Disinformation is more than just spreading false information—it's a deliberate attempt to control conversations and manipulate public opinion. By using bots, trolls, fake websites, and fabricated experts, disinformation efforts seek to distort essential democratic debates, creating uncertainty, fear, and division.
That's where our WeBalkans campaign — Facts Come First — steps in: To remind you to:
Follow reliable sources — not just the loudest voices.
Question stories.
Ask: Who's promoting them? Why?
Compare facts. Listen to diverse voices.
Countering disinformation goes beyond correcting falsehoods: it's about protecting democratic values and actively improving people's lives by ensuring access to reliable, fact-based information.
Integrity
journalism
In an era flooded with information, journalism integrity is more essential than ever—not because it tells us what to think, but because it gives us with what we need to think clearly: facts.
Good journalism tells you what happened — and lets you decide what to think.
Biased stories try to tell you what to think — without showing the full picture.
The European
Union and the
Western Balkans
The EU sees the Western Balkans as part of its future — politically, economically, and culturally. The process is slow, yes. And difficult. But it's still moving and people are trying. New steps, new instruments, new investments are being introduced — even if they don't always make headlines.
And yes — meeting EU standards is demanding
But it's not about pleasing invisible administration
It's about creating stronger institutions, fairer societies, and better opportunities for people
So how do we move past the myths?
Start with this:
Don't believe everything at first glance.
Take a pause.
Ask: Where is this from? Who's behind it? What's the bigger picture?
Misconceptions are easy.
Real change takes effort.
And so does understanding.
Facts Come First
Truth is not something we can bend to fit how we feel.
Truth is what can be proven, checked, confirmed.
Being aware of fake news doesn't mean you have to distrust everything.
It means learning to recognise when you're being influenced.
Have you ever realised you were influenced or mislead?
Do you believe that you can make a difference between truth and myth?
Citizens of Western Balkans talked to our Young European Ambassadors check below:
FACT CONTENT LAB
IN PODGORICA
At the WeBalkans Facts Content Lab in Podgorica, journalists, fact-checkers, producers, and Young European Ambassadors from across the Western Balkans joined forces. Not just to talk, but to create.
Together, they explored disinformation around EU enlargement, tackle misconceptions, and discover how narratives shape people perspectives. No lectures - just collaboration, creativity, and real-time content production.
They work in 4 teams on different themes:
PROOF SEEKERS
Exposing myths, cutting
through disinformation
DECODERS
Decoding manipulation
including AI generated
RE-SETTERS
Digital detox, mindful
habits, online harm
CREATIVE SKEPTICS
Questioning, exposing,
and reshaping narratives
PROOF SEEKERS
