"Sustainable journalism addresses two intertwined challenges of our time: * The sustainability crisis of society, e.g. environmental crises, democratic crises, poverty, financial crises, armed conflicts, etc. Obviously, journalism has a crucial role to play here since it contributes greatly to the p
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ublic agenda, as well as people’s understanding – and hence the handling – of such challenges. * The sustainability crisis of journalism itself, which stems from lower advertising, decreasing subsidies for public service media, falling consumption, lack of trust in media among citizens, and fierce competition from online information brokers and advertising. The complex reality of today requires this kind of integrated journalistic approach in order to uphold the democratic function and not least the legitimacy of professional journalism. Consequently, journalism’s response to the sustainability challenges can be seen as a prerequisite for the future sustainability of journalism itself, ranging from high-quality, in-depth coverage to robust business models, but also extending into considerations of media systems and relations with governments and business interests. In this way, sustainable journalism attempts to counter the obvious risk that the efforts to maintain economic sustainability of the journalistic enterprise take place at the expense of professional journalism’s social/democratic mission – to hold power to account and to inform citizens, and to spur public engagement about current and future economic, social, and environmental challenges." (Executive summary)
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"Journalists alone cannot save journalism, and civil society activists and human rights defenders alone cannot defend civil space. This is why multi-stakeholder coalitions, as well as regional and international networks, constitute an essential pathway to identify and deliver solutions to the comple
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x challenges confronting both media systems and civil society. Coalitions can provide opportunities for media and civil society to work in a more strategic and coordinated manner on relevant issues, and to build the political will needed to sustain progress." (Page 3)
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"The report is written from a media perspective and focuses on regional media initiatives and challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa. Seven focus areas that are instrumental for the future of quality journalism have been investigated: Professionalism – capacity to demand accountability; Gender and media
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; Financial sustainability and media diversity; Access to information; Safety of journalists; Social media, disinformation and online harassment; Media self-regulation and ethics. In the second part of the study, focus is set on what donors should consider when reviewing how regional media initiatives and processes can contribute to democracy and accountability. This second part can be seen as connecting local and national media stakeholders with regional initiatives in Sub-Saharan Africa as well as to the ongoing global dialogue on the need for increased media development, manifested at the international meeting organised by CIMA and Sida in Paris in March 2019. The report lists seven recommendations on entry points: 1. Step up regional media support; 2. Focus on integrated, comprehensive regional approaches; 3. Stimulate regional coalition building; 4. Support regional innovative initiatives that demand accountability; 5. Prioritise regional support that promotes financial sustainability for the media; 6. Strengthen regional support for institution building, supporting self-regulation and ethics; 7. Fund regional processes that are anchored in national and local initiatives aiming at building trust and giving voice to the excluded." (Executive summary)
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"During a two days workshop at AMDISS Media Development Institute (MDI), 31 journalists, editors and managers from 21 South Sudanese media houses and media organisations from seven States met to define the long term training needs within the South Sudanese media sector. The Fojo training needs asses
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sment method used at the workshop is based on local ownership, providing the South Sudanese media with a possibility to formulate their proper needs in depth, regardless of the agendas and priorities of donors and other national and international actors. Despite that the nation of South Sudan has existed for only one year, there is already a fatigue among South Sudanese journalists towards what they call “brief case trainings” – international trainers that fly in, produce a two-day workshop, and fly out. This has so far been standard procedure, providing a multitude of short, similar trainings with no progression in time. The South Sudanese journalists argue that the best way to build a sustainable and professional media sector is by providing coordinated, long-term training opportunities, based on their own needs and with the objective of building professional national capacity – not only for journalists, editors and media managers, but also for trainers and teachers." (Summary, page 4)
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