site.btaDisinformation, European Parliament's Work Highlight Day Two of Young Journalists' Training
Disinformation campaigns and the work of the European Parliament were among the main topics on day two of a training session for young journalists organized by the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) and the European Parliament's Office in Bulgaria. The journalists met with MEP Kristian Vigenin, Parvan Simeonov of the Myara polling agency, Assoc. Prof. Ralitsa Kovacheva of the Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communications of Sofia University and bTV Media Group correspondent Desislava Mincheva.
Ten young journalists are participating in the training, which began at BTA on Monday.The programme will run until October 29.
Bulgaria's Socialist MEP Kristian Vigenin, who is a member of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, briefed participants on the work of the European Parliament and the role of his political group. He said he sought to make developments in Strasbourg more accessible to Bulgarian citizens and to show how European, national and regional policies are interlinked. "We are lucky to live in a Union that prioritizes human rights, whether on environmental issues, personal data or food safety. Perhaps we sometimes go too far with regulations, but we must protect people," he said.
Speaking about his current work, the MEP pointed to his activity in the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, where he focuses on simplifying legislation and reducing the administrative burden on small and medium-sized enterprises. He warned against large legislative packages that amend several regulations at once, arguing that they complicate parliamentary work and blur policy boundaries, for instance, the environment and the economy.
In his talk, Parvan Simeonov outlined Bulgarians' and Europeans' attitudes and expectations towards the European Union. "Politics is not about following public opinion, sometimes it goes against it, because public opinion does not always reflect the public interest," the sociologist said.
Ralitsa Kovacheva discussed disinformation campaigns related to the EU. She led a practical exercise in which the young journalists were asked to verify the accuracy of political claims concerning the EU. "One of the main problems with how the EU is portrayed in the Bulgarian media is that it is mostly represented by buildings," Kovacheva said. "One of the most important ways for the media to reach the audience's heart is by finding a human face or a story behind an issue. People cannot be expected to engage with something that has always seemed abstract, distant and irrelevant to their lives."
Desislava Mincheva led an exercise on how journalists can communicate stories about Europe in an easy to understand way. She gave a practical demonstration of how journalists should approach and handle press releases.
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