Media Smart
The project “Media Smart – Youth Vlog Against False Information,”
implemented by The Balkan Forum and supported by Smart Balkans (IDM), aimed to
empower young people to fight disinformation and promote media literacy
education in Kosovo. The project was carried out from May to November 2023 and
involved 20 youth, mostly journalism students, who through training and
practical work were enabled to create media content with educational value and
broad impact.
The main goal was to build the capacities of young people to identify
misinformation and transform them into agents of change by producing vlogs that
address phenomena such as misinformation, disinformation, propaganda, and
malicious information. Through this process, young people not only developed
critical thinking but also contributed to raising general societal awareness
about the dangers of fake news.
Key results achieved:
·
20 Media Smart Ambassadors selected and trained
in media literacy, digital content production, and collaboration with
professional mentors;
·
2 trainings organized, one practical visit to
the Frontonline media outlet, and formation of 4 working groups;
·
4 vlogs produced and distributed through social
networks reaching over 196,000 people and over 468,000 impressions;
·
2 informative sessions organized with about 60
young participants who learned about the risks of misinformation and the role
of media in society;
·
Participation and collaboration with 3
universities (University of Prishtina, AAB, UBT), 2 media outlets (Frontonline,
Kosovapress), and mentors from academia and the media sector;
·
A public closing ceremony and an intensive
awareness campaign on social networks and local media.
Project impact:
Young people gained concrete knowledge that will serve their professional
development as future journalists, while the wider community was exposed to
educational content aimed at increasing resilience against misinformation and
harmful narratives.
The project demonstrated the potential of youth in Kosovo to positively
influence the quality of media content and the importance of investing in their
media education.
Identification and selection of 20 Smart Media Ambassadors
In the period 15-26 May 2023, the BF team identified universities that have programs in journalism andheld four meetings with them and non-governmental organizations: University for Business and Technology [UBT], AAB University, UNI-UNIVERSUM, NGO VORAE and Astra Academy training center. In these meetings the project was presented and we ensured that the universities will be involved in the project by nominating their students and to provide Mentors who will guide the 20 ambassadors in making the vlogs.
In addition to the presentations of the project, the importance of cooperation with the academy was emphasized, since the mission of the Media Smart project also fits with their mission, since their primary goal is to educate society, especially young people who study journalism. The meetings were successful, because we managed to secure 20 new ambassadors.
One-day Training on Media Education
On June 14, 2023, we conducted a one-day training on the topic “Media Education”. Topics covered were the media landscape, types of media, categories of false information, social media, disinformation and manipulation. Instructions were also given on how we can prevent false information. 17 participants took part in the training. The interactive format and methodology of the training, where there were exercises, videos, games, allowed the young people not only to renew their knowledge of the media landscape, but also to understand the role and importance they have in the project.
Workshop with 20 Media Smart Ambassasdors
After the completion of the first training, the second training was organized, the main purpose of which was the formation of groups, the appointment of mentors, as well as the provision of instructions for the task. On June 19, 2023, the workshop was held with 20 young people and 4 mentors. During the workshop, 4 groups were formed and 4 topics were defined for the vlogs that they will make within the project 1) Misinformation, 2) Misinformation, 3) Malicious Information, 4) Propaganda. Also after the formation of the groups, the mentors were appointed who agreed to monitor the progress of the group’s work as well as mentoring the vlog production process during the summer period [July-September]. It should be noted that the 4 engaged mentors are experts in the field of communication/media, specifically 2 mentors come from academia [AAB and UBT] and 2 were professional journalists from Kosovapress and Frontonline media.
The essential impact of this activity was that young people, as direct beneficiaries of the project, take responsibility for making the vlog. They also became part of a common work process where roles, topics were clarified, technical instructions were given and they were allowed to get to know other team members and mentors. So it was not just a training, because they were active participants in a process where they were given a concrete job with a deadline and where a result such as a vlog was expected to be delivered and this is experience that will serve them in the future.
Visit to the medium “FrontOnline”
On June 19, 20 ambassadors and mentors, as well as the Balkan Forum team, visited the offices of the Frontonline media portal. The young people had the opportunity to see in practice and closely the process of analyzing fake news by the staff of the Frontonline medium. There was also a question & answer session that was rated as very targeted for the young students and future journalists that the 20 Media Smart ambassadors aim to be. The visit influenced the 20 young ambassadors to increase their curiosity about the work of journalists by asking questions about how to deal with the phenomenon of fake news and by exchanging/absorbing practical knowledge during the presentation and discussion of concrete examples of handling or combating fake information at the time of today.
The making of 4 vlogs
Aimed to increase the quality of media content through audience/general public pressure. Cooperation with 3 universities, with 20 young people, with 2 local mediums, the realization of 4 vlogs and their distribution in different media channels, which during the implementation period of the project (01.05.2023-01.11.2023) were distributed to the citizens proves a remarkable mobilization despite the short time for implementation. Although it is difficult to assess the impact of how much the quality of media content has changed, it can be said that the fact that around 500,000 citizens in one form or another were involved/viewed the results of the project constitutes a significant group of beneficiaries who have access to the vlogs/project and this it can potentially increase the likelihood that citizen response to the phenomenon of fake news increases by preventing them from falling victim to derogatory and warmongering narratives in the future.
The Closing Ceremony
The closing ceremony of the project was organized on dt. 19.10.2023 in Pristina. This date was deliberately set so that the activity was held on the eve of the organization of the Global Week for Media Information and Education, which was planned to be held in Amman, Jordan, which was unfortunately canceled due to the recent conflict in Gaza.
At the ceremony where representatives of civil society, the academic world, the media, local authorities were invited, the project was highly praised and the four vlogs from the 20 Media Smart Ambassadors were presented. Acknowledgments were also given to the mentors and the 20 Smart Media Ambassadors who contributed and realized the project “Media Smart – Young People Vlog Against False Information”
