"The article recaps the main findings of the investigations presented in this special issue and seeks to answer the question “What can Northern journalism educators do to improve safety during fieldwork in the Global South?” The article builds mainly on qualitative interviews with former journal
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ism students who have done journalism fieldwork in dangerous situations as part of journalism education in Norway. It concludes by recommending the building of networks of mutual aid across countries and continents to research journalism safety and enlist the help of educators around the world in the training of journalism students." (Abstract)
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"The development of free, independent, and sustainable news media in Africa is bedevilled by the “brown envelope syndrome,” the widespread practice of accepting money for news coverage. This paper reveals the pernicious effects the brown envelope syndrome has on African journalism and its abilit
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y to function as a sustainable, democratic tool for nation-building. To curtail the brown envelope, a model to develop an institutional infrastructure for professional journalism is proposed. The model provides a collaborative framework for media and non-media actors (i.e. government, non-government organisations, and foundations) to strengthen the professionalism of journalism work through: higher education programmes that teach professional values and reveal damaging practices, professional associations that define and advocate journalism values that inform practices, and professional news management that incentivises and rewards best practices." (Abstract)
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"In 2016, television broadcasts were watched by 80 percent of the population, Slovak citizens did watch more programmes in their non-mother tongue than in other EU countries." (https://medialandscapes.org)
"This article examines the dynamic evolution of China's ideology work through the prism of journalism education. Official sensitivity about both student activism and the media makes journalism education a critical sector for observing how the Party attempts to instil ideology. The article interrogat
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es the process of negotiation of official ideology among authorities, educators and students at elite journalism schools. It demonstrates that alongside state-sanctioned media commercialization and globalization, official influence still looms large in journalism training. Ideological teachings continue to occupy a core place in the curricula, and the authorities deploy a mix of structural oversight, ad hoc surveillance and coercion to keep the educators in check. The effects of the official ideology work, however, are ambivalent, as educators and students engage in the active reinterpretation of the Party's media principles. While these practices do not directly undermine the Party's legitimacy, they demonstrate that official ideology has merely constructed what Yurchak terms a “hegemony of form,” highlighting a degree of vulnerability in China's mode of adaptive authoritarianism." (Abstract)
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"Political parties do not exist in Iran. In this situation the media, particularly the newspapers, have assumed a central role in the political life of the country." (Publisher description)
"The safety of journalists is not only about physical wellbeing. Safety extends to protection against impending psychological injury resulting from exposure to violence, conflict, disaster and tragedy. Both psychological safety and physical safety are inextricably linked. Research shows that people
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who experience psychological trauma may have impaired decision-making processes and take more physical risks than nontrauma affected persons. Further studies show that people who are educated about ‘emotional (trauma) literacy’ are able to change their behaviour and understand the emotional experience of others better. Therefore, education about trauma awareness in times of climate change disasters focuses on the safety of the journalist and also contributes to media professionals understanding the experience of sources better, resulting in more accurate and ethical journalism." (Abstract)
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"While a few much-needed improvements can be reported for the 2017 Europe & Eurasia Media Sustainability Index (MSI), overall there are signs of continued and worsening challenges facing those who wish to create and support a vibrant information system in the 21 countries studied in this volume [...
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] Apart from Belarus, there is not much in the way of positive news in this year’s MSI. Taken together, only nine objective scores, scattered among six countries, showed any meaningful improvement: Romania, Serbia, and Ukraine experienced improvement in two objective scores while Bulgaria, Kosovo, and Uzbekistan each had one objective show improvement. Belarus was the only country whose overall score improved by a tenth of a point or more. Five other countries showed only marginal overall improvement." (Executive summary)
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"This report, produced by a participatory research process that took over a year, provides a comprehensive assessment of the environment for media sector’s development in Sri Lanka. It is based on UNESCO’s Media Development Indicator (MDI) framework, which looks at the diferent factors which sho
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uld contribute to media development, including the legal framework, economic conditions, human resource development, the technological environment and safety, as well as the actual state of media development in the country." (Back cover)
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"Myanmar should sign and ratify international treaties which pertain to freedom of expression, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the (first) Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Convention on the Elimina
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tion of all Forms of Racial Discrimination. The 2008 Constitution should be amended to strengthen guarantees of freedom of expression (i.e. Article 354) and the right to information. These guarantees should not allow ordinary laws to restrict these rights but should, instead, impose clear conditions on any laws which restrict these rights. Only a judiciary that acts independently can properly interpret laws which restrict freedom of expression in the public interest. The government should promote the independence of the judiciary and address reported corruption issues within it. The government should promote wider public participation in legal reform processes and more proactively communicate on the legal reforms pertaining to freedom of expression by creating wider opportunities for interactions with the public." (Key recommendations, page xxvi)
