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Journalism under Duress: Worlds of Journalism Study Report (Wave 3: 2021–2025)
Deep Insights

Thomas Hanitzsch, Folker Hanusch, Corinna Lauerer, Vera Slavtcheva-Petkova (eds.)

Munich: Ludwig-Maximilian Universität (LMU), WJS Center (2025), 371 pp.

"This report presents findings from the third wave of the Worlds of Journalism Study (WJS3), conducted between 2021 and 2025. In this iteration, we focused on journalists’ perceptions of risk and uncertainty in their profession and sought to identify key factors that shape how journalists navigate ... more

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Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2025
Deep Insights

Nic Newman, Richard Fletcher, Craig T. Robertson, Amy Ross Arguedas, Rasmus Kleis Nielsen (eds.)

Oxford: Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (2025), 170 pp.

"• Engagement with traditional media sources such as TV, print, and news websites continues to fall, while dependence on social media, video platforms, and online aggregators grows. This is particularly the case in the United States where polling overlapped with the first few weeks of the new Trum ... p administration. Social media news use was sharply up (+6pp) but there was no ‘Trump bump’ for traditional sources. • Personalities and influencers are, in some countries, playing a significant role in shaping public debates. One-fifth (22%) of our United States sample says they came across news or commentary from popular podcaster Joe Rogan in the week after the inauguration, including a disproportionate number of young men. In France, young news creator Hugo Travers (HugoDécrypte) reaches 22% of under-35s with content distributed mainly via YouTube and TikTok. Young influencers also play a significant role in many Asian countries, including Thailand. • News use across online platforms continues to fragment, with six online networks now reaching more than 10% weekly with news content, compared with just two a decade ago. Around a third of our global sample use Facebook (36%) and YouTube (30%) for news each week. Instagram (19%) and WhatsApp (19%) are used by around a fifth, while TikTok (16%) remains ahead of X at 12%. • Data show that usage of X for news is stable or increasing across many markets, with the biggest uplift in the United States (+8pp), Australia (+6pp), and Poland (+6pp). Since Elon Musk took over the network in 2022 many more right-leaning people, notably young men, have flocked to the network, while some progressive audiences have left or are using it less frequently. Rival networks like Threads, Bluesky, and Mastodon are making little impact globally, with reach of 2% or less for news. • Changing platform strategies mean that video continues to grow in importance as a source of news. Across all markets the proportion consuming social video has grown from 52% in 2020 to 65% in 2025 and any video from 67% to 75%. In the Philippines, Thailand, Kenya, and India more people now say they prefer to watch the news rather than read it, further encouraging the shift to personality-led news creators. • Our survey also shows the importance of news podcasting in reaching younger, better-educated audiences. The United States has among the highest proportion (15%) accessing one or more podcasts in the last week, with many of these now filmed and distributed via video platforms such as YouTube and TikTok. By contrast, many northern European podcast markets remain dominated by public broadcasters or big legacy media companies and have been slower to adopt video versions. • TikTok is the fastest growing social and video network, adding a further 4pp across markets for news and reaching 49% of our online sample in Thailand (+10pp) and 40% in Malaysia (+9pp). But at the same time people in those markets see the network as one of the biggest threats when it comes to false or misleading information, along with Facebook. • Overall, over half our sample (58%) say they remain concerned about their ability to tell what is true from what is false when it comes to news online, a similar proportion to last year. Concern is highest in Africa (73%) and the United States (73%), with lowest levels in Western Europe (46%). • When it comes to underlying sources of false or misleading information, online influencers and personalities are seen as the biggest threat worldwide (47%), along with national politicians (47%). Concern about influencers is highest in African countries such as Nigeria (58%) and Kenya (59%), while politicians are considered the biggest threat in the United States (57%), Spain (57%), and much of Eastern Europe." (Executive summary, page 10-11) more

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Our Media, Our Democracy, Our Future. The Future of the Media in the Western Balkans and Turkey – Facts and Trends. Regional Overview
Deep Insights

Sanela Hodžic, Sandra B. Hrvatin

Sarajevo; Ljubljana: Mediacentar; Peace Institute; South East European Network for Professionalization of Media (SEENPM) (2025), 57 pp.

