Critical analysis of press reporting on the March riots in Kosovo

• Author: Muhamet Jahiri
• Position: University of Pristina
• Pages: 85-96

Vol. 4 No. 1

March, 2018

ISSN 2410-3918

Acces online at www.iipccl.org

85

Academic Journal of Business, Administration, Law and Social Sciences

IIPCCL Publishing, Graz-Austria

Critical analysis of press reporting on the March riots in Kosovo

PhD (C.) Muhamet Jahiri

University of Pristina

Abstract

The March 2004 riots were considered the worst inter-ethnic event in Kosovo, where dozens

of citizens lost their lives, and thousands were injured. The media, from various domestic

and international reports, were generally criticized for boosting interethnic tensions, but in

the scientifi c and professional sphere, no one made a thorough analysis. In this paper, I will

analyze the daily press reporting for the March 2004 riots in Kosovo, dated March 17, when the

outbreak of violence occurred. Media in democratic societies have an important role, so those

during reporting, and especially in such tense and emotional situations, should be cautious in

reporting. Through text analysis, it can be concluded that some of the daily newspapers have

also expressed emotional status in the way of reporting, through the persons involved in the

story. However, in this case, should not be overlooked the international mission of UNMIK,

which did not do enough work to keep the public opinion informed about the event and the

general tension created in Kosovo.

Keywords: Critical analysis, daily newspapers, interethnic relations, March riots, reporting.

Introduction

The March 2004 events are considered the most violent inter-ethnic events in post-war

Kosovo. International organizations, including those of the United Nations (UN), for

these riots that took the lives of many citizens and injured hundreds, also accused the

media, including the daily press, of encouraging inter-ethnic hatred and pushing to

escalate the situation. On the other hand, the media including journalist organizations

have denied this, claiming that they have done their professional job. Therefore, the

main focus of this research is directly related to the handling of this event, a critical

analysis of reporting, also based on the theoretical background. In the daily press,

all articles related to the event will be analyzed up to the start of the riots, including

report analysis in professional terms, title analysis, header analysis, information

resource analysis, and photo analysis. In the case of the study, a particular focus will

be on analysing the discourse used in that period and refl ecting the discourse on the

content of the product. Also, part of the case study will be the analysis of March 17, a

day which is considered the most violent day in post-1999 Kosovo.

Taking into account the events of March 2004, the escalation of the situation, the lost

lives, the terms of professional reporting, accountability and accusations against the

media to incite the riots, the main hypothesis of the paper will be: Kosovo’s Media in

Albanian language, during their reporting on March 17, have helped escalate inter-

ethnic violence in Kosovo.Second hypothesis: Reporting of Kosovo’s wri en Media in

the Albanian language regarding the events of March 2004 has not been professional

and as such can be considered as one of the factors in the tense interethnic relations.