions to their problems themselves,” Dinko Dundić, editor-in-chief of Sarajevo-based media Fokus, said.

Media outlets from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia, awarded with Media for All project grants, produced a total of more than 400 videos, articles, features, and podcasts, based on more than 200 surveys, polls, and questionnaires created with the Engaged Citizens Reporting tool, a platform designed by BIRN, enabling journalists to collect information, analyse data and incorporate it into their reporting.

As Dundić, noted, “this is not just a tool, this is a new way to communicate with citizens”.

Through ECR, media outlets strengthen bonds with their communities. Having established two-way communication, citizens become not only passive receivers of information but active content creators on topics that are their biggest interest and concerns.

“It was important that the tool targets a burning issue, something that is under the radar in the public and core media, and something that is not talked about enough but is bothering the population,” said Ivana Pavlović, editor of Nova ekonomija, a Belgrade-based news portal that engaged citizens in the under-reported topic of the cost of online schooling during the Covid pandemic.

Audiences shaped the content of media by providing original testimonies; precise information by uploading photos, videos, documents, or by giving their contacts for further research and collaboration.

“Readers gave us directions on where to look and where to ask; we got examples that were ‘juicy’,” Goran Mihajlovski, whose Skopje-based portal SDK gathered evidence of unresolved court cases from ordinary people, recalled.

The audience had the choice to stay anonymous, giving people a chance to speak out even if they weren’t comfortable with going public. This proved a successful way to reach out to marginalised and discriminated communities, guaranteeing their safety.

“There was a gap between this trust in really reporting about stories about the LGBTQ community and staying anonymous, because it’s still a quite sensitive topic in Albania. A platform like ECR helped to breach this gap, because it made sure this anonymity was preserved,” said Kevin Jasini, editor of Albanian news portal Historia Ime, which resolved a case of transphobia and discrimination thanks to a recording received through the ECR tool.

“It has direct impact on mobilizing communities to solve a problem, because we provide data … that they can rely on, and continue to seek their rights,” said Daka whose website Informimi investigated stories of the Roma community who often have no access to the internet, or trust in journalists.

Building trust is one of the main assets ECR has brought to media outlets, considering the negative aspects of the media environment in the region, with the surge in disinformation and general loss of confidence in democracy and institutions.

Users of the tool recognise that reporting about the issues of their greatest concern makes an impact in their local communities.

“Officials from Tivat municipality used the data we received using the ECR tool from citizens about cruise tourism strategy at an international meeting. They presented and referred to the results of the Boka News research,” Miroslav Marušić, editor-in-chief of a small Montenegrin media portal, said.

Through professional training and mentorship organised by BIRN, media practiced more effective engagement with their audiences.

Suzana Nikolikj, editor of Kumanovo News, from North Macedonia, praised the support of the mentoring.

“The mentor gave us guidance in preparing the questionnaire and guided us through the approach to our readers: how to create the questions, how to avoid pitfalls and how to filter the most important answers. The analysis of data for our stories was also helpful,” said Nikolikj.

ECR has the potential to expand in the region, since many outlets have continued to use the tool after the project grants finished, to further gather people’s opinions, data and information.

“We have continued, and will continue to use it, in future. There are enormous advantages: we can easily gather opinions on a large number of subjects, can easily see and select data, and then present this data to the public, graphically,” said Marija Vujović, journalist of portal Onogošt, which throughout the project used the tool to collect citizen’s photos and locations of pollution in Nikšić, Montenegro.

Positive reactions would seem to guarantee the sustainability of ECR in the future.

“Now we write far more about ordinary topics, human stories, and much less about politics,” Anđelka Ćup from Gračanica online from Kosovo, said. “We have become more professional – our approach to investigative journalism has improved,” Vujović agreed.

 

 

Open Call: Workshop for Visual Storytelling Using War Crime Archives

Young people from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia are invited to apply for a workshop that offers an introduction to visual storytelling practices and the role of domestic and international courts’ war crime trial archives in the transitional justice process.

