Media Development

This 66- page report assesses the business challenges faced by the country’s local media outlets. The report is based on research conducted from April-August 2018, as well as data gathered during the three years that MDIF has been running its business capacity building initiative, the Myanmar Media Program (MMP). MDIF’s research identified 55 local media outlets operating in Myanmar’s seven ethnic states and seven regions that serve the information needs of particular geographic areas or ethnic nationalities. It found that local media establishment has surged since the political opening in 2011, with 38 of the 55 media launched over the past 7 years. The research confirmed that the largest number of local media outlets are located in Chin State, Shan State and Sagaing Region, and there is at least one media outlet in each of the country’s seven ethnic states. An interactive map produced by MDIF shows the locations and basic information about each of the 55 outlets. The existence of dozens of local media in Myanmar may suggest a healthy environment for these outlets, but the report identifies multiple internal and external obstacles that severely hamper their prospects for sustainability and continued existence. Most notable among them are uneven advertising market development, ...
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At a time when people have more information at their fingertips than ever, it feels as though it has become equally easy to share it widely or to ignore, discount, and discredit it. Several factors have contributed to this state of affairs. New technologies have given a platform to a wider range of voices, but this has also meant that unvetted information and politically motivated “fake news” find their way more easily into the bloodstream of public debate. Human nature also shapes how people consume and recall information, making them more likely to resist information that contradicts their existing beliefs and personal experiences. Nowhere has this been more apparent than in debates about hot-button issues such as immigration. Whether in the run-up to the 2016 UK referendum on Brexit, elections across Europe and North America, or responses to the 2015–16 European refugee and migration crisis, emotionally charged and anecdotal narratives about immigrants, refugees, and their effects on receiving communities often seemed to drown out arguments made on the basis of robust data and evidence. Yet policymaking in democratic societies relies on the engagement of an electorate able to access and think critically about new information, and to adjust their views ...
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The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the South East Asia Journalist Unions (SEAJU) launched the first ever IFJ Media Freedom Report for South East Asia. Underneath the Autocrats: A Report into Impunity, Journalist Safety and Working Conditions is the first major collaboration by IFJ and SEAJU in the region. The report, supported by UNESCO, is intended to be an annual advocacy tool that holds governments and media to account on efforts to protect journalists. The IFJ’s major research into South East Asia’s media canvassed the views of nearly 1000 journalists and media workers across the region in 2018 and included extensive research into legislative controls hampering independent journalism, as well as asking questions of governments, media owners and other key players on journalist safety and working conditions. Click here to find out more and download the report ...
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This paper seeks to determine the comparative opportunities and limitations of ‘new’ and ‘old’ data sources for early warning, crisis response, and violence research. The authors compare the information set produced through social media violence reporting with conventional violence reporting around the August and October 2017 Kenyan elections. Specifically, they leverage data from a sample of social media reports of violence through public posts to Twitter. These reports are compared with events coded from media and published sources coded by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) along three dimensions: (1) the geography of violence reporting; (2) the temporality of reporting; and (3) the targeting of reporting. Click here for full paper ...
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This briefing synthesises findings from research conducted in the three countries – Afghanistan, Nigeria and Somalia - with a focus on Afghanistan. Research findings suggested that BBC Media Action’s programming provided listeners with accurate, trusted and clear information against misinformation and harmful rumours, increased knowledge on the requirement of multiple doses of vaccines and vaccination schedules, prompted discussion and dialogue in communities, garnered trust and confidence among caregivers through the use of doctors and religious leaders and encouraged parents to vaccinate their children by dispelling misconceptions about vaccinations. Click here for full briefing ...
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This report presents some of the findings from a four-year global research project into the state of humanitarian journalism around the world. The authors asked: Which news organisations regularly report on humanitarian affairs? How are they funded, and what ethical problems or professional dilemmas does this create for journalists covering humanitarian affairs? When natural disasters and violent conflicts are reported, what kinds of journalistic coverage do they receive? Do news outlets differ from one another, and if so, how? How interested are news audiences in journalism about humanitarian affairs? How well does existing coverage serve their needs, and the needs of those involved in international aid? Which significant ‘gaps’ are there in news provision? What effects does news coverage have on public attitudes towards international aid? Their analysis of news coverage reveals that only a small handful of international news outlets regularly report on humanitarian affairs, and identified a number of important gaps in humanitarian news coverage. Almost no articles looked at the specific problems faced by women and girls in relation to the conflicts in Yemen and South Sudan in 2017, for example. Click here for the full report ...
