International Media Conference in Morocco Promotes Free and Professional Media

A producer from the Aljazeera Arabic news satellite channel debates with a young Afghan journalist about reporting in conflict environments. A reporter from Bulgaria elicited strong reactions from an al Arabiya editor regarding Arab media coverage of Bulgarian nurses on trial in Libya. Journalists from Georgia and Ukraine exchanged ideas on the coverage of elections following the recent revolutions in both countries.

The International Media Development Conference 2005, organized by IREX with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), brought together 130 media professionals, donors, and media development representatives from more than 40 countries. The group met to discuss common issues facing journalists and media outlets across the globe as they report in environments of conflict, repression and democratic transition.

The event opened as Mr. Abdelmouneim Dilami, President of the Moroccan Publishers Association and publisher of L’Économiste newspaper, noted that the mere presence of so many people committed to freedom of speech and a free press served to protect and encourage Moroccan media professionals.

Over the course of two days, international panels explored various issues surrounding the coverage of social topics, politics, economics and business, as well as conflict reporting. With nearly 50 journalists representing countries as diverse as Liberia, Haiti, Somalia, Indonesia, Russia, and Croatia, participants were sometimes surprised to find they shared similar challenges in practicing free and professional journalism and could share potential solutions.

In the concluding panel, three speakers addressed the viability of an international community of journalists. Daoud Kuttab of Ammannet and Al-Quds TV set out a strategy for media development in the Middle East/North Africa region. Kuttab noted that while satellite television has been successful in breaking social taboos in the Middle East, pride prompted local stations to play “catch up” by focusing on international rather than local news. Petko Georgiev noted based on his experience training media professionals in Bulgaria that “TV should be a myth-buster, but it can also be a myth-creator.” The concluding discussion turned also on the fundamental question of whether journalists should be “missionaries” promoting issues or objective reporters reporting on events and issues to the public.

While no specific consensus was reached on the make-up of the global community of journalists, the conference ended with participants understanding how new perspectives offered by their colleagues could be incorporated into their own media environments. Through the professional contacts created at the conference, the journalists, donors and implementers will be better able to practice and promote independent and professional media on a global scale. These results will be captured in a final conference report and a 30 minute documentary featuring in-depth interviews of many conference participants.