Manipulation of incidents in Serb-majority areas in Kosovo
Serb officials continue to label incidents/thefts in Serb community areas as ethnically-based, claiming they are in sync with statements of Kosovo politicians, aimed at expelling Serbs from Kosovo. The so-called Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia published a press release on May 16, claiming...
Albania stands neither for Russia, nor for Ukraine
From 1st May to 30rd September, all Russians coming to Albania for tourism purposes do not need a visa. The government decided to facilitate the procedures for tourist season when Russia is applying a strict visa regime for Albania. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked...
Albania stands neither for Russia, nor for Ukraine
Esmeralda Topi
From 1st May to 30rd September, all Russians coming to Albania for tourism purposes do not need a visa. The government decided to facilitate the procedures for tourist season when Russia is applying a strict visa regime for Albania. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky...
Misinformation headlines on NATO
Before, during, and after the parliamentary/presidential elections held in Serbia on April 3, online websites without Impressum continued to spread misinformation related to security in Kosovo, guaranteed by the NATO Mission. One of these websites published an article saying that the situation is alarming...
Narrative Analysis – The Economic Destruction of the West
As part of the program Regional Initiative to Combat Disinformation, it is our great pleasure to present you the first analyses of fake news and disinformation narratives.
"Economic Collapse of the West": Media Narratives in Serbia about the consequences of the war in Ukraine
During April...
The Western Balkans will need unity and cooperation across society to overcome press freedom challenges
In times of war and global polarization the Western Balkans region is divided along the lines of current polarizing forces. Disinformation campaigns, hate speech, physical attacks, threats, low income, poor economic status, divisions, self-censorship and job insecurity are the main challenges that the regional...
MP blaming Ukraine for Bucha massacre, fled to Russia since the beginning of the war
The statement of the pro-Russian Ukrainian politician and former presidential candidate, Mr. Ilya Kiva that Bucha massacre was committed by Ukraine itself with the British, shocked the entire public. As this news circulated even in Albania, Faktoje carried out an in-depth verification showing that...
The first month of the invasion of Ukraine: Who disinformed us and how
During the mentioned period, pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian disinformation and incorrect narratives were noticed, with a significant difference that pro-Russians are far more centralized, organized, widespread and dangerous and use long-established structures for expansion in the region.
An analysis of the available content indicates that pro-Ukrainian disinformation about...
A misinforming headline on the recognition of Kosovo’s Independence and other false news
A misinforming headline on the recognition of Kosovo's Independence and other false news
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the dramatizing of the situation due to the prohibition of Serbia’s elections in Kosovo, there was noted a large increase in the dissemination of fake...
Russia claims and Ukraine refutes: Whose announcements about the incident on the Russian border are more important for the domestic media?
A total of 37 websites from the region announced that Russia accused Ukraine of shelling Russian territory and that Ukraine denies responsibility. Some websites, 30 of them, on the other hand, completely left out Ukraine’s denials of these accusations.
In the days before Russia invaded...
An old video used to present the landing of Russian troops in Ukraine
A video, shared on social networks and in articles on several websites, claims to show Russian paratroopers landing in Ukraine. The video, however, is from 2018.
An article was published on the website Vecernje Novosti on February 24, 2022. It was entitled:
RUSSIAN MILITARY PARATROOPERS LAND...
It is not true that Zelensky is currently out of the country
In a speech he delivered in the evening hours of February 24, 2022, the President of Ukraine refuted the claim that he had left the territory of Ukraine.
On February 24, 2022, the website Informer published an article with the title claiming that the President...
It is not true that Macron is not in favor of sanctions against Russia
Russian state media Sputnik published a claim on its Serbian-language website that “France is in favor of dialogue”, while other EU leaders are “in favor of sanctions” against Russia due to the invasion of Ukraine. This is disinformation.
Various boxes in a food basket and...
There is no evidence that the Ukrainian army used white phosphorus
On February 27, 2022, the website Sputnik published an article on the alleged use of banned ammunition in Ukraine. The article is entitled:
Russian Ministry of Defense: Ukrainian forces use phosphorus ammunition
According to the article, a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation said...
There is no Russia’s “counter-offensive” in Ukraine
Media from all over the world, including our region, are intensively reporting on the war in Ukraine. Some media try to report on the events responsibly, accurately and ethically. On the other hand, some openly side with Russian war propaganda, promoting Putin’s claims about...
The photo of the injured woman was not taken in 2018
On February 26, 2022, the website of Alternative Television (ATV) published an article entitled:
Putin is portrayed as Hitler, and four-year-old photographs are released to the public
The article states that many fake videos and photos are misrepresented on social networks to show the conflict in Ukraine. An...
For several months now, the media has been claiming that “the war is starting” in Ukraine
In their headlines, some media outlets have several times declared the “beginning of the war” in Ukraine.
For months, media from all over the world have been closely following the events in the increasingly tense relations between Ukraine and the Russian Federation. Large international media...
The flag of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina is not the same as the flag of the Army of RBiH
On December 29, 2021, an article was published on the website of Alternative television regarding the misdemeanor warrants handed over to individuals who passed through East Sarajevo in a car with the flag of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The article incorrectly claims that the...
Sputnik on the High Representative: “A citizen” and “a German tourist”
On May 27, 2021, the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) appointed Christian Schmidt as the new High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Republic of Srpska (RS), as well as many of its officials, have since tried to dispute his legitimacy and...
Constitution says one thing while the media say another: 500 articles on BiH “created in Dayton”
Incorrect interpretations of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina have become commonplace in articles in the domestic media, and in public appearances of politicians in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Thus, the phrase that “the Dayton Agreement created a state union of BiH composed of two...