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN, will hold a two-day training course for ten (10) young journalists, students, activists and individuals aged 18 to 30 who want to contribute to reconciliation and memorialisation processes by exploring archives and using them for independent video storytelling.

Participants will also learn how to create a safe, non-partisan and compassionate space for victims to share their stories in a short video format. The workshop will be led by BIRN’s award-winning journalists and editors and will examine how to avoid producing stories that trivialise war crimes and victims’ experiences.

Upon successful completion of the workshop, participants will receive funding and mentorship.

The best five applicants will be selected for a one-month exchange programme in 2023 in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. This unique opportunity will enable the participants to foster closer networks, learn more about different facets of the war, gain skills and do more research into courts’ archives.

After the workshop, participants will produce short video interviews with people who survived the wars in the former Yugoslavia.

Storytelling is crucial to the process of transitional justice; it has the power to highlight atrocities and hidden personal memories that can be used to encourage the further sharing of similar experiences, but also can help change the narrative on personal experiences of war trauma.

For victims of war crimes and atrocities, storytelling has a healing aspect, giving them a voice and recognising their experiences and traumas. Court archives represent a powerful tool that can be used in visual storytelling but also in general media reporting on justice issues.

WHO CAN APPLY?

Young journalists, students, and activists from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Croatia and Montenegro who are interested in addressing these questions. We particularly encourage young people from marginalised communities to apply. No previous experience is necessary. Applicants must be aged 18 to 30.

HOW TO APPLY?

Submit your application (CV and motivation letter) in English to [email protected]

DATE OF WORKSHOP:

October 13-14, 2022 (two-day session)

WHERE: Sarajevo

LANGUAGE: The working language of the workshop is English

DEADLINE: September 12, at midnight Central European Time

 

 

BIRN Summer School Ends with Investigative Pitches

A week-long training programme in Portoroz ended with participants presenting their investigative story proposals to BIRN editors.

The 12th annual BIRN Summer School of Investigative Reporting ended on August 27with 30 participants from SEE, CE, Ukraine and Finland pitching their investigative story proposals to BIRN editors.

A total of 11 pitches were presented; some focus on country-based issues while the majority are of a cross-border nature. BIRN editors will choose the best pitches, whose owners will receive funding, editorial support and mentoring from BIRN.

Proposed stories look into environmental issues, corruption allegations, reproductive rights and the ongoing war in Ukraine, to name a few.

Ivana Nikolic, in charge of BIRN’s Investigative Reporting Initiative, thanked all the participants for their motivation and hard work during the past week and urged them to keep in touch and collaborate.

Summer School is not only about learning innovative skills and techniques; it is also about networking, making friends and finding partners for your next cross-border story,Nikolic said.

During the week, 30 participants selected from record-breaking 180 candidates learned about OSINT, database search, digital security, visual storytelling, and financial journalism from award-winning journalists from Germany, the UK, the US and the Balkans.

They also attended a panel discussion about war reporting, giving them a unique opportunity to hear different perspectives and experiences of journalists and filmmakers from Ukraine, Palestine and Serbia. More information about lectures and panels can be found here (https://birnsummerschool.org/)

 

BIRN’s 12th Annual Summer School Starts in Slovenia

For the 12th time, BIRN’s Summer School of Investigative Reporting is bringing together 30 journalists from South-East and Central European countries for a week-long training programme to develop skills, explore new techniques and start cross-border cooperations.

This year’s Summer School of Investigative Reporting started on Monday in the Slovenian town of Portoroz.

During the week-long programme, journalists from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Finland and Ukraine will learn new skills and techniques and work on investigative stories.

The head of Regional Operations at BIRN, Dusica Stilic, welcomed the participants selected from a record-breaking number of applications – 180 this year.

“We are very proud to have this extraordinary group of people eager to learn to become the best version of an investigative journalist they possibly can be,” Stilic said.

