"Employees working in television newsrooms are exposed to video footage of violent events on a daily basis. It is yet unknown whether they subsequently develop symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder as has been shown for other populations exposed to trauma through television. We conducted an inte
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rnet-based survey with 81 employees. Nearly 80% of the sample reported being familiar with recurring intrusive memories. However, the sample's overall posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms were low, although participants with a prior trauma, more general work stress, and a greater exposure to footage had a tendency to show more severe symptoms. Regarding general mental health, there were no differences compared with a journalistic control group. Results suggest that the population as such is not at a particular risk of developing mental problems." (Abstract)
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"Effects of work-related and personal exposure to potentially traumatic events on PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder), depression, compassion fatigue and burnout were examined in 503 Finnish news journalists (238 men, 265 women) by using a web-based survey. Stepwise linear multiple regression analy
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ses showed that two variables significantly predicted all four outcome factors, i.e. PTSD, depression, compassion fatigue and burnout: the variables were personal exposure to traumatic events, including reactions caused by the event and the magnitude of the worst crisis-related assignment experienced as a journalist. An interaction effect was also found: respondents with high scores on both traumatic experiences in their personal life and a high amount of professional crisis-related assignments had a significantly higher level of PTSD symptoms than others." (Abstract)
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"The vast majority of IFEX members say it is more difficult now than a year ago to find project funding. Half say it is more difficult now than five years ago to find project funding. The dominant source for project funding is foundations outside the country of the member. A majority of IFEX members
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also say it is more difficult now versus a year ago to raise core funding. Half say it is more difficult now versus five years ago. The dominant source for core funding is foundations outside the country of the member. Members say that half of their budgets comes from projects, and about a quarter comes from core funding. They say this is pretty much unchanged from five years ago. Open Society Institute dominates the list of funders for IFEX members - five years ago and now - with the National Endowment for Democracy figuring prominently as well. Almost all IFEX members say they face challenges in finding funding. About half say funders are requiring them to do things that they did not require five years ago. Members say that funding sources that had supported their work in the past were no longer supporting them. Five IFEX members have neither a full-time nor a part-time person for budget and finance. Twenty-two do not have anyone handling fundraising full-time." (Executive summary)
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"Der vorliegende Aufsatz berichtet erste deskriptive Befunde aus einer multinationalen Studie zum Vergleich von Journalismuskulturen. Im Rahmen des Projekts wurden insgesamt 1700 Journalisten in 17 Ländern zu ihren professionellen Orientierungen befragt. Im Vordergrund standen Fragen nach dem Verst
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ändnis der eigenen gesellschaftlichen Rolle, den erkenntnistheoretischen Grundlagen und ethischen Imperativen im Journalismus. Im Ländervergleich zeigt sich dabei, dass jene Rollenmodelle, die durch Distanz und Nichtinvolviertheit gekennzeichnet sind, durchaus zu den weltweit akzeptierten journalistischen Standards zählen. Darüber hinaus ist den Journalisten global relativ übereinstimmend die Verlässlichkeit und Faktizität von Informationen sowie das strikte Einhalten von Unparteilichkeit bzw. Neutralität sehr wichtig. Umstritten sind hingegen interventionistische Aspekte der Berufsausübung, wobei sich die größten Differenzen zwischen den entwickelten Staaten des Westens und Transformationsgesellschaften zeigen. Große Länderunterschiede lassen sich auch bezüglich der Rolle von Subjektivität sowie der Vermischung von Fakten und Meinung feststellen." (Abstract)
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"Even though Mexico is not at war, it has now become one of the most dangerous countries in the world to be a journalist, and especially a freelancer. Since the Trust first visited Mexico in 2005, 18 newsgatherers have been killed and five have disappeared, four newspaper offices were the targets of
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bomb attacks and many, many more newsgatherers were injured and threatened. However, a great number of editors may not be aware of the dangers their freelance reporters in the field are facing, and the necessary training or insurance schemes are not easily accessible. In 2007, with the support of the Open Society Institute, The Rory Peck Trust carried out the first ever investigation into the situation of freelancers in this dangerous climate. Through focus groups and an online questionnaire, the Trust reached more than 300 freelancers in 16 out of 32 federal states and this report presents the findings." (Back cover)
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"The following text examines the freedom of the press in Albania from the subjective perspective of journalists. It does not discuss individual cases, or provide statistics on violence against journalists, but it does reveal how journalists felt affected by different political actors and events duri
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ng the turbulent phases from 1991 to 1998 by means of a statistically representative opinion poll." (Page 1)
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"[...] The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of international media training on radio professionals in Indonesia. The study examined the effectiveness of training organizations in implementing training programs in Indonesia. Diffusion of innovation theory was used as a theoretical fr
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amework based on the premise that training has been one of the most common tools used to diffuse new ideas and knowledge other than the formal education setting. A mixed-methodology by combining focus group discussion and survey was used in order to understand the impact of training for Indonesian radio professionals. Finding suggested that most journalists and managers adopted training and diffused the new knowledge and skills to fellow professionals. Some of them continued to adopt while others stopped due to both internal and external challenges. Journalists said management was the main obstacle to for adoption; while managers blamed the market situation. In addition, other factors that occurred in training also played a role in adoption including participant selection, needs assessment, training materials, trainers and the structure of training." (Abstract)
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"The findings of the research reflect two overarching concerns: training content and training delivery. It is a central finding of the research that financial skills are required by the sector. Related to this is the need to encourage professional attitudes, processes, and systems within the sector.
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It is necessary to manage the business in a professional manner in order to gain the support of the community as well as advertisers. Such support contributes to the sustainability of the business. In terms of delivery, on-site training, mentorships and information exchange are emphasised because of the managers’ time and resource constraints. While accredited, theoretical training is perceived as important and worthwhile, participants emphasised the importance of experiential training. The research concludes with a detailed outline of a new qualification the SPI will be seeking to register which will enable it to make a contribution to the small independent community newspaper sector. The research has encountered one central obstacle. The sector is characterised by competition and lack of resources, thus managers are not able to leave their businesses for extended periods of time, and do not always answer telephone calls or emails that are not an immediate priority." (Executive summary, page 2-3)
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"The present study is a first attempt to look inside media organizations in Lebanon in order to understand what kind of business decisions are being made. This study analyzes employee diversity, as well as political affiliation or media owners [...] There was a clear reluctance among media owners to
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wards discussing their business practices [...] Most of Lebanon's seven private commercial television stations, which are comparatively very few considering the nearly 300 Arab television stations in operation, are among the most viewed stations in the region, due to their high production values and quality of programming. At the same time, these and other Lebanese media lag behind with respect to effectively managing human resources. Many lack written job descriptions, organizational policies, or regular performance appraisals, and they heavily rely on part-time staff and volunteers while not providing adequate financial incentives to their employees [...] Perhaps the most significant findings of the present study are those related to the financial aspects of Lebanese media organizations. Despite the sensitivity of discussing the profitability of these media, and considering that it is illegal, according to both the Press Law of 1962 and the Audio-Visual Law of 1994 for a broadcast or print organization to depend on sources of funding other than sales revenues and advertising, the answers given were quite candid and revealing. In Lebanon, financial support by the political elites who own these media is what has allowed most of the local media to survive. To ensure the sustainability of these outlets, long-term financial solutions and better marketing strategies must be adopted." (Preface, pages 7-8)
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"This study examines the psychological health of contractors working in war zones. Seventy-nine contractors completed an Internet-based psychiatric assessment. The sample was exclusively male with a mean age of 43 (SD = 7) years. The number of contractors whose scores exceeded the cutoff points for
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depression, psychological distress, and excessive weekly alcohol consumption were 15 (20%), 21 (28%), and 13 (17%), respectively. A third of contractors had posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) scores in the moderate to severe range. Approximately 10% of contractors had employer-organized access to psychological help following deployment. This study provides the first empirical data showing that a significant minority of contractors working in war zones are psychologically distressed and not receiving therapy." (Abstract)
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"This study claims to be one of the first attempts to explore the field of radio economics in rural Africa. Based on in-depth questionnaires filled in by 15 radio stations in Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Ghana and Mali, it found that the costs vary widely according to the type of ownership, i.e. public
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, commercial or community radio. The average start-up costs fluctuate between $50,000 and 100,000. The annual operating costs range between $20,000 to $540,000 for public broadcasters, $2,500 to $930,000 for commercial stations and $2,500 to $286,000 for community stations. The costs of programming are largely dependant on the level of interactivity of the programme format, the accessibility of additional resources to produce specialised programmes, and the type of station producing the programme. The study found that community stations tended to invest more resources in interactive programming with community involvement and less on in-studio formats. The sale of airtime is important revenue for most stations. There is no shortage of investment for starting up radio stations (in particular community radios), but the common challenge remains the sustainability beyond the initial investment." (CAMECO Update 1-2009)
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"Journalists frequently report on disasters. There is a growing evidence that they are subsequently at higher risk of post-traumatic and depressive symptoms. We conducted an internet-based study with 61 journalists who had covered the tsunami disaster in December 2004 from the affected region. The e
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xtent of trauma exposure, symptoms and social variables were assessed. About 8 months after the event, indications of post-traumatic stress disorder were found in 6.6 per cent of the sample. Post-traumatic and depressive symptoms were related to the extent of traumatic exposure and to several social variables, most importantly, a low degree of social acknowledgment by supervisor and colleagues." (Abstract)
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"Wie arbeiten Journalisten in einem Land wie Afghanistan? Wie sah und vor allem wie sieht die Medienlandschaft und die Pressefreiheit in dem vom Krieg geschundenen Land am Hindukusch aus? Die vorliegende Arbeit liefert Antworten zu diesen bisher von der Forschung komplett vernachlässigten Fragen. D
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ie Autorin bietet eine erste Bestandsaufnahme des Journalismus in Afghanistan und verbindet aufschlussreich zeitgeschichtliche Hintergründe und den aktuellen Transformationsprozess des Mediensystems. Mit dem analysierenden Teil und der aufwändigen empirischen Untersuchung versteht sich diese Studie als ein Basiswerk in der Journalismus- und Medienforschung in Afghanistan." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
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"From 1995 to 2005, the international community provided significant support to media in the Western Balkans. Based on a meta-analysis of 37 project reports and interviews with a broad range of media experts, this study finds that direct support to independent media was a key factor in helping the c
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itizens of several Balkan countries to rid themselves of authoritarian regimes. At the same time, the publication states that often journalism training - the greatest share of media support - has had few lasting effects. Support for legislative and regulatory reform has been efficient and effective, but the new media legislation has not been sufficiently well implemented. The overall conclusion (page 36): 'Media assistance in the Balkans proved itself an effective way to promote democracy by removing barriers to the enjoyment of fundamental rights to information and expression as protected by international law, and without intervening in political choices themselves. When media support was perceived as being primarily driven by political objectives, it was in danger of being like the problem it sought to alleviate and obscuring the concept of independent media." (CAMECO Update 1-2008)
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