The media has an important potential for influencing public opinion in conflict situations. In the Western Balkans, many media companies represent either one or the other of sides who were or are in conflict. There are many examples of how some media have contributed to conflict escalation through one-sided selection of news and the way that stories about the “other” are told. The Nansen Dialogue Network is involved in several media projects in cooperation with other partners. The aim is to present the political situation in the region from different perspectives, and contribute to public dialogue about controversial issues.

Examples are the documentary film project: “Untold Stories”; the BUKA magazine and the BUKA TV-shows in Bosnia-Herzegovina; the journal ALBUM in Bosnia-Herzegovina; and Hapi Korak, a bi-lingual magazine in Southern Serbia. The network project, Divided Communities, invites journalists from the most ethnically divided communities in the region to create joint media projects. For more information, see websites of NDC Osijek, NDC Banjaluka, and NDC Sarajevo.