Impact: Citizen Voice in Media

Citizen Voice Stories

A banner of the Internews Liberia project.

Voter Turnout Increased Through Debates, Media Coverage in Liberia

A forthcoming study provides evidence for the long-standing assumption that active participation in democratic elections increases when voters have increased access to high-quality candidate information. In Liberia, Harvard University researchers conducted research alongside Internews’ year-long effort to train media agencies and journalists to report on the 2017 elections and to run 126 public debates in every single district in Liberia – a first for the country. As a result of citizen exposure to the debates, the research found statistically significant increases in citizens’ political engagement, knowledge about candidates in the election, and ultimately turnout on Election Day, across the nation. Higher intensity of the debate initiative, through more radio rebroadcasting and higher candidate participation, caused a 2% increase in actual voter turnout. It additionally led citizens to change their vote choices towards candidates who better matched their policy priorities. Descriptively, 13% of survey respondents stated that the debates changed who they would vote for, and 6% stated they changed whether to vote at all. Internews ensured that women had an equal voice during the debates' question time. Credit: InternewsThe study by Harvard researchers Jeremy Bowles and Horacio Larreguy used a wide range of data sources, including a panel survey of over 4,000 citizens across the entire country, a survey of 600 candidates, and debate transcripts. Internews conducted 20 focus groups with more than 250 citizens and candidates. The researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial, varying components of the debates initiative, to provide rigorous evidence regarding its overall impact. Nationwide debates and lasting impact The world watched to see if the post-war nation of Liberia could achieve a peaceful transition in power for the first time in decades in the October 2017 contests to elect the President and House of Representatives. In the run-up, Internews trained local journalists and media houses to set up and conduct structured, moderated debates focusing on local community issues in each of Liberia’s 73 legislative districts. 584 legislative candidates attended the two-to-three-hour debates in front of their constituents in every district, reaching more than 23,000 citizens in person. The debates were broadcast live by media partners and then rebroadcast up to 10 times each, adding up to more than 500 re-broadcasts. A Community Radio Conference prepared journalists for reporting on the elections. Credit: InternewsAs many as 25% of the nation’s eligible voters, roughly 500,000 people, listened to these debates, according to the forthcoming study. Read more about the nation-wide debates. Beyond the impact of the debates on the 2017 electorate, the lasting impacts of the work include increased capacity of Liberian journalists to report accurately on elections process and increase government accountability. Liberian media, both urban and rural, now have the capacity to moderate and broadcast candidate debates that are fair, impartial, balanced and contribute to peaceful elections. Further, because the debates were issue-oriented, elected candidates now have a public record of promises and positions, to which local media and local electorates can hold them accountable. Citizens also reported more confidence in peaceful elections, after seeing the candidates appearing in person alongside their opponents, moderated peacefully in front of their constituents. Reporters from rural areas, which are often underserved in national elections and debate that focus on urban power centers, had a newly amplified voice in the election and news coverage. Members of Liberia’s rural network of journalists, Local Voices Liberia, saw their election-day coverage picked up by national and international media. “Before, our stories were only heard on our community radio station,’’ said Tenneh Kamara, a reporter at Radio Gee in Rivergee. ‘Now, people on the world wide web know what’s happening in our rural communities. This is a big advancement for journalism in Liberia.’’ “Internews is really building our capacity,’’ said Franklin Flomo, a reporter at Radio Life in Zorzor, Lofa County. “We are engaged with citizens, and our coverage has expanded.’’ • • • Internews’ work was conducted with support from USAID and in partnership with the Press Union of Liberia (PUL), Liberia Media Development Initiative (LMDI) and the Center for Media Studies and Peace Building (CEMESP), as well as in collaboration with 43 community radio stations.

A group of people smile and clap and wave their hands

“I can eat Tilapia again!”