Ivana Nikolic, leading the Investigative Reporting Initiative Programme at BIRN, presented the agenda and encouraged the participants to work towards pitching powerful stories.

“This week, you will learn a lot about innovative journalism techniques and skills from award-winning journalists and editors,” Nikolic said, adding that for the first time this year, participants will have the opportunity to learn how to stay safe online while working on their investigations.

Freelance coder and data specialist Friedrich Lindenberg gave an introduction to open data for investigations. Lindenberg has been working with investigative journalists and anti-corruption activists for the past decade and has built data-driven tools that support their work.

Lindenberg gave practical advice on effectively searching and cross-referencing open databases and using various tools to track documents.

“It’s important to remember that a search doesn’t make any document or information reliable and doesn’t take away the journalist’s responsibility,” he told the participants.

The first day ended with the journalists sharing ideas and starting to work on pitching cross-border investigative stories.

Open Call: Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants

Media outlets from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Serbia and Slovakia that want to engage the public in their investigative reporting are invited to apply for Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants.

BIRN is inviting media outlets interested in connecting with their audiences and reporting on original stories that will make an impact to apply for Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants.

Individual grants will be awarded to selected media outlets that wish to cover national/regional/local topics on their own. Collaborative grants will be awarded to selected media outlets that want to investigate cross-border issues with a media partner.

Audience-engaged reporting, in which ordinary people’s voices are heard and unresolved issues are tackled, has proven a game-changer. Using it helps media outlets to listen to these voices and report on essential topics for their communities while bringing innovation to their investigative reporting and newsrooms.

Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants support media outlets that want to engage their audiences in reporting by providing them with training and mentorship in engagement journalism and usage of the B-Engaged tool, developed by BIRN.

Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants are part of the Media Innovation Europe project managed by a consortium led by the Vienna-based International Press Institute. The consortium includes the Kyiv-based Media Development Foundation, the Berlin-based Thomson Foundation and BIRN.

Ten (10) successful applicants will receive grants based on this call.

BIRN will grant €4,000 to five (5) successful applicants interested in making an individual audience-engaged story.

BIRN will grant €5,000 to five (5) successful applicants interested in making a cross-border collaborative story.

If you already know a media partner with whom you want to work on a cross-border story, you will receive €10,000 to cover expenses for both partners involved. If you are interested in investigating a cross-border story but don’t have a partner, BIRN can find you a matching media outlet.

Content may include news, analysis, investigations etc, and can be in any form – text, audio, video. The content must be promoted through the outlets’ social media channels.

The selected grantees will undergo a four-day training programme that will be offered online, as well as on-the-job mentoring by BIRN editors on how to use and implement innovative, effective audience-engagement tools for investigative community-based reporting.

The participating media will receive training in the use of the B-Engaged tool, developed by BIRN, an online tool that enables the direct engagement of members of the public who are interested in sharing information and evidence related to issues they are facing.

Through training and mentoring, media outlets will also learn: how to select engaging topics; what is important to the audience; how to develop a callout; how to analyse crowdsourced data; how to incorporate data in stories, and how to shape a story according to engagement journalism standards.

The call is open until October 28, 2022 at midnight CET.

To read the full call for application click here.

To apply for a grant, use the online application form and send us a proposal for a story and the required documents.

You can register for the info session on September 15, 2022 via this link.

Follow BIRN on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to get more notifications.

Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Commision. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

Ukrainian Journalists Urge International Media to Combat Russian Propaganda during Launch of BIRN’s Eyewitness Ukraine Project

At the launch of BIRN’s new video project Ukrainian journalists call for international media to keep covering the country’s Russian invasion and combat the Russian propaganda, while they are on the ground verifying the information and simultaneously trying to save their families.

