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INTERNATIONAL JOURNALISM: AFTER A YEAR OF ARRESTS AND ATTACKS, WHO WOULD DO IT?
Early-career journalists and journalism professors in Macedonia,
Burma and Turkey on the hostile environment facing those breaking
into the industry
While the Charlie Hebdo attack was an extreme case, journalists around
the world face dangers every day
Ekrem Dumanli, editor-in-chief of Zaman newspapers, was surrounded
by a sea of supporters when he was arrested in December. Photograph:
Isa Simsek / Zaman Handout/EPA
Sally Brammall
Tuesday 13 January 2015 10.32 GMT
In Istanbul 23-year-old media studies student Kaja* is disillusioned
and no wonder. Journalists made the headlines in 2014, whether the
targeted attacks byIslamic State (Isis) or the lengthy prison sentences
dealt out to al-Jazeera journalists in Cairo.
Trainee journalists worldwide face low wages, unreasonably stretched
job descriptions and self-censorship pressures, while tutors at
local journalism schools are forced to double as campaigners for
press rights. Early-career journalists and journalism professors in
Macedonia, Burma and Turkey talk about what it's like to break into
the industry in their country.
Macedonia
Yugoslavia's break-up in 1990 left Macedonia saturated with
multilingual media outlets - a disordered collection of TV, radio
and print media working in a mixture of Macedonian, Albanian, Turkish
and Serbian languages.
A reporting qualification is not essential to get into the industry,
but Professor Zaneta Trajkoska, director of the School of Journalism
and Public Relations in Skopje, says that the course attracts only
those most "serious" about journalism.
Macedonia is 123rd in the Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) 2014 Press
Freedom Index, in a four-year consecutive spiral down the rankings.
The controversial house detention of journalistTomislav Kezarovski
is one factor, while the volume of government-sponsored advertising
has sparked concerns that the media is too reliant on the state for
its survival. Penalties for journalists and publishers who fall foul
of Macedonia's punitive defamation laws can be heavy.
For third-year journalism student Marija*, the "ugly truth" about
breaking into the Macedonian media is that it is impossible without
taking a political side: "Print, online media, TV and radio - they
all present only one view of the story. Macedonian journalism needs
real reporting that does not hide the economic and political side of
the country."
Trajkoska says local media activists have coined the closed access
to official sources of information "the ice effect". "We are still
fighting with the public authorities for the free flow of information,"
she says.
She is keen to introduce ideas about entrepreneurship into the
curriculum, believing that fostering this kind of freelance resilience
is in the national interest.
"It will create more media pluralism and diverse news information
coming from independent sources of information," she says, "which is
so needed in Macedonia."
Burma
Myint Kyaw, journalism trainer and general secretary of the Myanmar
Journalist Network (MJN) used to disseminate daily news on Facebook
under Burma's former military regime but since April 2013, private
daily newspapers have been permitted to publish.
Three journalist unions, including MJN, link and support Burma's
estimated 5,000 professional journalists. Newsroom expansions have
created many new job opportunities, but training is also needed.
Kyaw, 51, was lucky to have trained overseas. "A lot of journalists
here do not have a degree. Some publications give on-the-job training
for two weeks, one month, or at most three months - but the smaller
ones cannot."
She tutors at the internationally backed Myanmar Institute of
Journalism (MIJ), which offers part-time diplomas to journalists with
at least two years' professional experience.
Reporter Aung Khin Oo, 26, studies on MIJ's Monday-Saturday morning
course. "Many journalists are eager to attend the MIJ but their editor
or employer would not allow it," he says. "I am very lucky to be here."
A diploma will help him financially, as many employers use a lack of
formal training to justify a monthly wage lower than the average $150.
Burma jumped up six places to 145th on the last RSF Press Freedom
Index, suggesting that conditions for Burmese journalists are
improving, but risks remain. Oo is sceptical that the government has
significantly relinquished press controls, saying that recent jailings
of journalists prove it is a "trick".
