From: The Drum Beat <drumbeat@comminit.com>
Date: 2009/10/2
Subject: The Drum Beat 512 - Media Development
The Drum Beat - Issue 512 - Media Development
October 5 2009
===
This issue includes:
* BUILDING JOURNALISTIC CAPACITY
* Submit your STORIES on how you have used The CI to support your work.
* STRENGTHENING MEDIA.
* Join fellow CI network members in our CI ASSOCIATES process!
* Journalists connecting with readers: YOUR VIEWS on promising means.
* MEDIA RULES AND TOOLS.
* MEDIA POLICY blog site.
===
From The Communication Initiative Network - where communication and media
are central to social and economic development.
Subscribe to The Drum Beat: http://www.comminit.com/en/user/register
Access this issue online at http://www.comminit.com/en/drum_beat_512.html
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CI Portal User Sessions, past 12 months: 3,030,625
===
From CI's Executive Director:
Effective media are vital to local, national, and international life. No
matter the context, independent analysis, information, and debate are vital
for effective states, communities, and regions.
But these are challenging times for media across both the economically rich
and economically challenged countries. The very nature of journalism is
challenged by citizen-based processes. New technologies - especially the
internet and mobile phones - diversify news sources, but raise questions
about the reliability of the information/knowledge shared.
Those questions rebound to be focused on the present major media ownership
models - private, public, state, and religious - how trustworthy are they?
And they face other challenges as the crumbling of their advertising and
subscription revenue streams threatens the very existence of some
long-established media.
In that context, it is vital to review both the emerging strategic thinking
and actual media initiatives that are seeking to reconcile the new media
environment with established effective media and journalism principles. What
can we learn from this thinking and experience? In particular, what can we
learn from so-called developing country media initiatives and strategic
thinking as they struggle for progress and sustainability in their contexts?
Below, in three sections - BUILDING JOURNALIST CAPACITY, STRENGTHENING
MEDIA, and MEDIA RULES AND TOOLS - you will find a collection of insights
and experiences from The CI network - from (so-called) developed and
developing countries - on these themes.
- Warren Feek
The selections below represent just a small sliver of the Media Development
materials available on The Communication Initiative website. Please visit,
in particular, our Media Development theme site -
http://www.comminit.com/en/mediadev.html - and consider subscribing to our
bi-monthly niche mailing, intended to complement the Drum Beat by updating
you on media and media development initiatives recently placed on our
website. To subscribe to the free "DB Click: Media Development", simply send
an email to mediadev@comminit.com requesting to "subscribe".
===
BUILDING JOURNALIST CAPACITY
1. Civic Education for Media Professionals: A Training Manual
by Fackson Banda
As part of its efforts to strengthen the capacities of media professionals
in developing countries through a series on journalism education, the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) published
this training manual in March 2009 to offer knowledge on the relationship
between media functions and active citizenship. The publication focuses on
the underlying nexus of democracy, development, and the media based on the
fundamental principles of democracy and human rights. It recommends
participatory, student-centred training techniques, and proposes a number of
exercises aimed at stimulating student reflection and pointers for
investigation designed to prod media interest in particular civic issues.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/299872/2754
2. Media and Agriculture: Linking Towns and Villages
This April 2009 article explores the need for accurate agriculture news
reporting in African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) countries, particularly
Africa, to bridge the information gap between the rural sector of developing
countries and their population centres. It discusses the Technical Centre
for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation ACP-EU (CTA) perspective of the
effects of lack of journalistic training in the field of agriculture
reporting and what the training needs might be. As indicated here, media
organisations tend to be based in capital cities and choose to talk with
officials rather than gather eyewitness stories on agriculture. Furthermore,
they are dependent, often due to budget constraints, on reworking official
stories and statistics rather than fact checking or gathering data.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/300420/2754
3. Impact of Soft Containment on Freedom of Journalism and Independence
of the Media in Jordan
This document describes results of a media survey conducted by ALQuds Center
for Political Studies in Jordan on the freedom and independence of the
media. The document summarises facts and figures on the media, discusses
censorship and harassment, gives general media-related indicators, and
defines "soft containment": actions by government staff members, as well as
political and economic activists, who aim to employ the media to serve
certain personal and sectoral purposes and objectives, or to influence the
press and the media so that they forgo their monitoring or "watchdog" role.
The study, conducted from October 2008 to February 2009, hypothesised that
"soft containment via tempting and attracting methods" was more a prevalent
and effective method of limiting media freedom than hard containment
methods, including methods of using laws and practices that overtly restrict
media freedom and can cause angry local and international responses.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/292377/2754
4. Periódico Intag - Ecuador
Periódico Intag is a community newspaper of the sub-region of Intag,
Imbaburra, Ecuador, which was established in 2000 as a bi-monthly newspaper.
The periodical provides a medium of communication for community-based
organisations and supports literacy and media development, publishing the
work of local writers and journalists and providing them with editorial and
computer training. As described by the editor, through its concentration on
news of Intag, the newspaper boosts local self-esteem by demonstrating that
what residents do is newsworthy. In addition, the paper serves as a point of
connection for sustainable development projects, an information repository,
and a watchdog at the intersection of development, funding, and natural
resource management.
Contact: periodico.intag@gmail.com
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/287444/2754
===
NEW! CI STORIES!
Through CI Stories, we are seeking stories of how members of The CI Network
have used The CI to support their work, connect with others in the network,
and/or highlight their work with demonstrated positive impact on their
organisation or work.
* Have you had discussions with colleagues based on information you found
through The CI?
* Have you found materials or contacts to support a new project through The
CI?
* Have you distributed CI information to your communities in order to help
inform them of what other communities are doing around similar issues?
View stories submitted by others here: http://www.comminit.com/en/cistories
Please tell us your story. Go to
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/add/cistories (NOTE: you must be a
registered, logged in user to submit a story).
===
STRENGTHENING MEDIA
5. Independent Voices: Radio's Role in Democracy and Development
According to the Center for International Media Assistance (CIMA), free
media play an integral role in fostering democracy and development and have
the ability to transform a number of critical areas, including government
accountability, empowerment of women and minorities, and education. Speakers
at this June 2009 CIMA event with "Developing Radio Partners" explored the
following questions: How does radio play a fundamental role in democracy and
development? How can civil society organisations tap into its potential more
effectively? In the advent of broadband, text messaging, and other new
information technologies, is radio still a relevant medium in which
stakeholders should invest?
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/303032/2754
6. The Chi-town Daily News: Creating a New Supply of Local News
by Matt Hampel
This December 2008 case study explores an all-local, nonprofit news website
that serves readers in the city of Chicago (Illinois, United States - US).
"Chi-Town Daily News" focuses on original reporting on local issues by both
professional and volunteer reporters. Since March 2007, the Daily News has
been actively recruiting and training residents as "volunteer grassroots
journalists", with the aim of having at least one from every Chicago
neighbourhood.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/290558/2754
7. Media and Development - Where's the Gap?
by John Davison
In this May 2009 blog, John Davison identifies what he sees as the gap in
the media development debate between what has actually been achieved in
practice and the academic debate on: accountability/good governance in
development and poverty eradication; the role in this effort of free,
pluralistic, and independent media; and the importance of local/indigenous
input. He seeks to answer the question "who should fill the gap?" Davison
states that consensus centres on the importance of the following:
"Accountability/Good Governance in efforts for international development and
poverty eradication"; "free, pluralistic and independent media in order to
achieve such levels of governance by holding developing country governments
to account"; and "local/indigenous input into the development of such a
media industry and culture".
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/292075/2754
8. Africa Media Initiative (AMI) - Africa
Launched in May 2008, AMI is a project designed to stimulate economic
development and improve governance by strengthening an independent,
pluralistic media across Africa. AMI is in part a response to the Report of
the Commission for Africa, which in 2005 highlighted the need for greater
attention, resources, and collaboration to strengthen Africa's media. The
current AMI process is the confluence of 2 large-scale consultative
processes involving key representatives of the African media: the African
Media Development Initiative (AMDI) and Strengthening African Media
(STREAM). Contact: Eric Chinje echinje@worldbank.org OR Fackson Banda
f.banda@ru.ac.za
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/270168/2754
9. Media in Cooperation and Transition (MICT) - Germany, Iraq, Sudan
MICT is a German media development organisation that implements projects in
the Middle East and Northern Africa. Through activities focusing on the
interplay between conflict, media coverage, and reconciliation in crisis
regions, MICT aims to foster the transformation of conflict towards
reconciliation and to encourage dialogue among conflicting factions within
society. From MICT's perspective, the key factor in conflict transition is
supporting media cooperation, media networking, media development, and
capacity building in the field of journalism.