During the launch of BIRN’s new video project, Eyewitness Ukraine, on Thursday, Ukrainian journalists and representatives of international and national organizations, called on international media to contribute in fighting against the Russian propaganda on the invasion of Ukraine while explaining their efforts to verify the information on the ground and obstacles in gathering evidence of war crimes.

“European journalists should reach out to cover reality, to keep the focus on Ukraine and the larger are the chances for us to win,” Alya Shandra editor-in-chief of Ukrainian and English-language outlet Euromaidan Press, said.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has been followed by constant propaganda and disinformation war, which has been proven very difficult for journalists on the ground who are fighting to combat it by verifying everything in its source. However, they are also in danger for their and their families’ lives due to often being a target by the Russian military despite being press representatives.

The war in Ukraine has already proved deadly for journalists. At least 12 media workers have been killed while covering the conflict so far, and many more have been injured, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists.

There is evidence that one of them, photojournalist Maks Levin, was executed by Russian forces, media freedom organisation Reporters Without Borders has claimed.

“Thirty eight journalists have been killed (since February 24, 2022) including those on the field (while reporting), those that enlisted as soldiers, and those that were killed during shelling of their cities,” said Ukrainian journalist Lina Kushch, who is also the secretary of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine and coordinates the work of 24 regional offices with more than 18,000 members.

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network launched its Eyewitness Ukraine project on Thursday – a new webpage featuring interviews with Ukrainian journalists speaking about their personal experiences of living and working through the Russian invasion of their country.

The Ukrainian journalists are facing constant struggles, including what they had not considered at first.

Angelina Kariakina, the head of news at the Ukrainian Public Broadcaster, said there are many “the journalists on the ground are verifying information but you need an entire car of supplies… like going in a forest”.

Kariakina says they often look “through Russian propagandastic channels and media” as a source of information to identify prisoners of war.

“They have these videos of hundreds of people in prisons, and you can see a familiar face,” she says explaining that “around 7000 people went missing during this war”.

Shandra, who has had to deal with “wanting to cover the war but had to leave to evacuate my children,” calls on international media not to use the recordings being made of prisoners of war saying that “Defenders of Mariupol (were taken prisoners) and they were recorded admitting their crimes”.

Ukrainian journalists are trying to gather as many evidence of war crimes as possible, in close collaboration with the prosecution and legal experts, to prepare cases when the time comes for the crimes to be tried in courts. However, this has been also rather difficult, especially in occupied areas.

As Kariakina explains, the journalists are dependent on information from the citizens in occupied areas who could only provide it if they manage to leave. The only way of leaving, she says, is through Russia and they can only return and provide information if they have enough resources.

Maja Sever, the president of the European Federation of Journalists, EFJ, said that she is “amazed that journalists in Ukraine have the will to fight for the truth,” considering they are in the most difficult situation a journalist can be.

As the war continues, BIRN will add more interviews to the Eyewitness Ukraine webpage to give more insights into how media workers are dealing with the ongoing stress of living through months of conflict while continuing to do their jobs.

 

 

Eyewitness Ukraine Project Shows Journalists’ Experiences of War

BIRN’s new video project features interviews with Ukrainian journalists about how the Russian invasion has changed their work and personal lives, creating a record of media workers’ experiences during the war.

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network launched its Eyewitness Ukraine project on Thursday – a new webpage featuring interviews with Ukrainian journalists speaking about their personal experiences of living and working through the Russian invasion of their country.

The journalists talk frankly about how they reacted when they first heard that the invasion had started in February, the dangers that they have faced reporting on the war, and how their work during wartime has affected their personal lives.

They also discuss issues like the war’s impact on media freedom, the challenges of upholding objectivity while reporting on an invasion of your own country, and the problems posed by official restrictions imposed under martial law, as well as Russian disinformation and propaganda.

“These interviews highlight Ukrainian journalists’ commitment to reporting the war in their country despite the risks they face,” said Matthew Collin, BIRN’s editor on the Eyewitness Ukraine project.