With local elections recently completed and national elections approaching in April of 2019, political issues are a hot topic in Indonesia and rumors are flying. Disinformation and misinformation have become a serious problem. Indonesia’s population is among the top five users of Facebook and Twitter globally and, during the 2017 election period, political groups used hundreds of fake and anonymous accounts to churn up religious, ethnic, geographic and political divisions. Since early this year, Internews has been partnering with AJI and the Google News Initiative to improve the quality of news and information reaching citizens in Indonesia and to combat misinformation and “fake news,” especially leading up to the elections. Journalists participate in a workshop in Jakarta, Indonesia that provided training in using tools from the internet to verify information. Credit: Internews“From (this) January to March, there has been an increase of up to 300 percent of hoax information spread in the community, compared to 2016,” said Dian Lestari, Chairperson of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) chapter in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, during a hoax-busting and digital workshop for students and the general public. This rise, gathered from information from the West Kalimantan Police Cyber Crime Unit, is predicted to continue to increase during the period before Election Day. Reinardho Sinaga, the Secretary of AJI Pontianak and a Google-certified trainer, added, “All information or news should be verified first to determine if it is potentially a hoax or not. It is necessary to identify the content and the source.” Debunking misinformation Through the Google News Initiative project, journalists learn how to conduct online verification, find original content, debunk disinformation and misinformation, and protect their data. They also learn how to better communicate with their communities, delivering accurate, high-quality reporting and building trust. For example, an image of an invitation to an event where the Governor of Jakarta was supposedly going to announce his bid for the presidency was circulating through social media. It caused a stir because the invitation appeared to come from the Islamic Student Association Alumni Corp, which has declared itself nonpolitical (in 2017, hoaxes were used to stoke religious animosity). The image was debunked as a hoax by Edmiraldo Siregar, one of the Google News Initiative trainers who works for Liputan6.com, a participant in Cekfakta, a collaborative fact-checking and verification platform launched by Internews and its partners. Ika Ningtyas is a regional coordinator for AJI and a young journalist from East Java province who works freelance for several media outlets, including Tempo, an Indonesian news portal. She participated in the Training of Trainers hoax-busting workshop conducted in February 2018 and soon after began helping Tempo with their participation in Cekfakta. “I become involved when Tempo needed advanced verification using online tools. These tools are very useful, because not all hoax information can be solved by conventional verification,” says Ika. Most of the workshops are conducted in Bahasa Indonesia and led by local journalists. Credit Google News InitiativeIn Pontianak, another trainer from the Google News Initiative Training Network, Reinardho “Edho” Sinaga, trained a group of people in his town how to check and verify misinformation and disinformation. A participant asked if they could verify some information that she believed was true. She had heard that her favorite dish, the fish tilapia, was dangerous to eat because it causes cancer in humans. She had not eaten tilapia for the two years since she heard that rumor. Using tools provided by the Google News Initiative Training Network, Edho found that the story was false. As soon as the training was over, the participant went straight to the nearest restaurant to find tilapia. She sent a message to Edho, saying, “I can eat tilapia again!” Although this is a comical example, the effects of disinformation are no laughing matter. Disinformation in the health and humanitarian sectors can have serious consequences. Likewise, Indonesia has a long history of lynching and mob justice, and disinformation can have deadly consequences on social cohesion, as disruptors look to tear at the heart of the country’s rich social and cultural fabric. Local Sustainability and Collaboration To increase its effectiveness and reach, the project aims to train local journalists in all parts of Indonesia. To that end, the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) will train 750 journalists and more than 1,000 bloggers, students, and researchers through the end of 2018. “I’ve never attended a workshop like this,” said a participant at a training in Denpasar, Bali. “For me it is a very crucial issue that should be discussing broadly, especially when we are consuming a lot of information from the Internet and social media. At least now I know what kind of information should be re-shared to my friends and minimize spreading hoaxes.” In May, Masyarakat Anti-Fitnah Indonesia (Mafindo), the Association of Indonesia Cyber Media (AMSI), the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), Internews, and Google News Initiative organized the Trusted Media Summit. At the summit, 22 respected national and local media outlets, in collaboration with Mafindo, launched CekFakta.com (or “FactCheck.com” in English), publicly committing to raise journalistic standards by not propagating misinformation. All hoaxes and rumors circulating in the public are reported and entered into the Cekfakta database and go through a verification process, the results of which can be accessed by participating media. “For the first time, the mainstream Indonesian cyber media collaborates,” said Wenseslaus Manggut, Chairman of the Indonesian Cyber Media Association. “We put aside competition for bigger things.” Restoring and maintaining public trust and confidence in media is a goal that we all share. Since the launch of the first Training of Trainers in Jakarta on January 27, 2018, the Google News Initiative Training Network has grown into a vast network of 50 trainers and 1,431 trainees in just seven months. The trainers were trained in two TOT events, and the trainees have participated in 42 Google News Initiative trainings and Google News Initiative half-day workshops across Indonesia Internews is also partnering with Google News Initiative in India to provide high-level training to 8000 journalists across English and six other Indian languages that include Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Marathi and Kannada to fight against misinformation and fake news. (Banner photo: Participants of the Trusted Media Summit chant their commitment to fighting misinformation in Indonesia. Credit: Google News Initiative)

A group of people sit around tables in a room behind a glass wall that says, "Mexico.com"