Contact: Klaas Glenewinkel klaas@mict-international.org
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/301907/2754
10. Nonprofit Journalism: The Journey from Anomaly to a New Paradigm
by Jim Barnett
This article describes US-based journalism nonprofit businesses. Author Jim
Barnett suggests that in this period when new nonprofit newsrooms are
launched every month to do the work of investigative, enterprise, watchdog,
and explanatory journalism, the non-profit model merits scrutiny. What the
good nonprofits are doing, according to Barnett, "is to show readers how
journalism can connect friends, neighborhoods, communities and, ultimately,
a society....If they can reach that level, their readers'' donations take on
a whole new meaning. They become statements of personal values and nothing
less than affirmations of self."
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/301943/2754
11. Media Dialogues - Germany, Eastern Europe/Central Asia, Middle East
The Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (Institute for Foreign Cultural
Relations, or "IFA") is a German organisation that holds German-Arab media
dialogues; the initiative has also been extended to Turkey, Iran, and
countries in Central Asia. The purpose is to help develop balanced,
professional, and objective reporting in the media in a range of countries
abroad - thus supporting the German Foreign Office's commitment to
international crisis prevention, civil society strengthening, and human
rights protection. The in-person media dialogues that take place on a yearly
basis have covered issues such as stereotypes and prejudices, the social and
legal position of women, cultural globalisation, young people, political
participation, and tolerance and freedom of opinion.
Contact: Barbara Kuhnert kuhnert@ifa.de OR info@ifa.de
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/301913/2754
12. Supporting Public Service Broadcasting: Learning from Bosnia and
Herzegovina's Experience
by Alexandra Wilde and Elizabeth McCall
Though published in 2004, this paper highlights some of the key challenges
of broadcasting restructuring in trying to meet broader democratic
governance and poverty reduction objectives, and is informed by a case study
on broadcasting restructuring in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). As indicated
here, media, particularly public broadcast media, can play a role in
ensuring the public's right to receive a wide diversity of independent and
non-partisan information and ideas. It can also help to promote a sense of
national identity, foster democratic and other social values, provide
quality educational and informational programming, and serve the needs of
minority and other specialised interest groups.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/291887/2754
===
BECOME A CI ASSOCIATE
The CI Partners seek the engagement of your office as a CI Associate in
order to preserve, sustain, and advance this growing knowledge sharing and
strategic development process.
Please consider within your organisation the possibility of supporting The
CI's work through the CI Associates process. For details and to sign up,
please see http://www.comminit.com/en/ci_associates/ Also, please see Warren
Feek's note in The Drum Beat 501 -
http://www.comminit.com/drum_beat_501.html - Thank you.
===
Please VOTE in our MEDIA DEVELOPMENT Poll!
What are the best possibilities for journalist-readership connections? (you
may choose more than one; please add clarifying comments)
Connection:
* Readers should hold journalists to a high standard of transparency.
* Journalists should ascertain topical concerns of readers.
* Journalists should build support for public risk-taking in the name of
media freedom.
* Readers should hold editors, managers, and media owners accountable for
journalistic freedom.
VOTE and COMMENT: http://www.comminit.com/en/node/288047/2754
RESULTS thus far (October 2):
29%: Journalists should build support for public risk-taking in the name of
media freedom.
29%: Readers should hold journalists to a high standard of transparency.
27%: Readers should hold editors, managers, and media owners accountable for
journalistic freedom.
15%: Journalists should ascertain topical concerns of readers.