“Almost six months into the conflict, they have remained dedicated to seeking the truth, informing the public and upholding media freedom as best they can in a state under invasion,” Collin added.

 

Among the interviewees are prominent media figures like Angelina Kariakina, the head of news at the Ukrainian Public Broadcaster, Andriy Tsaplienko, a television journalist for 1+1 TV who is renowned for his war reporting, and Nataliya Gumenyuk, co-founder of the Public Interest Journalism Lab and of Hromadske TV.

In her interview for the Eyewitness Ukraine project, Kariakina said that she and other Ukrainian journalists have witnessed terrible violence during the conflict.

“I’ve seen the bodies on the streets, I’ve seen the horrific demolitions of the residential areas, I’ve seen villages just burned down,” she said.

“But I’ve also seen and I’ve witnessed incredible examples of solidarity and courage and help,” she added.

Kariakina argued that the purpose of journalism has remained the same despite the war – “to put light into dark places, to give voice to the voiceless, to report the truth, and just to be there for the people”.

As the war continues, BIRN will add more interviews to the Eyewitness Ukraine webpage to give more insights into how media workers are dealing with the ongoing stress of living through months of conflict while continuing to do their jobs.

The war in Ukraine has already proved deadly for journalists. At least 12 media workers have been killed while covering the conflict so far, and many more have been injured, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists.

There is evidence that one of them, photojournalist Maks Levin, was executed by Russian forces, media freedom organisation Reporters Without Borders has claimed.

See the Eyewitness Ukraine interviews here.

 

Calling all newsrooms: Four innovation support schemes open for applications

Four new funding and support programmes that will bring innovation to newsrooms accross Europe are open for applications for media outlets. Choose between the Transition Accelerator, Deep-Dive Business Consultancies and Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants, and Media Innovator’s Mentorship Programme. Find out which suits your newsroom needs.

  • The Media Innovation Europe consortium is excited to announce the launch of four new calls for newsroom innovation, business strategy and digital transition projects for publishers in Europe.
  • The Transition Accelerator, Deep-Dive Business Consultancies and Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants are open to applicants until 28 October at 23:59 CET.
  • The International Press Institute is also opening a two-year rolling application for the Media Innovator’s Mentorship Programme, matching industry leaders with individuals and newsrooms for peer-to-peer support for challenges in their newsrooms.
  • See full information and frequently asked questions.

VISIT THE MEDIA INNOVATION EUROPE WEBSITE AND APPLY

Newsrooms across Europe face new challenges that demand innovative solutions. Against a backdrop of waning trust in media and plummeting ad revenues, publishers are pressed to find new ways to engage audiences, restore public confidence and navigate digital transformation. For publishers, starting the innovation journey requires buy-in from their teams, identifying a problem to solve and fitting solutions into a broader strategy for sustainability and growth.

The Media Innovation Europe consortium, led by the International Press Institute (IPI) and in partnership with Thomson Foundation (TF), the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) and the Media Development Foundation (MDF), is launching calls for four new funding and support programmes across Europe to help newsrooms solve these challenges.

“Together, we believe that innovation is key to the editorial independence and financial sustainability of newsrooms as they navigate the digital transition and build back trust in independent journalism,” said Jacqui Park, IPI’s head of network strategy and innovation.

Transition Accelerator

 Managed by IPI, the Transition Accelerator is a six-month programme for small to mid-sized digital or legacy media outlets seeking to transform their journalism, products or business by investing in audience research, experimenting with new revenue models, deepening audience engagement, or investing in new content and distribution products based on user needs, among other strategies. Participating teams will benefit from being part of a smart cohort of European media, access to some of the smartest media thinkers and doers and structured learning and mentoring opportunities. Drawing on design thinking practice and centering the audience, media teams will have the space and support to experiment and build new journalism, product and revenue models.

Participants in the Transition Accelerator will also have access to grants of up to €20,000 plus training, mentoring and networking opportunities.

