Hate and Propaganda Models of Media and Communication in the Western Balkans And Turkey

In the countries of the Western Balkans and in Turkey, where we conducted a research, there are numerous examples of disinformation, propaganda and hate models of media and communication, some of them very powerful in terms of their political and financial background and influence on public opinion. These hate and propaganda media and communication models are not marginal phenomena that have appeared accidentally. In most of the countries in the region, they are significant elements of the media system and are established and maintained systematically to absorb public money and spend it on serving the political agendas of their patrons in the political parties that benefit from the radical polarization of the society.

These are findings of the research conducted within the project “Resilience – Civil society action to reaffirm media freedom and counter disinformation and hateful propaganda in the Western Balkans and Turkey”  in seven countries  –Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey. Under the leadership of the Peace Institute, Ljubljana, the research team in the respective countries explored the phenomenon of hate, disinformation and propaganda models of media and communication based on common methodology, particularly focusing on the political-economic basis of such models of media and communication.

The typical elements of hate, disinformation and propaganda models of media and communication were identified at the beginning of the research, including ownership and financing patterns, operational modalities, characteristics of editors and journalists in such media models, distinctive content, and relations with the audience. Taking these elements into account, the researchers in the seven countries provided the assessment of the media landscape and concrete examples of media groups, media outlets, and media and public communication practices with the aim of examining whether and how the hate, disinformation and propaganda models of media and communication operate in their respective countries.

The results of the research are presented in several e-publications:

• seven national reports, published in September 2020,
• regional overview ‘Hate and Propaganda Models of Media and Communication In The Western Balkans And Turkey‘ by Sandra B. Hrvatin, Brankica Petković and Sanela Hodžić, published in November 2020,
• e-book with the same title, ‘Hate and Propaganda Models of Media and Communication In The Western Balkans And Turkey‘, which includes regional overview and seven national reports, published in November 2020.

Electronic publications are available on the website of the SEENPM regional network, which is also the coordinator of the regional project.