Hate speech in BiH is present in relatively small percentages (1,036 percent), and there is 485 media that contain some forms of hate speech or unprofessional reporting from a total analyzed 48.811 media outlets in 30 BiH printing, electronic and online media.
This is demonstrated in a report entitled “Monitoring Media: August-December 2012-Hate Speech With A Focus on the Pre-Election Campaign for 2012 Local Elections”, which was prepared by the BiH Journalists Association and a group of monitors from BiH. The results were presented in Sarajevo.
The Council of Europe supported the monitoring under the project “Promotion of Professionalism and Tolerance in BiH Media”, which is financed by the Norweigan and Irish governments.
The Head of the Council of Europe Office in Sarajevo Mary Ann Hennessey said that the general aim of the project is to promote professionalism and tolerance in BiH media, as well as to promote standards of the Council of Europe in the fight against hate speech in public space, in particular through support of self-regulation in media.
“The general conclusion of the monitoring is that hate speech still exists as a factor in public media, especially during the pre-election campaign. More work should be done in raising awareness among those who produce hate speech, and in media that relays the hate speech’’, said Hennessey.
She announced that the Council of Europe will begin an online campaign on 21 March on the International Day Against Racial Discrimination. The campaign would include all 47 countries of the Council of Europe and will last until 2014.
Professor at the Faculty of Political Science in Sarajevo in the Department of Journalism doc. Dr. Lejla Turčilo, who is also the author of this report said that even though a small percentage of the articles and reports contain hate speech, the analysis concluded that it still represents a danger.
She pointed out the severity of the criticism during the pre-election campaign, and adds that those who propagate hate speech tend to be outside of the media sphere, but that journalists should be careful when transmitting such language.
“The goal of the research is to fortify journalists to critically approach such speeches’’, said Turčilo and added that journalists have to avoid all types of language, discourse, connotations or transfer of hate speech (personal or other actors from which journalists have not denounced).
It was concluded that public communication entails responsibility and that freedom of speech is not limitless, but rather that it stops when it endangers the freedom of others who are different. This is why the reports lists suggestions that would prevent such occurrences.
