Some parents of students from non-majority communities in Plemetin of Obiliq have not sent their children to school for several days, because they fell prey to a fake news from the Serbian media, allegedly that some people with a minibus in this area are kidnaping children.

In addition, people from minority communities indicate that they have often come across fake news when exploring the media and social networks.

That the touch of a "button" by the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, will start the Third World War and that the "3-euro" coin will circulate in the market, are some of the information that have caused confusion as to whether such a thing can really happen.

This was said in today's training, where about 30 students together with their teachers from the "Ismail Dumoshi" vocational high school in Obiliq were informed about how to distinguish fake news from real ones, they were also informed about other issues related to media education.

The head of the "Pandeli Sotiri" school in Plemetin of Obiliq, Lavdina Hashani-Tërbunja, said that due to the circulation of fake news, some students did not attend classes because they were scared of being kidnapped.

In this regard, Hashani-Tërbunja considered that holding such trainings, where students from the communities are informed about what to believe from what they read in the media and social networks, is very necessary.

She added that this training will help the students of the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities to understand that not everything they read and hear in the media and social networks is true.

"This training by KosovaPress is very necessary for the communities in the divided parallel in Plemetin, because some of the children have looked on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook and have realized that many things that are posted on Instagram are fake. This training enables children to be as clear as possible, that not everything posted on Instagram is true. There is a lie in Plemetin, whose parents think that some minibuses have come out to steal their children. However, it is a lie, because they happened in Serbia, not in Kosovo. So, all the parents deal with these things, they say we will not bring our children to school, because there are cases where the children have been 'kidnapped'. No case of anyone being kidnapped by people with a minibus. They have read them on social networks, they are all lies on social networks", said Hashani-Tërbunja.

Also, the students of the non-majority community admit that they have fallen prey to fake news.

Florentin Kovaçi, a student in the 12th grade at the "Ismail Dumoshi" school from the Ashkali community, while talking about "deep fake", said that he saw a video of Prime Minister Albin Kurti speaking in Arabic.

In addition, he mentioned a fake news that circulated in recent days, where it was said that due to a physical fight between Blero and Gani, the live broadcast of Big Brother was stopped.

But, Kovaçi said that the training held today has helped him to have a critical opinion about what he reads in the media and social networks.

"Fake news in the media is that live broadcast of Big Brother was stopped, due to a clash between Blero and Gani. But then it was realized that it is fake news... I saw that Prime Minister Albin Kurti was broadcast in the media speaking in Arabic, but it is 'deep fake' and it is not true... Why do you think that these things happen? Because of their greater visibility and budget… What has this training helped you? To not trust the media too much, to see where to look for (the information) and it has helped us in the search for information... We need to research more to trust the media", said Kovaçi.

Albin Krasniqi, another student from the same community, said that he believed a news, that "with Putin touching a button, the Third World War will start".

Another case when he had believed a fake news, was that the "3 euro" coin would be introduced to the market.

"I have seen it in the media, in social networks there are two round coins of 3 euros, but it is fake... I have seen it in social networks, I have read a lot in the media that if Putin presses a button, World War starts. How much did you believe this? Pretty much, then I watched it again, it was a joke... I liked (the training) that we saw some advertisements, which are revealed to be fake", said Krasniqi.

Esmere Berisha, another student from the Ashkali community, says that there are news stories in the media where the title does not match the text. She shows an example where she clicked on a title that talked about body parts, but when the text was opened, a news item with political content appeared.

Berisha expressed her desire to become a journalist in the future, with the aim of making the audience aware of how not to fall prey to fake and "deep fake" news.

"A teacher told us to do research about the parts of the body and after two or three lines, then there as a text about the government... I realized that this is a fake media that does not match the text that was there and the data in the title. What did you like about the training? I really enjoyed the training we held. It was very good; I got a lot of information when we discussed about fake media... I want to become a journalist and show the public and other countries that it is not good to make fake news and that the news should be made correctly, because they can also affect human mental health", said Berisha.

The Professor of Computer Science, Fuad Hashani, emphasized the importance of this training, until he emphasized that it was necessary for students of the minority community to be informed about fake news, since according to him, their financial conditions prevent them from using smart devices.

He mentioned a case when he himself came across an article that confused him, as it was about a well-known actor who had suffered an accident, but who in fact was not famous.

"This training is important because the communities have a lack of media information that is offered during the promotion of different news. Because their financial conditions prevent them from using many smart phones, iPad, computers, and they do not have enough access. Their approach is lacking in the various media that operate through Kosovo... I think it was very necessary, because every training is beneficial, especially for the communities, because they have received ample information about the use and avoidance of fake information… Have you ever come across any fake news? Of course, they usually happen for financial gain. Actually, an information about an accident that happened to an actor, which was published on social networks. It was really like top news, but when opened the text, it was about an actor who was not famous, I did not know him and also the public, I believe", said Hashani.

The project "Media education against disinformation for non-majority communities in Kosovo" is supported by the United States Embassy in Prishtina. /Z. Zeneli/