Defunding Disinformation in the Balkans
About
A report by BMFI, in partnership with the Center for Research, Transparency and Accountability (CRTA), found that advertising revenues from major North American and European brands are funding and legitimising media outlets that disseminate disinformation on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Kosovo and other divisive issues in the Balkans.
Following a presentation of our findings to the European Parliament, BFMI, alongside 15 Members of the European Parliament, called on the major brands named in the report to examine their advertising pipeline and withdraw funding from outlets that spread disinformation.
Impact
After publication, one of the main Western companies flagged in the report, Lidl halted advertising with Serbian outlets TV Happy and TV Pink (see here). BFMI also gained responses from several other companies and shed light on the dangers of opaque advertising chains.
BFMI also secured a commitment from the Italian government to include the fight against disinformation in the agenda of the G7 Summit in Italy 2024.
BFMI continues to engage with companies and legislators to call for increased scrutiny on advertising and its connection to disinformation in the Balkans.
BFMI AT THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
The findings of the report were introduced to European Parliament at a high-level discussion hosted September 2023.
A summary and recording of the event can be accessed here.
Andrey Kovatchev, Member of the European Parliament