Montenegro does not yet have a developed legislative framework for combating disinformation, although it is present to a large extent, most often in the context of domestic politics and in the service of political parties, both domestic and those from the region.
This is the conclusion of the editor-in-chief of the Raskrinkavanje.me platform. Darvin Murić, who explains that “in a country where institutions turn a blind eye to the spread of fake news, the fight against disinformation is largely left to the non-governmental sector and civic initiatives.”
Raskrinkavanje.me, a platform that has existed in Montenegro since 2018, was launched by the Center for Democratic Transition (CDT) with a clear goal: fighting disinformation, manipulating citizens through the media and social networks, as well as combating foreign influences.
According to Murić, the number of those who follow their work is growing every day. Although they do not operate as a mainstream media outlet, nor do they aim to chase big numbers, as they are funded exclusively through projects, not commercial advertisements, their influence in the public eye is growing, he claims.
"We receive requests for verification from citizens, journalists, and politicians, which shows that our work is being monitored and appreciated. However, there is still a serious misunderstanding of our role. Citizens often mistakenly believe that we are some kind of 'censors' who remove content from networks and media, which leads to unpleasant situations, especially with those whose posts are marked as disinformation," explains Murić.
Raskrinkavanje.me is not spared by the media that produces the most disinformation, nor by some politicians. The biggest challenge, says Murić, is the large amount of disinformation and the lack of institutional reaction.
He observes that biased and colored reporting dominates in Montenegro, while manipulation and disinformation are most often politically motivated.
"They are mainly a function of political parties, especially those in power, including those in neighboring Serbia. This leads us to the conclusion that the government often defends itself with disinformation," says Murić.
The work relies on classic methods of journalistic research and source verification, although there are certain tools that enable the detection of manipulation, such as photo analysis and detection of content generated by artificial intelligence. However, the key method remains thorough journalistic research.
Most of the work ahead of the election
According to Murić, they have the most work ahead of elections and during tense events. He recalls situations when they promptly exposed fake news that could have caused serious consequences, such as false information about a police attack on a mother and child in Nikšić, or claims about shooting at police during the coronation in Cetinje.
According to Murić, social networks are a breeding ground for disinformation, and irresponsible individuals are constantly creating and spreading falsehoods on them. There is no accountability, except for some sanctions for those who constantly spread disinformation, which exist on Facebook and Instagram. This is why there is a constant warning for network users and the media that networks should not be a source of information without the strictest and most thorough verification.
Raskrinkavanje.me does not choose the media it follows, but the news it analyzes. Many media outlets carry their analyses and often correct errors after their interventions. However, those who misinform the most regularly target them, although, paradoxically, they often admit errors after their publications.
"We are not the police, nor are we competing with the media, but we do the same job, fighting for objective information... When it comes to institutional support, the position is clear - there is no legal framework for combating disinformation. The research we conducted showed that almost half of citizens believe that the Government is spreading disinformation, which further complicates the fight," explains the editor-in-chief of the Montenegrin platform for exposing fake news.
Putting the media in the same basket is one of the goals of disinformation
The beginning of the fight against disinformation in Montenegro, says Murić, starts with the fact that institutions need to acknowledge that there is a problem. According to him, Montenegro needs to follow EU trends.
"First of all, they need to admit that we have a problem with disinformation and stop arbitrarily labeling reporting they don't like as fake news. Then we need a change in the law that would introduce the concept of disinformation, and then an accountability mechanism. Of course, we are not in favor of repression, but rather of finding an adequate accountability model. It is also necessary for Montenegro to follow the trends of the EU, which has the Digital Services Act, which also regulates networks, and harmonize its laws with European ones. From all of the above, it is clear that we are far from an institutional fight against disinformation."
Although citizens often send suggestions for verification, the editor-in-chief of Raskrinkavanje.me notes that “there is a lot of apathy and putting all media in the same basket, according to the principle that everyone lies.” This, he claims, is dangerous and “one of the goals of disinformation is to sell such a position to citizens.”
Murić says that "anyone can fall for disinformation." That's why, he suggests, every piece of information should be checked in as many sources, media outlets, statements, etc. as possible.
"That's the basis of everything. If someone writes about vaccines, check it on the website of a university, hospital, health institution. If someone writes about politics, read about the same topic on three or four different portals... Ultimately, send a suspicious post to us or any other fact-checking organization in the region," says Murić.
Raskrinkavanje.me is part of the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN), the European Fact-Checking Standards Network (EFCSN), and the European Code of Standards for Independent Fact-Checking Organizations. It is also part of the regional network for combating disinformation - SEECheck, whose members include organizations that run similar platforms: Šašto ne from Bosnia and Herzegovina, KRIK and Fake News Tragač from Serbia, Faktograf from Croatia, MOST from North Macedonia, and Oštro from Slovenia. They are Facebook's partners for Montenegro, as part of their Third Party Fact-Checking program, which currently has 70 participants checking facts in 50 languages around the world.
Citizens rate the work of institutions as poor
Citizens of Montenegro believe in conspiracy theories and propaganda narratives in alarming numbers, such as that global elites are deliberately causing health crises or that homosexuality is a disease. These are, as the CDT website wrote Jelena Jovanovic, executive editor of the Raskrinkavanje.me portal, showed a public opinion survey. The survey was conducted for the needs of the CDT by the Damar Institute in the period from February 22 to March 4 this year on a sample of 1.008 respondents.
Citizens have given a poor assessment of the work of institutions in the fight against disinformation, and as Jovanović states, negative assessments regarding the work of institutions in the fight against disinformation continue to dominate.
Thus, around 60 percent of citizens believe that state institutions to a greater or lesser extent avoid effectively combating disinformation because they may gain political or social benefits from it. In contrast, less than a fifth (19,3 percent) believe that this is not the case, while 21,3 percent of citizens have no opinion on the issue.
When asked about the work of state institutions in combating disinformation, more than half, 58,5 percent of citizens, say that the work of the institutions is bad or very bad, only 16,3 percent say that it is extremely good and good, while a quarter (25,2 percent) say they do not know.
A large number of citizens (85,1 percent) support the idea of greater state regulation of social networks as a measure to combat disinformation, while only 14,9 percent disagree with it to a greater or lesser extent.
"The majority of citizens did not express a positive opinion about the role of global technology companies in controlling disinformation. Namely, 30 percent of citizens believe that global companies like Facebook and X directly enable the spread of disinformation, 10,4 percent that they do so unintentionally, and only 9,3 percent say that they help combat disinformation. A fifth (20,9 percent) see their role as neutral, while a significant portion (27,4 percent) could not decide on this issue," Jovanović wrote.
The text is part of the project RADIKAL(NO) 2 - Improving the capacities of CSO actors in the field of media and information literacy MIP, implemented by the Open Dialogue Network in partnership with the Institute for Socio-Political Research Analitico, which is supported through the regional program "Our Media: Civil Society Action for Creating Media Literacy and Activism, Against Polarization and Promoting Dialogue", which is implemented with the financial support of the European Union by the partner organizations SEENPM, Albanian Media Institute, Mediacentar Sarajevo, Kosovo Press Council, Media Institute of Montenegro, Macedonian Media Institute, Novi Sad Journalism School, Peace Institute and Bianet, and which was co-financed by the European Union and the Ministry of Public Administration of Montenegro.
The content of this text is the sole responsibility of the Open Dialogue Network and the Institute for Socio-Political Research Analitico and does not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the Ministry of Public Administration of Montenegro.
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