Albanian Media and the Business of Disinformation
By Emirjon Senja — Online media struggle to survive in a marketplace distorted by special interests. Next in a series on disinformation in the Balkans. Read more.
Around the Bloc – 24 February
Headlines from around the region: Serbia buys Russian weapons; Slovaks commemorate death of journalist; migrants in North Macedonia; Hollywood on the Danube; and a Transdniestrian oligarch. Read more.
Why Can’t Democrats Be Populist, Too?
By Martin Ehl— Opposition groups in Central Europe must get over their inhibitions about populist methods. Read more.
Fired From the Canon
By Szilard Istvan Pap — A new Hungarian national curriculum has led some educators to rail against the inclusion of extreme right-wing figures, while government supporters call the critics “anti-patriotic.” Read more.
Around the Bloc – 21 February
Headlines from around the region: Ukrainians panic over coronavirus; Russia blamed for Georgian cyberattack; trees in Hungary; heirs of Soviet crimes; and cars in Kazakhstan. Read more.
Winning Hearts in Bulgaria
By Boyko Vassilev— “Bad news sells” is the oldest banality in the news business. A good-news story from Bulgaria requires a deeper explanation. Read more.
Found in Translation
By CityDog.by — Belarus has been full of surprises for a Japanese translator who has spent almost two decades in the country and has no plans of leaving anytime soon. Read more.
Around the Bloc – 20 February
Headlines from around the region: political turmoil in Bosnia; Jehovah’s Witnesses face prison in Russia; Dodon shoots the messengers; Rosia Montana redux; and a crisis in the Armenian military. Read more.
In the Balkan Panoptikon
By Boyko Vassilev— A tale of a sporting celebration flared tempers across borders – not because of any violence, but because of the choice of songs. Read more.
Groundbreaking Film on Russia’s HIV Epidemic Goes Viral
By Filip Noubel — Nearly 13 million Russians have now watched Yury Dud’s new YouTube documentary. Read more.
Around the Bloc – 19 February
Headlines from around the region: $50 billion for Yukos; sentences for Latvian supermarket collapse; intense shelling in eastern Ukraine; heartache for Albania with the EU; and Putin dismisses an influential advisor. Read more.
Around the Bloc – 18 February
Headlines from around the region: U.S.-Ukrainian rocket takes off; corruption in Croatia; hazing in the Russian army; sugar mafia in Belarus; and coal mining in Mongolia. Read more.