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Police officers clean the snow from the sidewalk in Macedonia's capital Skopje, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2001. Exchanging their machine guns for snow shovels, Macedonia's police is doing battle with a new enemy: the bitterest winter the country has seen in decades.(AP Photo/Maja Zlatevska)

Antiwar

by Christopher Deliso
December 25, 2001

During the past year of conflict in Macedonia, few media sources have been willing or able to counter the avalanche of misinformation coming from the Western mass media. While Antiwar.com has been perhaps the West's most dogged critic during 2001, the year's unexpected hero comes, not surprisingly, from Macedonia itself Reality Macedonia. In my opinion, Reality Macedonia should be named the Balkan website of the year. It sprang up as a reaction to the war in Macedonia, led by a handful of young journalists committed to reporting on the stories that the mainstream media didn't want to touch, and to refuting the well-oiled spin campaigns of NATO and Washington. For the past year, Reality Macedonia has been the place to turn to for those who want to find out what is really going on in this embattled Balkan state. Publishing original research and telling photographs, along with editorials and news stories, Reality Macedonia has become a consistently reliable source of information for the ongoing crisis in Macedonia a source which often reveals details overlooked by the mass media.

Yet for all this, it seems that Reality Macedonia will soon be no more, due to a loss of funding. If the website is forced to shut down by early next year (as has been announced), it will constitute a great loss to the alternative media community. Reality Macedonia's closure would mean not only the loss of eye-opening news stories and "inside" information, it would also mean the end of a dynamic, idealistic organization that has been actively involved in trying to improve the lives of ordinary Macedonians displaced by the war. Things like movie nights for refugee children and blanket drives may not seem like a big deal, but these hands-on gestures confirm that the website's good works are not limited to news reporting.

It is still possible to save Reality Macedonia. Whether you enjoy reading the insightful news reports that appear on the site, or support their charitable works in the Macedonian community, donating now will make the difference for Reality Macedonia. It is doing a great service to the alternative media, and the world's spotlight on Macedonia will be much dimmer without it. Antiwar.com readers have already shown, through their generosity, their commitment to supporting alternative media. Now we ask that their generosity please be extended to Reality Macedonia, since Antiwar.com's coverage of the Macedonian crisis has been so greatly enriched by the reporting of this little site and with your help, Reality Macedonia will come to be known as "the little website that could."

For more information about Reality Macedonia and how you can help, write to reality@mol.com.mk.