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"An academic revolution in higher education during the past half century has been marked by transformations unprecedented in scope and diversity. Simultaneously, the significant changes in the ‘mediascape’ of southern and eastern Africa over the past two decades have replaced total state control
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with a degree of liberalization, while the digital revolution has changed the access to, and the content of, media programming. The article argues that the production of postgraduate scholars, particularly at the doctoral level, is a useful indicator of the way in which capacity building in higher education – specifically, higher education for media and journalism studies – is being undertaken. This desk research article synthesizes the trends in media and academia under six headings: 1. structure and regulation; 2. end users – audiences, readers and viewers and students; 3. content delivery – programmes and curricula; 4. human resources; 5. digital technology and new media; and 6. financial sustainability." (Abstract)
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"The media landscape in Nicaragua has suffered substantial setbacks in recent years since President Daniel Ortega assumed power in 2007. With his government having taken hold, the number of independent media has shrunk, access to public information has become scarce, and a new governmental communica
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tions strategy drives political messaging and funding through a mix of public and private media. These outlets are controlled by members of Ortega’s family and the ruling political party, Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional (Sandinista National Liberation Front, or FSLN). As an example of the climate of secrecy and opaque governance that Nicaraguans experience today, President Ortega has not participated in a press conference since he retook power. Authorities prevent independent reporters from participating in many of the official events held in public institutions. Business associates close to President Ortega bought key television stations (among them Channels 2 and 8), and now their news programs are overseen directly by Ortega’s family, according to independent news reports. Ortega’s family also holds interests in Channel 13, Viva Nicaragua. Completing this near-monopoly of television stations are Channel 4 (Multinoticias) and the state-owned Channel 6. FSLN also controls dozens of radio stations in the country and several online news portals. It follows that independent media operate in what can be called at best a semi-permissive environment: one that does not foster its sustainability." (Introduction)
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"The KAS Task Force on Journalism Education in South East Europe has conducted a survey among journalism undergraduates and graduates in five countries – a first-time initiative in the region. Their response can be seen as a testimonial of a media sector in turmoil. In the Western Balkans and othe
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r countries in South East Europe, such as Romania, the general challenges for media outlets precipitated by the internet revolution are compounded by specific deficiencies of the media landscape. In many cases, media outlets in South East Europe operate at a loss. National media markets are too small to accommodate the relatively high number of media outlets. Citizens are largely reluctant to pay for a high standard of journalism – one of the reasons why employment conditions are volatile and often unattractive. Fewer journalists are expected to deliver a greater news output in the cross-media era. Moreover, media are often owned by business moguls with inclinations to use media ownership as an instrument for gaining political influence for whom journalist entrepreneurship is not a primary concern. Despite these daunting challenges in the broader environment, many still consider journalism a dream job. On the other hand, the study shows that half of media students envisage working in other fields following graduation." (Foreword)
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"This first-ever comprehensive assessment of the media landscape in Mongolia was undertaken in 2013-2014 to determine the level of media development in the country. The assessment was carried out by UNESCO, in partnership with a network of organizations, including the Globe International Center, the
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Press Institute, the Confederation of Mongolian Journalists, and the NGO Transparency Fund. The UNESCO/IPDC Media Development Indicators (MDIs), which were used in the assessment, are an internationally recognized analytical tool that make possible a detailed overview of national media landscapes and related media development priorities. This assessment places special emphasis on issues affecting freedom of expression and press freedom; how current state legislation impacts on the media and how it can be amended to provide more space for self-regulation within the media; legislation regarding defamation; restrictions on the daily activities of media outlets; transparency in media ownership; standards of journalism, professional training and research; and labour relations and working rights affecting journalists in their daily activities." (Executive summary)
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"En Ecuador escasean tanto los análisis de los medios de comunicación privados, públicos o comunitarios, como del consumo mediático o de la formación periodística. Los pocos datos disponibles han impedido que se puedan realizar estudios complejos y exhaustivos. El presente informe se centra en
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Ecuador y pretende profundizar modestamente en la percepción y comprensión del panorama mediático de este país latinoamericano, a fin de facilitar el entendimiento de la situación actual y permitir ajustar las actividades, los proyectos y los procesos a las necesidades reales de este ámbito." (Prólogo)
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"The three countries that this year experienced a decrease in overall score—Belarus, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan—were ones last year that had showed small but unexpected increases. Last year’s Executive Summary indicated that such increases were unlikely to be part of a larger upward trend; pan
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elists’ scores this year for all three ended up placing the three more or less where they stood in 2014. A similar phenomenon occurred this year with Tajikistan. Panelists there gave scores that increase the overall score in the country by 0.18 despite the fact that many serious threats to the media sector exist, including government pressure and harassment of critical voices, concentration of media control, poor quality reporting, and difficulty for independent media in raising revenue. Except for Objective 3, Plurality of News, all objectives received higher scores. Reading the chapter text, however, one does not get the impression that much positive is happening to improve the ability of Tajik media to serve as the Fourth Estate." (Executive summary)
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