He says: "The value of a journalist is like a window; if the window
is closed, the room will be completely dark."
Turkey
When the Turkish government's plans to develop Istanbul's leafy Taksim
Gezi Park were met with thousands of angry protesters in 2013, Kaja
chose not to go on the main newspapers' websites.
"I knew that the only reliable source was Facebook. I trust my
friends more than journalists who have trained for 10 years or more,"
she laughs.
Kaja was right to be suspicious. While demonstrators in Istanbul
were sprayed with tear gas, CNN Turk screened a wildlife documentary
about penguins. Columnist Yavus Baydar was fired from Turkish daily
Sabar after voicing reader objections to its pro-government stance
during #OccupyGezi.
Kaja studies at Istanbul Bilgi University, described by journalism
professor Asli Tunc as a "haven" of free speech; Bilgi's independence
means it cannot be blacklisted and its tutors are regarded as more
outspoken.
At 154th, Turkey occupies the lowest position on the RSF index; it
is among the worst offenders globally for its number of imprisoned
journalists and nationalist newspapers thrive. Article 301, a vague
and controversial law, cracks down on those who insult "the Turkish
nation" while journalists or media outlets suspected of links to
the US exiled Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, a friend turned foe of
Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, face ongoing hostility.
Two dozen journalists, as well as the editor of opposition paper Zaman,
were arrested in raids last December.
Kaja's family is part Kurdish and Armenian, both marginalised groups
in Turkey. "I want to write about the Kurdish genocide," she says.
"Much of my grandmother's family were lost, but I am aware
of censorship. Writing against the government, about Ataturk, the
Armenian genocide, on religion, sexuality for young people... You
could get into big trouble."
"It's very hard to be an investigative journalist here," says Tunc.
"There are some independent news platforms but everything is opinion
media. News journalism is expensive. There are no ethics, no rules,
no codes; students decide they cannot compromise themselves that much."
*Names have been changed to protect students
http://www.theguardian.com/media-network/2015/jan/13/international-journalism-after-a-year-of-arrests-and-attacks-who-would-do-it
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Early-career journalists and journalism professors in Macedonia,
Burma and Turkey on the hostile environment facing those breaking
into the industry
While the Charlie Hebdo attack was an extreme case, journalists around
the world face dangers every day
Ekrem Dumanli, editor-in-chief of Zaman newspapers, was surrounded
by a sea of supporters when he was arrested in December. Photograph:
Isa Simsek / Zaman Handout/EPA
Sally Brammall
Tuesday 13 January 2015 10.32 GMT
In Istanbul 23-year-old media studies student Kaja* is disillusioned
and no wonder. Journalists made the headlines in 2014, whether the
targeted attacks byIslamic State (Isis) or the lengthy prison sentences
dealt out to al-Jazeera journalists in Cairo.
Trainee journalists worldwide face low wages, unreasonably stretched
job descriptions and self-censorship pressures, while tutors at
local journalism schools are forced to double as campaigners for
press rights. Early-career journalists and journalism professors in
Macedonia, Burma and Turkey talk about what it's like to break into
the industry in their country.
Macedonia
Yugoslavia's break-up in 1990 left Macedonia saturated with
multilingual media outlets - a disordered collection of TV, radio
and print media working in a mixture of Macedonian, Albanian, Turkish
and Serbian languages.
A reporting qualification is not essential to get into the industry,
but Professor Zaneta Trajkoska, director of the School of Journalism
and Public Relations in Skopje, says that the course attracts only
those most "serious" about journalism.
Macedonia is 123rd in the Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) 2014 Press
Freedom Index, in a four-year consecutive spiral down the rankings.
The controversial house detention of journalistTomislav Kezarovski
is one factor, while the volume of government-sponsored advertising
has sparked concerns that the media is too reliant on the state for
its survival. Penalties for journalists and publishers who fall foul
of Macedonia's punitive defamation laws can be heavy.