Who is eligible?

The Transition Accelerator is open to independent media eager to invest in digital transformation and serve their communities with journalism of value. To apply, you must have a team of at least two staff members that will participate in the six-month accelerator.

Applicants must be based in one of the following countries: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Ukraine.

How to apply?

Applications are open until 28 October 2022 at 23:59 CET and can be submitted here. For any questions, email us at [email protected].

Deep-Dive Business Consultancies

 Run by Thomson Media, the Deep-Dive Business Consultancies are designed to level up the business capacities of print and online media outlets that need strategic guidance in order to set their path toward business viability. The consultancy will be implemented by Thomson Media’s network of business consultants, media professionals working in the industry in the EU and Western Balkans.

The consultancy will last nine months. After the completion of month five, participants will receive a grant to support activities related to the implementation of new products and/or strategy. Once a clear business strategy has been established, the media outlets and business consultants will meet on a bi-weekly basis to evaluate the strategy and progress direction.

The available grant funding is between €4,500 and €10,000 per media outlet.

Applications are open until 28 October 2022 and can be submitted here. Eligible countries include: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Ukraine.

For any questions, email Davor Marko at davorm@thomsonfoundation.org.

Unable to decide which best suits your needs? Sign up for the upcoming info session on the accelerator and business consultancies or read the FAQs at the bottom of the page.

 Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants

 Run by BIRN, the Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants support innovative investigative journalism projects that embed audiences and strengthen the capacities of independent media outlets across the Visegrad and Western Balkan region. The call for application is open to 10 participants in the first year and 10 participants in the second year (one media outlet per country per training cycle). Individual grants of €4,000 will be awarded to each selected media outlet that wants to cover national/regional/local topics on its own. Collaborative grants of €5,000 will be awarded to selected media outlets that want to investigate cross-border topics with a partner.

 Who is eligible?

The grants are open to newsrooms based in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czech Republic, Hungary, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Serbia and Slovakia, and applications can be submitted until 28 October 2022.

How to apply?

Find the application here.

For any questions, email Karla Junicic, karla.junicic@birnnetwork.org or look at the FAQs.

Media Innovator’s Mentorship Programme

The mentorship is an opportunity for media innovators to connect with experts in their field and engage in peer-to-peer learning. Participants will answer a few questions to assess their needs and based on this, they will be matched with experts in this area to provide support.

The mentorship is designed to allow mentors and mentees to agree on a framework for interaction that best suits the participant’s need for guidance and availability, ranging from short-term rapid response mentoring to longer-term guidance over several months.

Who is eligible?

Media houses in the following countries: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Ukraine.

How to apply?

 The mentorship will operate as a rolling scheme for the next two years. Prospective mentees can apply anytime here. If you’d like to participate as a mentor, reach out to us at [email protected].

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BIRN Journalists Threatened by Turkish Far-Right ‘Wolves’

BIRN journalists Nermina Kuloglija and Hamdi Fırat Buyuk have received threatening messages from members of a Turkish far-right nationalist organisation.

Nermina Kuloglija and Hamdi Fırat Buyuk received threats via phone calls, text messages and on social media from the Turkish far-right Grey Wolves organization’s Bosnian branch.

The threats were sent from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and from Turkey, on June 28, and since then, after BIRN published an investigation into the Grey Wolves organisation’s branch and its activities in Bosnia.

Kuloglija and Buyuk continued to receive messages on their phones with intimidating content after the publication of the article.

The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom on its Mapping Media Platform reported on the incidents of harassment, psychological abuse, intimidation and threats against the two BIRN journalists.

“Threats against journalists are unacceptable. In this case it has an international element to it which must be handled not only in the country where the journalists are based,” said Gürkan Özturan, Coordinator of Media Freedom Rapid Response at the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom, a nonprofit that promotes and defends media freedom.