"The results of the research conducted in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Turkey suggest that the key determinants for the future of our media and democracies are the following: • The poor socio-economic status of journalists and their exposure to ... pressure and attacks, coupled with modest support mechanisms, cripple the ability of journalists to promote the public interest, report on key issues of public interest, and hold power to account. In the most extreme cases, the pressure involves imprisonment, interrogation, surveillance, and lawsuits aimed at silencing journalists. • The lack of consistent monitoring and registration of cases of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) in the region, with dozens of lawsuits against journalists filed by political officials and their affiliates. • A growing number or media outlets, but a declining number of journalism students, highlighting concerns about the future shrinking of staff numbers in media newsrooms and about the growing automatization of journalism. The most drastic drop was in North Macedonia, with the number of journalism students in 2023 amounting to only 11% of the number from ten years ago and 50% of the number from 2000. • The number of media outlets is growing, mostly in the online sector, while print media outlets are becoming increasingly endemic. • A worrying trend of overt concentration of media ownership in the hands of a few media conglomerates, often tied to national or foreign governments, that takes a toll on media freedom and pluralism. • The dominant instrumentalization (through ownership and funding) of media (including private and public) for particular political and/or business interests limits the space for editorial independence and integrity. • Non-profit media are still a rarity in the region, with only a few non-profit radio broadcasters in some countries, and an unknown number of online platforms of civil society organizations with a community-focused mission. • Lack of transparency of the media sector, particularly a lack of accessible and reliable information concerning the media industry and the media market. • Advertising is the main source of revenues in the media sector, with the total revenues ranging between EUR 12 million in Montenegro and over EUR 4 billion in Turkey. • Although it is declining, the TV sector is still dominant in terms of its share of advertising revenues, while social media’s share is increasing, and in Turkey it amounts to as much as 45.7% of advertising revenues. • The tech giants such as Google and Meta are an increasingly dominant competitor for media outlets in the region, jeopardizing the future sustainability of national and local media outlets and potentially curbing political pluralism in public communication. • Public funding for the media, including funding of public broadcasters (declining in four out of seven countries), grants, and subsidies for media outlets and government advertising, amounts to several to dozens of millions of euros per country, taking up an important share of media revenues, but without proactive transparency, effective guarantees of editorial independence, well-defined purpose and evaluation, the opportunities to make public funding for the media an important instrument of media democratization remain under-used. • The representation of different age, gender, ethnic, religious, and other groups in media content and in the newsrooms’ staff is limited. In multiethnic communities some policies promote ethnic diversity of media content, while other identity axes are largely neglected and pluralism in public communication is very limited. Women are an important, and in many countries even dominant, workforce in the media, but remain underrepresented in managerial posts." (Executive summary) more

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Media Bias, Legislative Challenges, and the Fight for Freedom. The Future of the Media in Serbia – Facts and Trends

Valentina Sigeti, Teodora Koledin

Sarajevo; Novi Sad; Ljubljana: Mediacentar; Novi Sad School of Journalism; Peace Institute; South East European Network for Professionalization of Media (SEENPM) (2025), 50 pp.

"Alongside the rise of new technologies and the evolving global conditions in the media industry, journalism and media in Serbia will face numerous challenges, particularly in the areas of basic media freedom and journalist protection, based on the findings of this research: • There is no reliable ... data on the number of journalists in Serbia, or how many of them are women or members of marginalized groups. • Media ownership in Serbia is highly concentrated, particularly in the television broadcasting sector, which affects media reporting. Channels with national frequencies often align their narratives with the government’s or ruling party’s agenda. • The state and ruling party demonstrate tendencies to control the media. This is evident in the newly updated law that allows business companies engaged in electronic communications, such as the state-owned Telekom, to own media outlets. Additionally, findings indicate that some media owners at the local level are connected to the ruling party. • Media financing is often misused to encourage biased reporting. Public calls for funding are corrupted by GONGO media organizations, which prioritize funding pro-government outlets; state advertising is not regulated by law, and the media community was left out of the discussion on new advertising laws; despite receiving the majority of its budget from citizens’ subscriptions, the national public broadcaster RTS is still perceived as one of the most progovernment outlets in the country; foreign donors, including the EU, US and UK, provide significant financial support for media projects in Serbia, but there is no transparent data on the total amount of money donated. • National minorities are represented through media outlets funded by National Councils of National Minorities. However, journalists from some of these media outlets work under political pressures and engage in self-censorship. National minorities living in the northern province of Serbia, Vojvodina, are also served by the provincial public broadcaster RTV. RTS does not provide content in the languages of the Bosnian, Vlach and Bulgarian communities in Serbia’s eastern and western regions. Romani and Albanian communities are represented on RTS, but the amount of content is minimal. • Television is the most commonly used source of news and information, with citizens watching up to eight hours of television daily. The most-watched TV news programmes are central-informative political shows on channels with national frequencies, which are widely considered pro-government. • Only 30% of Serbian citizens trust the media. Social media is the least trusted media type, while television is the most trusted." (Executive summary) more