For third-year journalism student Marija*, the "ugly truth" about
breaking into the Macedonian media is that it is impossible without
taking a political side: "Print, online media, TV and radio - they
all present only one view of the story. Macedonian journalism needs
real reporting that does not hide the economic and political side of
the country."
Trajkoska says local media activists have coined the closed access
to official sources of information "the ice effect". "We are still
fighting with the public authorities for the free flow of information,"
she says.
She is keen to introduce ideas about entrepreneurship into the
curriculum, believing that fostering this kind of freelance resilience
is in the national interest.
"It will create more media pluralism and diverse news information
coming from independent sources of information," she says, "which is
so needed in Macedonia."
Burma
Myint Kyaw, journalism trainer and general secretary of the Myanmar
Journalist Network (MJN) used to disseminate daily news on Facebook
under Burma's former military regime but since April 2013, private
daily newspapers have been permitted to publish.
Three journalist unions, including MJN, link and support Burma's
estimated 5,000 professional journalists. Newsroom expansions have
created many new job opportunities, but training is also needed.
Kyaw, 51, was lucky to have trained overseas. "A lot of journalists
here do not have a degree. Some publications give on-the-job training
for two weeks, one month, or at most three months - but the smaller
ones cannot."
She tutors at the internationally backed Myanmar Institute of
Journalism (MIJ), which offers part-time diplomas to journalists with
at least two years' professional experience.
Reporter Aung Khin Oo, 26, studies on MIJ's Monday-Saturday morning
course. "Many journalists are eager to attend the MIJ but their editor
or employer would not allow it," he says. "I am very lucky to be here."
A diploma will help him financially, as many employers use a lack of
formal training to justify a monthly wage lower than the average $150.
Burma jumped up six places to 145th on the last RSF Press Freedom
Index, suggesting that conditions for Burmese journalists are
improving, but risks remain. Oo is sceptical that the government has
significantly relinquished press controls, saying that recent jailings
of journalists prove it is a "trick".
He says: "The value of a journalist is like a window; if the window
is closed, the room will be completely dark."
Turkey
When the Turkish government's plans to develop Istanbul's leafy Taksim
Gezi Park were met with thousands of angry protesters in 2013, Kaja
chose not to go on the main newspapers' websites.
"I knew that the only reliable source was Facebook. I trust my
friends more than journalists who have trained for 10 years or more,"
she laughs.
Kaja was right to be suspicious. While demonstrators in Istanbul
were sprayed with tear gas, CNN Turk screened a wildlife documentary
about penguins. Columnist Yavus Baydar was fired from Turkish daily
Sabar after voicing reader objections to its pro-government stance
during #OccupyGezi.
Kaja studies at Istanbul Bilgi University, described by journalism
professor Asli Tunc as a "haven" of free speech; Bilgi's independence
means it cannot be blacklisted and its tutors are regarded as more
outspoken.
At 154th, Turkey occupies the lowest position on the RSF index; it
is among the worst offenders globally for its number of imprisoned
journalists and nationalist newspapers thrive. Article 301, a vague
and controversial law, cracks down on those who insult "the Turkish
nation" while journalists or media outlets suspected of links to
the US exiled Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, a friend turned foe of
Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, face ongoing hostility.
Two dozen journalists, as well as the editor of opposition paper Zaman,
were arrested in raids last December.
Kaja's family is part Kurdish and Armenian, both marginalised groups
in Turkey. "I want to write about the Kurdish genocide," she says.
"Much of my grandmother's family were lost, but I am aware
of censorship. Writing against the government, about Ataturk, the
Armenian genocide, on religion, sexuality for young people... You
could get into big trouble."
"It's very hard to be an investigative journalist here," says Tunc.
"There are some independent news platforms but everything is opinion
media. News journalism is expensive. There are no ethics, no rules,
no codes; students decide they cannot compromise themselves that much."
*Names have been changed to protect students
http://www.theguardian.com/media-network/2015/jan/13/international-journalism-after-a-year-of-arrests-and-attacks-who-would-do-it
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress