Last week was characterized by a dominance of “clickbait” articles in the misinformation ecosystem in Kosovo. Clickbait articles were interspersed with statements and old news republished as current, as well as articles with developments that had not occurred in Kosovo.
Unverified content stemming from statements by the Office for Kosovo related to KLA graffiti; as well as claims that the price of bread will decrease.
Fake news about a neighborhood near Pristina that was claimed to be owned by politicians, as well as about the health condition of footballer Xherdan Shaqiri.
Conspiracy theory of the Kosovo Office for the placement of red and black flags in Kllokot, as well as claims by Serbian media that Kurti is threatening with the army.
Disinformation related to Granit Xhaka's actions and photos of Xherdan Shaqiri.
Unverified content
Serbian-language media have published a statement by the Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia regarding the KLA inscription on the road to the Brezovica Ski Resort. The article is based on a reaction by the Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia, does not provide concrete facts about the location and perpetrators of the act, and claims that this action is being carried out with the aim of removing Serbs from their homes. (here)
The portal “FrontOnline.net” has published an article related to the statement of the president of the Association of Millers, Bashkim Zejnullahi, who has warned of a decrease in the price of flour. However, the aforementioned portal has presented this statement by Zejnullahi as a “decrease in the price of bread”, which does not necessarily mean that with the decrease in the price of flour, the price of bread also decreases. Also, there is no other source that supports this claim made by this portal, be it that of the bakers of Kosovo, or any other official position regarding this issue. (here)
Fake news
The dubious portal “mynews24hr.com” has published an old article from 2018, which was about several villas near Tirana, which according to the medium “Pamfleti.net” belong to Albanian rulers, drug traffickers and various criminals. However, the dubious portal “mynews24hr.com” has changed the content and title of this article, falsely claiming that it is about a neighborhood near Pristina, and the villas in this neighborhood belong to Kosovar politicians. (here)
Several Albanian-language portals published an article yesterday (December 1) claiming that Xherdan Shaqiri is injured, implying that he may miss the match against Serbia. These portals do not base this claim on any fact, and the source of this information is unknown. This has been confirmed after research conducted by hibrid.info, as such a claim has not been found published by any foreign or Albanian-language media. (here)
Conspiracy theory
Serbian-language media have published a statement by the Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia regarding the placement of red and black flags in Kllokot, a settlement with a Serb majority. The office tends to claim that this action is another attempt to intimidate the Serbian people, as well as another step towards the creation of a “Greater Albania.” (here)
Serbian media outlet “Alo.rs” has published an article claiming that Kurti is threatening with the army. The article is based on the Facebook post of the Kosovo Prime Minister about the ceremony in Vlora in honor of the flag day. Kurti in his statement did not include any threat with the army against anyone, but emphasizes the fact that “with allies the aim is to protect the universal values of freedom, peace and democracy”. (here)
Clickbait
The dubious portal "Fakte.buzz" has published an article with a statement made by the Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo, Besnik Bislimi, while placing a portrait of Prime Minister Albin Kurti in the photograph. This leaves room for misinformation among readers, as some of them seem to have fallen prey to this action, thinking that Kurti has said that "the Government of Kosovo will fulfill the promises of Skanderbeg". (here)
The information portals “Kosova-sot.info” and “Botasot.info” have published an old article regarding the suspension of a policewoman. However, the title does not clarify in which country this suspension occurred. The article published on “Botasot.info” only clarifies the news in content, while “Kosova-sot.info” does not make it clear. (here)
The portal “Botasot.info” has published an article regarding the murder of an Italian doctor in Sicily. However, in the title, this medium does not clarify in which country this event took place. This online medium is a portal that operates in Kosovo and that has the dominant number of readers from Kosovo, based on the followers of the page on Facebook. Therefore, not providing information about the place of the event, can very easily misinform readers, making them think that this event took place in Kosovo. (here)
The Facebook page named “Pamfleti.com” has published an article titled “'Tumult' within PDK!/ After Ramë Buja's resignation, several new departures are announced!” After verifying the facts, hibrid.info has confirmed that this article is old, which this page has tried to present as current. (here)
disinformation
Serbian-language media have published articles claiming that the Swiss national football player of Albanian origin, Granit Xhaka, wore a shirt with the inscription Jashari, alluding to the surname of the KLA commander, Adem Jashari. Xhaka made this move after the Switzerland-Serbia match in the framework of the “Qatar 2022” World Cup. Despite the claims of the Serbian media, Xhaka stated that this move was in support of the young Swiss national football player of Albanian origin, Ardon Jashari, to whom he had promised to wear the shirt if they won the match. (here)
Several Albanian-language media outlets have posted a photo on their Facebook accounts showing Switzerland's national football team, Xherdan Shaqiri, and Serbia's Aleksandar Mitrović arguing. The time (during the match, around 21 p.m.) when this photo was posted has raised the question of whether this discussion took place during the match played last night (December 2) between these two national teams. Hibrid.info, after verification, found that the photo is from the match played within the framework of the "Russia 2018" World Cup. (here)