Photo: Freepik The learning circle, entitled ‘Building Foundations for Engaging Citizens in Reporting’, was organised as part of the Western Balkans Media for Change project for media outlets from Albania, North Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo. Fifty-three journalists strengthened their understanding of community dynamics, engagement journalism principles and the development of investigative stories based on community involvement. On the first day, journalists received an introduction to engagement journalism from Corrective, an award-winning, public interest-oriented media company ..read more

In the past he has covered EU policy issues, including developments in population movement, security and defence, privacy and big data policies. In the past, he has cooperated with many international media outlets and organisations. He has authored numerous reports, published two books on EU migration and border control policies, and has been a member of numerous cross-border investigations. The post Apostolis Fotiadis appeared first on BIRN ..read more

Photo: BIRN Online violence and misogyny against women were among the most widespread subjects in the media during the last few years. The 2023 Women, Peace, and Security – WPS index published by the Oslo Institute for Peace Research, PRIO, which ranks and scores 177 countries based on the status of women, placed Kosovo as the 100th country in the world. Consequently, Kosovo finds itself as the second-worst country in Europe for women to live in. Media as the main source of information, plays a crucial role in creating a collective perception when reporting about women-related topics. Thus ..read more

Photo: Global Forum for Media Development The Journalism Cloud Alliance aims to ensure watchdog journalism can perform its public service role by controlling the rising costs and constraints of cloud computing and developing collaborative solutions to collective challenges. The Global Fund for Media Development (GFMD) and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) spearhead the Alliance. Besides BIRN, the partners include Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN), International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), Pulitzer Center, Center ..read more

Photo: BIRN “Who Benefits?’ Inside the EU’s Fight over Scanning for Child Sex Content”, a BIRN investigation, is among 25 stories nominated for the European Press Prize 2024. The nomination was announced on April 19 in Perugia, Italy, during the International Journalism Festival (IJF). An investigation published on Balkan Insight by BIRN’S investigative editor Apostolis Fotiadis, journalist Giacomo Zandonini and an associate professor in media and international development at the University of East Anglia, Luděk Stavinoha, gained a nomination in the Investigative Reporting Award categor ..read more

Photo: BIRN A new round of training sessions on investigative journalism basics was held in Strumica, North Macedonia, with a focus on writing and storytelling. The course titled “Weaving a Story” began with the young journalists’ reflections on the stories they’d worked on over the last two months with their BIRN Macedonia mentors. They presented how their stories advanced and discussed their experiences in contacting sources, communication with state and local institutions, data selection, as well as difficulties encountered while working on the stories. The day continued with sessions on ..read more

Photo: BIRN Kosovo This interactive meeting gathered 13 residents of the village Gorazdevac near the municipality of Peja, out of which 6 were women. The participants shared their experiences of living in a rural part of Kosovo, by emphasizing the lack of essential living conditions such as a good sanitation system, electricity, and the lack of public institutions including kindergartens and youth centers where their residents conduct activities. Overall, the meeting shed light on a load of problems and poor public services in this area. More specifically, Visar Prebreza, editor-in-chief at ..read more

Photo: BIRN BiH A conference titled “Role of Transitional Justice in Bosnia’s European Path”, organised by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network of Bosnia and Herzegovina, BIRN BiH, with support of the Belgian embassy, on April 4, put a focus on one of the five key priorities of the European Union, which advocates promoting an environment conducive to reconciliation and overcoming the legacies of the war. Denis Dzidic, executive director of BIRN BiH, said the fifth priority of the EU should be additionally defined, especially in light of widespread hate speech, revisionism and denial of ..read more

Photo: BIRN Kosovo More specifically, the training focused on the critical issue of reporting on missing persons, encompassing aspects from individual cases to court proceedings, social, political and legal contexts, forensics and medical expert analysis and the challenges faced by affected families. The technical expertise of journalists lies in their ability to research, document, and communicate stories effectively. The training module was delivered by BIRN’s regional and local team of award-winning journalists and editors, who have extensive experience in investigating, reporting on, and ..read more

Photo: BIRN Kosovo The training consisted of four interactive sessions that were designed to address various questions related to oral history methodologies, with a particular focus on the technical aspects such as arranging the interviews and the interviewers, locations, logistics, filming, sounds, lighting, and editing. In the initial session, attendees were given insights into the technical aspects of recording oral history interviews such as frame selection, lighting, and recording techniques. In the second session, the participants learned more about how to conduct interviews using the ..read more