12/04/2018
Kosovar Centre for Security Studies (KCSS) today, on 12th of April 2018 organised a one day workshop with local medias with the subject “Countering Violent Extremism and Terrorism through communication”. This project is supported by US Embassy in Prishtina.
This workshop was organised for journalists and editors that are part of national media and cover security, justice, political and violent extremism issues in their respective medias. The training aims the raise of awareness in local, national and regional medias on the violent extremism phenomenon and to discuss the general context of violent extremism, the terminology used to describe the phenomenon and to highlight the role of media in producing counter narratives of violent extremism propaganda.
The participants discussed for the role of media in preventing and countering violent extremism, different methods of reporting about the phenomenon and the best ways to approach the key actors in violent extremism and those who were affected by it. The discussion continued on how to avoid making extremist propaganda material inadvertently more “findable” and durable by their actions and how to verify the authenticity of information before reporting about the issue.
The workshop started with a brief analysis of violent extremism phenomenon from its origins to the present times. The participants discussed the source of the problem and the driving factors leading to violent extremism in an international perspective and with particular emphasis on Kosovo. Attention was paid to the terminology used by the media which is a key point to rightly report about the problem. The importance of unifying the terminology used by all actors was emphasized as a precondition in serving the common goal of fair information of citizens.
This workshop gathered around 30 people from different medias in Kosovo. This activity is a key action in Countering Violent Extremism given the fact that media exert considerable influence in the society and adequate reporting about phenomenon like Violent Extremism is crucial in preventing it.
