Social and online media monitoring was the topic of the training of the CEC Administration by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network Albania, BIRN Albania.
Addressing the importance of media monitoring during electoral campaigns, the overview of online platforms used for campaigning in Albania, the possibilities of identifying financial expenditures made by electoral entities on social networks, as well as the role of monitors in this process, enabled the Administration to become familiar with further technical, legal, rights and obligations aspects that are intertwined in the monitoring process.
The training addressed several aspects of the campaign on social and online media:
- Social Media Algorithm and Trends;
- Identifying Electoral Disinformation and Misinformation;
- Monitoring Political Advertisements and Campaign Messages;
- Detecting Hate Speech and Online Harassment;
Also, some of the best practices of other countries in election monitoring were presented and the role of third parties in the election campaign was discussed.
Attention was also paid to ethics and the protection of personal data in media monitoring.
In the framework of monitoring the election campaign for the Assembly elections to be held on May 11, 2025, the CEC is seriously engaged in the creation of a Special Structure that aims to improve the monitoring process and supervision of the election campaign based on international recommendations and best practices.
Currently, this initiative continues to be in the consultation phase with civil society and stakeholders involved in the election process.