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Russian Media in the Balkans and their Role in the Aggression against Ukraine. Case Study: RT Balkan

Thomas Brey

Potsdam: Friedrich Naumann Stiftung (2024), 37 pp.

"The study presented here [...] is not limited to generalised theses and descriptions of the Balkan media scene under Russian influence that only scratch the surface. Rather, the focus is on documenting the effectiveness of Russian state media in the region with a focus on Serbia, which also has an ... more

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Media diversity activism in Serbia: Mapping actors and activities

Jovanka Matic

Media Diversity Institute (2024), 33 pp.

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Vibrant Information Barometer: Europe & Eurasia
Deep Insights

Washington, DC: IREX; USAID (2024), 357 pp.

"The 2024 Europe and Eurasia Vibrant Information Barometer (VIBE) covers 18 countries throughout Europe, Eurasia, and Central Asia. With VIBE, IREX strives to capture a modern and evolving media space where people are simultaneously producers, transmitters, consumers, and actors in the information t ... more

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The Invisible Hand of Media Censorship in the Balkans: A Closer Look at Media Ownership in the Balkans and the European Media Freedom Act

Balkan Free Media Initiative (BFMI) (2024), 80 pp.

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Evaluation of the BMAP-Forward Activity

Sarah Eissler, Micheal Buehler, Brenda Pearson, Miodrag Bogdanovic, Anida Soko, Arben Qirezi

Washington, DC: USAID; Integra Government Services International (2024), 165 pp.

"Activity Description: The Balkan Media Assistance Program to Foster Organizational Readiness While Advancing Resilient Development (BMAP-FORWARD) is a $13 million regional Activity (2022-2028) that aims to strengthen the independence and resilience of media outlets in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo ... , Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia. Evaluation Purpose: USAID/Europe and Eurasia Bureau requested a mid-term performance evaluation of BMAP-FORWARD to understand which approaches, tools, and interventions are successfully contributing to planned outcomes according to the Activity’s three key objectives: 1) Increase strategic business practices of key media partners to operate as viable enterprises and better understand their markets and audiences; 2) Reinforce the ability of content producers to produce data-driven content, engage wider audiences, improve digital security efforts, and expand reach across the region; and 3) Foster stronger partnerships between media outlets and the technology, commercial, and entrepreneurial sectors to advance solutions on common challenges in the information space. Evaluation Design: Mixed methods and non-experimental evaluation design approaches, including Expert Consultations and Outcome Harvesting, were employed to collect and analyze primary and secondary data, including reviewing 140 documents, conducting 51 key informant interviews with experts, 47 in-depth interviews with recipients of assistance, an online Expert Survey (n=63), and conducting 13 interviews and an online validation survey (n=48) to substantiate outcome stories. All data were triangulated to inform the evidence base to develop each finding and conclusion. Key Findings: BMAP-FORWARD’s tailored and localized approach is a key strength of its ability to provide effective, useful, and timely assistance, which has strengthened Key Media Partners’ (KMPs’) shift towards strategic planning, ability to pursue diversified revenue sources, improve content production and technology use to engage wider audiences, produce data-driven content using new software, and engage in cross-border collaborations. BMAP-FORWARD assistance has strengthened KMPs’ digital security practices and protocols, although with room for improvement to sustain this support. While BMAPFORWARD has made inroads to foster partnerships between media and non-traditional actors, key factors inhibit progress towards this Activity Objective (Objective 3). Key Recommendations: BMAP-FORWARD should: 1) continue to employ the highly tailored approach to learn KMPs’ needs, co-create solutions and action plans, identify resources to implement solutions, and present new ideas; 2) consider providing more opportunities for intentional engagement for peer-to-peer learning for newsroom staff from different outlets, including non-KMPs and different media across the region; 3) consider investing in strengthening in-house expertise capacity or identify long-term solutions for each KMP to navigate the evolving digital security challenges; and 4) consider designing and marketing sessions at forums geared towards facilitating potential partnerships between private sector actors and KMPs, which can be followed by ongoing assistance to support KMPs in navigating how to structure partnerships." (Abstract) more

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Digital Rights Violations: Annual Report 2023-2024

Ena Bavcic, Tijana Uzelac, Adina Florea et al.

Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) (2024), 153 pp.

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What Can We Learn From the Short History of Independent Media in Serbia? Radio B92, George Soros, and New Models of Media Development

Janet Steele

International Journal of Press/Politics, volume 29, issue 3 (2024), pp. 646-666

"Radio B92 was an iconic independent media institution in Serbia. Founded in 1989, B92 provided Belgrade listeners with subversive rock music, high-quality journalism, and independent perspectives on politics in the former Yugoslavia. An early adapter to the internet, B92 has been credited with spar ... more

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Becoming a Target: Journalists’ Perspectives on Anti-Press Discourse and Experiences with Hate Speech

Cedomir Markov, Ana Dordevic

Journalism Practice, volume 18, issue 2 (2023), pp. 283-300

"In many parts of the world, journalists work in increasingly hostile environments. To better understand the characteristics and implications of hostility against the press in a hybrid regime, this study explores how journalists in Serbia perceive and experience anti-press hate speech. Based on 20 i ... more

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Vibrant Information Barometer: Europe & Eurasia
Deep Insights

Washington, DC: IREX; USAID (2023), 355 pp.

"The 2023 Europe and Eurasia Vibrant Information Barometer (VIBE) covers 18 countries throughout Europe, Eurasia, and Central Asia. With VIBE, IREX strives to capture a modern and evolving media space where people are simultaneously producers, transmitters, consumers, and actors in the information t ... hat influences their lives and environments. This year’s edition focuses on the media and information space across the countries in the study during calendar year 2022, capturing the impact of the Kremlin’s February full-scale invasion of Ukraine. VIBE looks at four principles of information vibrancy: Principle 1: Information Quality; Principle 2: Multiple Channels: How Information Flows; Principle 3: Information Consumption and Engagement; Principle 4: Transformative Action: How Information Drives Behavior. VIBE includes 20 indicators that capture the most important elements of these four principles, and it relies on information from country experts who complete a VIBE questionnaire, provide scores for sub-indicators that support each of the 20 main indicators along with evidence to justify their scores, and then contribute to a panel discussion led by a moderator [...] For countries in Europe and Eurasia (E&E) included in this year’s publication, country-level scores were, again, mainly split into two VIBE classifications: Somewhat Vibrant (North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Armenia, Moldova, and Ukraine) and Slightly Vibrant (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Russia, and Serbia). Azerbaijan and Belarus held the lowest scores in E&E, putting them in the Not Vibrant classification. In Central Asia, this year’s study put Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan in the Slightly Vibrant category. Turkmenistan’s score of 1 put it in the Not Vibrant classification. At the overall score level, some countries--including Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ukraine, and Moldova—saw increases in their scores. Others such as Serbia, North Macedonia, Kosovo, and Montenegro received the same country-level scores as they did in the 2022 VIBE study. Finally, other countries—including Albania, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, and Russia—experienced a decline in their country-level scores. Principle 1’s (Information Quality) lowest scores tended to fall in the indicator examining insufficient resources for content production and harmful information. Rapidly evolving models for financing media, declining advertising in traditional print and broadcast media, international tech giants siphoning off advertising funds, and local and global inflationary pressures, have all contributed to a financing desert for media. Many media are reliant on political or business benefactors for livelihood, while others look to international funding agencies for their survival." (Executive summary, page 7) more

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Digital innovation profile: Serbia. Digital innovation ecosystem: Strategies and recommendations for accelerating digital transformation

Geneva: ITU (2023), vi, 37 pp.

"This digital innovation profile, developed in collaboration with the Office of the Prime Minister Republic of Serbia, aims to accurately assess the country's digital ecosystem capacity and maturity to help Serbia and its stakeholders navigate the digital innovation landscape. The objective is to he ... more

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Mapping of Actors: Identification of Potential Cooperation Partners for Media Outlets in the Western Balkans

Amra Kapo

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ); Internews; Deutsche Welle DW Akademie (2023), 59 pp.

