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Week #06<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The campaign ended with scenes that had almost nothing in common. Independent media and opposition and pro-student feeds covered the student marches and the rally in Slavija, while only pro-government outlets covered the rallies held by the \u201cAleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107 \u2013 United Serbia\u201d list. At the same time, attacks that had previously targeted only the opposition widened to include the media, election observers and civil society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
SHARE Foundation\u2019s sixth week of monitoring the online information space during the election campaign covered 19\u201325 October, including election day. We collected 31,162 articles from 25 online media outlets. We analysed 157,581 posts from TikTok, Instagram and X, collected by the morning of 26 October and shown by the platforms\u2019 algorithms in the feeds of ten simulated users. Based on their political leanings and the content they receive, we group these users and their feeds into four categories: pro-government, opposition, pro-student and undecided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In online media, the week was split between two campaigns. Pro-government outlets covered rallies by the \u201cAleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107 \u2013 United Serbia\u201d list in \u010ca\u010dak, Ni\u0161 and New Belgrade, while independent outlets covered student marches and the Students\u2019 List closing rally in Slavija on 22 October. The targets of attacks widened to include N1, the European Parliament\u2019s observation mission and civil society, alongside the opposition and students. The authorities sent two messages at once: that they alone could guarantee stability, and that the elections would be peaceful and fair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On social media, Slavija shot up the list of the week\u2019s most frequent words, and the call to attend the rally spread across every feed except the pro-government ones. In pro-government feeds, Slavija was mentioned mainly to dispute the size of the crowd. Anonymous accounts dropped out of the top ten most visible accounts in pro-government Instagram feeds, but that was not because they had stopped posting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nine cases involving digital rights and freedoms were recorded, ranging from spyware on the phone of the Rector of the University of Belgrade to rape and death threats against journalists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n