Boka News from Tivat, Media for All beneficiary, has been one of the most successful media when it comes to Engaged Citizens Reporting (ECR) tool active usage. Guided and mentored by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN), and using the ECR tool, Boka News managed to produce 8 engaging articles with solutions for local problems stemming directly from local audience.
Prior to creation of each article, media published a callout to which on average 200 citizens responded providing their insights and useful information. The callouts and articles produced reached 22,748 people via web and 200.823 people reached on social media networks.
“Usage of the ECR tool enabled us to cover topics relevant for the local community, such as devastation of architectural and cultural heritage, environmental protection, legal problems over the ownership of coastal property (beaches and piers), strategy for cruising tourism development and land restitution of Tivat Airport,” explained Miro Marušić, owner and editor of Boka News adding that “the competent authorities responded to almost all the issues the media outlet covered and expressed interest in solving the problems.”
As result of this activity, the number of web users increased from 66,049 in November 2020 to 95,058 users in August 2021. The trend of growth was evident on social media as well gaining more than 2,500 new followers on Facebook. Currently, Boka News is undergoing the process of the new website development. After initial needs assessment, design and mockup solutions have been developed and approved by the team, the new website is supposed to be live by the mid-November.
Boka News is one of the most widely read portals in Boka Bay. It was founded in 2014 and is led by experienced journalists. The portal, aside of regular informative reports, engages in investigative journalism, covering current topics on pandemic, cultural heritage, tourism, and environment.