The Grey Wolves is an international Turkish ultra-nationalist and pan-Turkic organization that rose to prominence in the late-1970s. In 2021, the European Parliament called on the EU to add the Grey Wolves to its list of terrorist organisations. The Grey Wolves in Turkey have been involved in multiple acts of harassment for decades, Özturan told BIRN.

“These threats [ against BIRN journalists] cannot be overlooked and authorities in both Turkey and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as other regional and international organizations must be involved in investigations,” he concluded.

Threats to journalists are growing, the UN rights chief, Michelle Bachele, warned in an event marking World Press Freedom Day 2022. Journalism remains a dangerous and even deadly profession.

Worldwide, threats against journalists, online and off-line, imprisonments continue are rising, while online violence and harassment spurs self-censorship and, in some cases, physical attacks, said UNESCO’s 2021/2022 online report, “World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development”.

 

 

 

 

Meet the People Behind BIRN: Tommaso Siviero, Jovan Ilić, and Emilija Petreska

Each month, BIRN introduces you to a different member of its team. For July, meet BIRN’s social media holy trinity, Tommaso Siviero, Jovan Ilić, and Emilija Petreska.

Emilija, 28, is from North Macedonia. She studied journalism and public relations. She joined BIRN Hub in 2022 as a social media coordinator and is based in Skopje.

Jovan, 27, is based in Serbia. He studied audio engineering. He started working for BIRN in 2021 and is responsible for the production of BIRN’s digital and social media content, developing new digital products.

Based in Sarajevo, Tommaso, 25 joined BIRN in 2022. He is from Como, Italy. He studied Political Science and has been working as a journalist for the last five years. He is BIRN’s social media manager.

Tommaso, Jovan and Emilija are the people behind BIRN’s social. With their witty texts and creative visuals and strategic ideas, they have managed to engage readers even with the most complex stories published on BIRN’s flagship English-language website, Balkan Insight.

What are your favourite and most challenging parts of your job?

Emilija: Learning your audience is the hardest part, especially when you are new to the team. It can be a challenge since one size doesn’t fit all. For example, if your audience on Instagram wants more feature stories and explanatory content, your Twitter audience might want totally different things, let’s say breaking news and short news, or op-eds and analysis. But I would say that the fun part is experimenting, trying out digital tools and discovering new creative ways to present the content.

Which is your favourite social media platform while working in Balkan Insight? Why have you selected it? 

Jovan: Instagram. It changes so much all the time (can be good and bad) so you always have to learn something new.

Balkan Insight mostly publishes hard-read stories about human rights, crimes, corruption, etc. How easy or difficult is it to promote these stories on social media and ‘involve’ readers?

Tommaso: It can be difficult sometimes, and it would surely be easier to grow our numbers if we were publishing cute videos about cats, but also way more boring: in this way, we really need to crack our heads in experimenting different ways and strategies to better spread our articles and contents. It’s challenging. When looking at social media, there is always this huge concern and focus about quantities in terms of like, reach, growth. Don’t get me wrong, it’s crucial to reach a large number of people, especially if we are talking about good quality journalism. But on the other side, I think people are way too focused on how many people they are reaching and not who those people are. There are a lot of interests around the Balkans and our audience proves it. We need to reach more of that kind of niche and from there we can think about ways to win over those who don’t care about the region.

Surveys have shown that top newspapers use social media to spread news rather than engage audiences. What is the most effective social media communication model for you?

 Emilija: This is a tricky question to answer. I would say the coin has two sides. That said, it’s always nice to have an active social media presence where you can get attention for breaking news and updates. But that is more on a quantitative level.

If we really want to bring up the qualitative value of the social media platforms, it’s not just posting the link at the right time and place. It means we should strive to provoke meaningful discussion and teach your audience that they should keep you and other media outlets accountable for the information you spread, and the institutions for the issues you are writing about.

Would you like to share one of your job secrets?

 Jovan: Combining different apps in order to create a work environment that can be used in any location. Work smart.