Wrote: Festim Rizanaj
In the context of political and regional developments in Kosovo, sensationalism in the media is a factor that directly influences the misinformation of the public. Albanian media outlets such as “Ntv.al”, “Euronews.al” and “Top Channel” often use sensational headlines in their reporting on Kosovo, creating an atmosphere of panic and tension. These headlines, designed to attract attention, often amplify incomplete or distorted information, contributing to misinformation.
Hibrid.info has addressed some of the articles published in Albanian media in which the headlines, besides being sensational and exaggerated, did not correspond to and respond to the content.
Recently, regarding the conference of the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, on the issue of Kosovo, an article was published on euronews.al with the title, “Meeting with 60 world leaders” - Vučić: We will declare Kosovo an autonomous province of Serbia”. So, the title claims that Vučić said that “they will declare Kosovo an autonomous province of Serbia”. Due to the lack of verification of the content, this title leads to misinformation because, as is known, Kosovo, in the constitution of Serbia is already recognized as an “autonomous province of Serbia”. (here)
Even in the recent discussions regarding the possibility of opening the Ibar Bridge, sensational headlines were used in articles published on the medium "ntv.al" that misinformed the public. In a video published by ntv.al, on the front page of which the caption "The decision is made, the Ibar Bridge opens". While the video material (news item) contains various television news items related to Kosovo, it does not include any official announcement about the opening of the bridge. (here)
“The Ibar Bridge is opening” is another headline that was used, and on the cover of the video published by “ntv.al” there is also a photo of President Vjosa Osmani. The claim mentioned on the cover of the video does not hold true. The main bridge over the Ibar River in Mitrovica has not been opened and there is no official decision for its opening. (here)
Another headline used in connection with the Ibar Bridge issue, by “ntv.al”, was “KFOR is gone, the bridge remains empty/ NATO’s latest move over the Ibar”. Through one headline, it was claimed that the Bridge over the Ibar River in Mitrovica has remained empty and that the NATO mission in Kosovo, KFOR, has left it. The headline was not based on the content of the article itself, nor on the latest developments surrounding the bridge, nor on the official positions of KFOR and Kosovo institutions. (here)
In addition to these, hibrid.info has also addressed several other articles published by "ntv.al" and "euronews.al", which are related to developments in Kosovo, whose titles do not correspond to the content or are exaggerated and unverified. (here, here, here, here)
Furthermore, some content with sensational headlines published by Albanian media, such as Top-Channel and Euronews.al, is circulating on the internet. Some of these headlines are: “TOP SECRET! KOSOVA is shielded/ SERB plan is revealed” (here), “Brink of war in the North?! EU plan revealed: Kurti-Vučić urgently return to dialogue” (here), “SERBIA heads towards KOSOVO with weapons up to its neck? / VUČIĆ gives a firm order, attack…” (here).
So, based on the above examples, it can be seen that headlines are often exaggerated and focus on the most frightening aspects of the situation, underestimating the importance of critical and detailed analysis of the issues. As a result, the public is informed in a biased way and a wrong perception of reality is created.