Caught Up in Politics: East European Media and Plurality of News

Caught Up in Politics: East European Media and Plurality of News

The Media Sustainability Index 2012 for Europe & Eurasia
Presentation of Findings

Monday, April 30, 2012, 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
National Press Club, Holeman Lounge
529 14th Street, NW, 13th Floor Washington, DC

Featuring

Leon Morse, managing editor of the Media Sustainability Index

With introductory remarks by Larry Garber, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Policy, Planning and Learning Bureau, USAID

And comments from Myroslava Gongadze and Arsen Kharatyan of Voice of America

Over the past two years, West European media conglomerates that made investments in Eastern Europe have sold some of these assets, which in turn have been bought by local tycoons. Often owing their wealth to political connections, these new media owners changed relatively neutral editorial policies to favor political factions. Elsewhere in Eastern Europe, on-going political control over the media has stifled the flow of information during crucial elections and stymied investigative reporting or news coverage critical of governments in power.

IREX’s 2012 Media Sustainability Index for Europe & Eurasia studies the media sector in 21 countries of the region, measuring the media sector’s performance in professional journalism, plurality of news, freedom of speech, business management, and supporting institutions. The Index provides both scores based on the opinions of professionals from each country and in-depth textual analysis based upon discussions with the study participants. In its 11th year, the Index gives longitudinal depth to studies of the media in transitional countries in Europe & Eurasia, plus studies for the Middle East (since 2005) and Africa (since 2007).

Leon Morse, managing editor of the Media Sustainability Index, will give a brief overview of the 2012 findings, and discuss trends such as politicization of media in Europe & Eurasia and the impact this is having on the media sector’s role as the Fourth Estate. He will also discuss the impact the Index has in countries included in the study.

Introductions will be made by Larry Garber, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Policy, Planning and Learning Bureau, USAID. Comments will also be provided by Myroslava Gongadze and Arsen Kharatyan from Voice of America, who will provide their perspectives on the state of the media in their own countries.

Please join the discussion on Twitter by using the hashtag #MSIEE.

RSVP (acceptances only) with name and affiliation by Friday, April 27 to MSI@irex.org