"In this study we identify and elaborate at least six components of the digital media ecosystem: (1) content creators and distributors; (2) consumers/users; (3) monetization channels; (4) advertising networks, (5) data analytics and insights and (6) social media, streaming and e-commerce platforms. ... Qualitative findings have revealed four major traits of the digital media ecosystem in Western Balkans: (1) market underdevelopment (the market significantly lags behind the developed countries); (2) financial constraints (media outlets are not resourceful enough and lack funding to use advanced services digital media ecosystem offers); (3) media dynamics and technological uptake (traditional media outlets recognize the opportunity in digital media and mostly possess digital channels as secondary screens to their main formats, with larger media also utilizing the opportunities of YouTube and podcast format); (4) driven by donors or media outside of WB (independent media outlets are mainly driven by donors and external investments. Furthermore, the main reasons for slower progress in the media landscape and with media outlets in Western Balkans are identified in the study, namely: (1) economic challenges, (2) lack of infrastructure, (3) regulatory environment, (3) media ownership and control, (4) lack of training and skills and (5) monetization challenges. Each of these reasons are elaborated, with the support of arguments from the primary study. Comprehensive maps of media outlets and IT companies in the Western Balkans are created, with detailed lists of both categories provided. Here, it can be concluded that there are plenty of actors in both sectors as well as the sector is growing. The study further groups media outlets into three main categories, taking the level of digital transformation and technology adoption: (1) advanced media outlets, (2) media outlets undergoing transformation, and (3) traditional media outlets. In terms of IT companies, and general in the IT sector, which is very prolific in the region, the study selected ones that demonstrate innovativeness and an advanced assortment of services and products, positioning them as potential collaborators for media outlets seeking to improve their digital presence, engagement strategies, and content delivery mechanisms." (Executive summary, pages 1-2) more

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Women in Media: Serbia Survey

Tamara Skrozza, Miodrag Mrkšic, Katarina Tomovic

London: Peaceful Change Initiative (2023), 29 pp.

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Defunding Disinformation in the Balkans: How International Brands Support Russia’s Agenda

Brussels: Balkan Free Media Initiative (BFMI); CRTA (2023), 39 pp.

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Investing in Facts: How the Business Community Can Support a Healthy Infosphere
Deep Insights

Marius Dragomir

Washington, DC: Center for International Media Assistance (CIMA); Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) (2023), 33 pp.

"This report builds off research conducted in Czechia, Romania, and Serbia by an international team of media experts. The research aimed to identify inspiring and impactful ways that the private sector in these countries is engaging in efforts to counter disinformation and bolster independent journa ... more

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Media Systems in Balkan Countries: Context and Dynamics of Changes
Deep Insights

Boguslawa Dobek-Ostrowska, Jelena Kleut

Lausanne et al.: Peter Lang (2023), 290 pp.

"We selected ten post-communist countries for this research. Eight of them are located on the Balkan Peninsula, from a geographical point of view. We added Romania and Slovenia for historical reasons. The main aim of research is to provide a model of the media system in each of them. We are interest ... more

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Fairwork Serbia Ratings 2023. Delivering Discontent: Dynamic Pricing and Worker Unrest

Oxford; Berlin: Fairwork (2023), 43 pp.

Journalism under Duress: Worlds of Journalism Study Report (Wave 3: 2021–2025) Deep Insights

Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2025 Deep Insights

Our Media, Our Democracy, Our Future. The Future of the Media in the Western Balkans and Turkey – Facts and Trends. Regional Overview Deep Insights

Vibrant Information Barometer: Europe & Eurasia Deep Insights

Vibrant Information Barometer: Europe & Eurasia Deep Insights

Investing in Facts: How the Business Community Can Support a Healthy Infosphere Deep Insights

Media Systems in Balkan Countries: Context and Dynamics of Changes Deep Insights

Journalism under Duress: Worlds of Journalism Study Report (Wave 3: 2021–2025)
Deep Insights

Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2025
Deep Insights

Our Media, Our Democracy, Our Future. The Future of the Media in the Western Balkans and Turkey – Facts and Trends. Regional Overview
Deep Insights

Vibrant Information Barometer: Europe & Eurasia
Deep Insights

Vibrant Information Barometer: Europe & Eurasia
Deep Insights

Investing in Facts: How the Business Community Can Support a Healthy Infosphere
Deep Insights

Media Systems in Balkan Countries: Context and Dynamics of Changes
Deep Insights