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This publication presents the findings from an audience study carried out by International Media Support (IMS), its partner institution Fojo Media Institute and Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation (EMRef) in May 2018. The report provides indications of the media habits of the population of Myanmar as well as people’s understanding of news and information flows. The study found that there is a widespread preference towards local media as people feel that these media outlets provide them with information relevant to their local communities and daily lives. Television is a preferred medium for consuming news but social media, and Facebook, in particular, is catching up. A culture of sharing news and information ensures that even people without access to Facebook know of the platform and get updates through friends and family. People’s trust in media differs but with many preferring state-owned media to deliver trustworthy and reliable news and information. Some news consumers showcase a natural scepticism towards news and information, but limited access to reliable information makes it difficult for them to verify what they read, see or hear. Based on the findings, the report ends with 12 recommendations. Six are directed towards the Myanmar media industry, journalists and other content producers while the remaining six are targeted at media development organizations and learning institutions. IMS-Fojo hopes that these recommendations can serve as inspiration for ...
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Effective campaigns require careful planning and execution. And drawing on the experiences and knowledge of others can help overcome some common stumbling blocks and improve the chances of success. To this end, this booklet profiles eight public awareness campaigns conducted in African countries. It gives an overview of how the campaigns were designed and implemented, and outlines the lessons learned. The idea for the publication came from DW Akademie’s ongoing cooperation with national chapters of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), which advocates for freedom of expression and access to information in the SADC region. To strengthen its support of MISA’s advocacy work, DW Akademie turned to others campaigning on similar topics in Africa to learn from their experiences. DWA looked for campaigns with strong links to Africa – that is, either run by organizations or individuals in Africa, or targeting African countries. They also specifically sought insight from people working on campaigns that were diverse in the way they were created, organized and funded – from large organizations with considerable resources and formal structures to volunteer-led coalitions with limited funding. Click here for full publication ...
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With attacks on the media growing this report this report considers: How much money do the world’s official aid donors—the bilateral and multilateral funders like USAID and the World Bank—give to help independent and public-service-oriented media build free and open societies globally? Is financial support to media development increasing, falling, or holding steady? What kinds of approaches and issues are being favored by the governments, multilateral agencies, and private donors that provide assistance to media development? Which countries and regions receive the most support? The analysis presented in the report is meant to inform current debates on how international assistance can support an effective response to the new and evolving threats to freedom of the press. Click here for full report ...
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This event is about the journalists who report on humanitarian crises today. It launches a major new report from Martin Scott, Kate Wright and Mel Bunce, The State of Humanitarian Journalism, based on four years of research. This report shows which news outlets report on humanitarian issues, how they frame their stories, and what audiences think about this news. A panel of leading journalists and media commentators will discuss the findings and their own experiences reporting on humanitarian crises, including: Josephine Schmidt, Executive Editor at IRIN, the world’s oldest humanitarian newswire James Copnall, Newsday presenter, BBC World Service Tom Law, Director of Campaigns and Communications, The Ethical Journalism Network Stefanie Glinski, Freelance journalist and photographer, currently based in Afghanistan. This is followed by a screening of the celebrated documentary, ‘Another News Story’ about the journalists who reported on the 2015 ‘refugee crisis’ in Europe. Sign up for this event: https://www.city.ac.uk/events/2018/october/humanitarian-journalism-today ...
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Rashawn Thompson, broadcaster and journalist, discusses the lessons learnt by Jamaican broadcasters through recent Chikungunya virus outbreaks, and how this prepared them for Zika, as part of a wider discussion around media development. This event was held in July 2016 as part of C4D Network's 'Focus Sessions' series. Click here for full video (via YouTube) ...
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The yearly Global Media and Information Literarcy (MIL) Week, initiated in 2012, is led by UNESCO in cooperation with GAPMIL, UNAOC and the MUIL and Intercultural Dialogue (MILID) University Network. It unites diverse actors committed to promoting MIL as a way to foster social inclusion and intercultural dialogue. The seventh annual global celebration of Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Week is being prepared. The Week will be celebrated from 24 to 31 October 2018, under the theme "Media and Information Literate Cities: Voices, Powers, and Change Makers". Global MIL Week 2018 highlights will include the Eighth MILID Conference and the Youth Agenda Forum, planned to be held in Lithuania and Latvia, from 24 to 25 October 2018 and on 26 October 2018, respectively. Official website: https://en.unesco.org/globalmilweek2018 ...
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