===
MEDIA RULES AND TOOLS
13. Citizen Media Law Project's Legal Guide
The Citizen Media Law Project (CMLP) makes available several interlinked
online resources for those seeking information on US-based media law based
on the conviction that "[k]nowing your legal rights and responsibilities is
important for anyone who publishes online. The CMLP's legal guide addresses
the legal issues you may encounter as you gather information and publish
your work. The guide is intended for use by citizen media creators with or
without formal legal training, as well as others with an interest in these
issues."
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/276566/2754
14. Media Cloud - United States and Global
Media Cloud is a system designed to enable understanding and analysis of the
way news is produced and distributed, and how the internet is fundamentally
altering this process. The web-based research tool automatically builds an
archive of news stories and blog posts, applies language processing, and
offers ways to analyse and visualise the data. While researchers at Berkman
Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University are using Media Cloud to
address a set of research questions, they designed the open-source project
with the broader purpose of providing a platform for open, collaborative
research by scholars around the world.
Contact: cyber@law.harvard.edu
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/299048/307
15. Covering Elections in Small States: Guidelines for Broadcasters
by Mary Raine
Prepared for the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association (CBA) Regional
Conference in the Pacific, February 2009, this handbook includes
journalistic guidelines for election coverage in the Pacific region. Among
the contents are: Preparing for an Election, Election Coverage, Reporting a
Campaign, The Right to Reply, Opinion Polls, Exit Polls, Reporting
Referenda, The Responsibilities of Authorities, and more.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/298404/2754
16. Good, But How Good? Monitoring and Evaluation of Media Assistance
Projects
by Andy Mosher
This June 2009 report examines the methodology for measuring the
effectiveness of media development programmes, tracing the increasing use of
monitoring and evaluation (M&E) among practitioners in the media assistance
community. While terminology and methods vary widely, all organisations in
this sector seem to agree that the M&E process must begin with the
formulation of a proper plan. M&E practitioners share a number of tools,
techniques, and approaches, such as marshalling of baseline data, use of
content analysis, balancing quantitative and qualitative data, and employing
outside evaluators.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/298991/2754
17. Reporting Research: Using Evidence for Effective Journalism
This 2008 media briefing from Panos London offers communicators and
journalists support and ideas on using research to create debates and inform
people of problems and possible solutions. Its premise is that research can
create powerful stories for news and features that have direct relevance for
their audiences. The document discusses who generally sets the development
research agenda and how this impacts and influences what is researched and
why developing country universities and research organisations often don't
have a voice in agenda setting or in what they research and how they
research development. The strategy of journalists talking to researchers in
person or by telephone, rather than using their research documents
exclusively, is recommended.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/283047/2754
===
COMMUNICATION, MEDIA, and DEVELOPMENT POLICY BLOGS
The Communication, Media, and Development Policy website is a space for
analysis, ideas, and debates on development policy issues from communication
and media perspectives. Please read the blogs of interest to you and
contribute your reactions and comments through "Post a Comment or Question".
http://www.comminit.com/en/development_policy
New Blog!
Little Green People, by Warren Feek
In considering the "people" side of development, Warren reflects on a recent
article on "Ending Africa's Hunger..." that reviews funding strategies based
on technical innovation and application and why they fail. He details what
he sees as the "Inverse Technology-Development Puzzle"...
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/303029/bbc
===
This issue of The Drum Beat was written by Julie Levy.
===
The Drum Beat is the email and web network of The Communication Initiative
Partnership - ANDI, BBC World Service Trust, Bernard van Leer Foundation,
Calandria, CFSC Consortium, CIDA, DFID, FAO, Fundación Nuevo Periodismo
Iberoamericano, Ford Foundation, Healthlink Worldwide, Inter-American
Development Bank, International Institute for Communication and Development,
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Communication
Programs, MISA, PAHO, The Panos Institute, The Rockefeller Foundation,
SAfAIDS, Sesame Workshop, Soul City, Swiss Agency for Development and
Cooperation, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNICEF, USAID, WHO, W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
Chair of the Partners Group: Garth Japhet, Founder, Soul City
garth@heartlines.org.za
Executive Director: Warren Feek wfeek@comminit.com
===
The Editor of The Drum Beat is Kier Olsen DeVries.
Please send material for The Drum Beat to The CI's Editorial Director -
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