Independence, and Support, Needed for Mexico’s Media

Earlier this year, I visited Mexico to get a better sense of the vast importance of independent media in the country. At a critical juncture, the media faces pressure and constraints from all sides. Security risks to journalists are all too real, which has the practical impact of suppressing investigative journalism. Financial constraints make it further difficult for journalists to build their technical and reporting skills. Recently our team had the opportunity to interview Mael Vallejo, a young journalist emblematic of the potential for journalism in the country, but also the risks and dangers. With luck and support, his vision could be the future of journalism in Mexico. From Internews’ decades of experience nurturing journalists just like Mael, I’m optimistic that change can come. ‘Something truly different’ After every single person he worked with at a prominent magazine was fired and the digital footprint of the story they had produced together was erased, Mael Vallejo started rethinking his career as a journalist. The magazine was Esquire Mexico, a subsidiary of the well-known American men’s lifestyle magazine owned by Mexican media giant Televisa. The story, published in June 2014, was a groundbreaking investigation of what police had labeled a shootout with gang members in the small town of Tlatlaya. In a major scoop that rocked the Mexican media and political worlds, the story found – and Mexico’s Human Rights Commission later confirmed – that there was no shootout. Mexican soldiers had gunned down 22 teenagers and young people, at least 12 execution-style. The explosive story shattered the facade of a competent campaign against drugs fostered by then-Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto and catapulted Vallejo into the public consciousness – and out of a job. Televisa, dependent for its survival on a vast stream of advertising revenue from the highest levels of the Mexican government, distanced itself quickly from the story and the team of reporters and editors who brought it to light. The journalists had run directly into one of the biggest obstacles to quality journalism in Mexico: much of the media is so addicted to government advertising that it is co-opted by the institutions it covers. “Esquire was very successful, and working there had been a very smooth existence,” Vallejo said. “We had a lot of money to work with, but the problem was that it was not truly independent media. After what happened at Tlatlaya, well, that was the first time I thought, if I had an actual independent media outlet, one not dependent on the government, I could do something truly different.” That is exactly what Vallejo is trying to do right now. As editorial director of fledgling online media site, Mexico.com, the 33-year-old dynamo is trying the seemingly impossible in Mexico. In rented WeWork offices on the 36th floor of a high rise overlooking Mexico’s famous Angel of Independence monument and the hope it represents, Vallejo has ambitions of making money and producing great journalism at the same time. It won’t be easy. How to survive and stay independent Much is reported around the world about the dangers faced by Mexican journalists, as violent drug cartels have taken hold of Mexican life and have consistently targeted reporters. And those threats are perilously real. Forty-five journalists have been killed in Mexico for doing their jobs since 1992, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. But Mexico is a vast country. Violence towards journalists by drug traffickers and gangs have been concentrated along the U.S.-Mexico border and in the rural states where narcotics are grown and transported. In Mexico City, where the country’s farthest-reaching media companies are based, the most serious threats to quality journalism are financial. Working feverishly at computers crammed tightly together, Vallejo, 24 other journalists and four other staffers are trying to beat the odds. Their gambit is to balance hard-edged, investigative journalism designed to gain them readership with softer, lifestyle stories, which they hope will pay the bills. They are aiming to launch the website in September. On June 4 they launched a preliminary beta version. To get off the ground, Mexico.com secured major financial backing from some Mexican and Spanish entrepreneurs, and are seeking advertising from Mexico’s fashion, video game and restaurant industries. In contrast to traditional media companies in Mexico, who underpay their reporters leading some to turn to taking money from the institutions they cover, Vallejo is committed to paying his staff well. Vallejo says they will seek voluntary donations from readers and also offer some paid content. And in a calculated risk, given Vallejo’s aversion to government alliances, they plan to solicit advertising from Mexico’s federal and state tourism ministries. “Our goal is to avoid the pitfalls of Mexican censorship,” Vallejo said. “The challenge is implementing a business model that works. We know how to do journalism. We have really good reporters. The problem is how to make this financially stable, how to stay independent and at the same time earn money.” “For me, it’s important that young journalists start to take risks; that they graduate from universities and think not only about working for the big legacy media, but also about starting new media outlets. If what we are trying to do can be transmitted to other young journalists, that will be great.” “I don’t know if we are going to succeed,” Vallejo said. “But at least we have tried.”

A Student Exchange Takes Journalism beyond Borders

It was on a sweltering day on the U.S.-Mexico border, about an hour south of the manicured campus of the University of Arizona, that the three journalism students on an exchange program from Tunisia finally felt they had taught their American counterparts something. There they were, oceans and continents away from their North African home, set down for a week with so much to learn about even the basics of their chosen craft. Recording on a smartphone? Lighting? Ambient noise? Drones? For days they had been taking it all in - how modern journalistic techniques could help them spread truth back home - where a fragile democracy and press freedoms had taken hold only seven years ago. At times, they recalled, despite the kindness of their hosts, they felt they hardly knew anything. But staring at the high, imposing fence separating striving migrants from the country of their dreams, the Tunisian journalists knew just what to do. Thrusting their recorders in the spaces between the vertical slats of the barrier, calling out in broken English and a bit of Spanish one of them knew, they did what reporters, even from countries without fancy equipment and advanced training, are born for. They asked questions. They were unafraid. They asked some more. “We are accustomed in Tunisia to the idea that some people might want to shut down our voices, so I guess we feel we have to keep asking questions every chance we get,” said Manal Issa, at 23 the youngest student on the exchange program. “That scene at the border, it was quite sad. People want to come across so badly, some lose their lives. It is so hard. I just wanted to know what the people in Mexico think about the U.S. and about that border.” Journalism professor Mike McKisson led a drone-reporting workshop for the students. Photos by Seyf M'RabetThat sense of inquiry is what made the eight-day visit such a success. They made the most of their whirlwind eight days in the Arizona heat. They filled notebooks and audio files with information, learned to operate video cameras, visited newspapers and radio stations and class after class on reporting. They asked questions. They were unafraid. They asked some more. “The heart of the matter, they get right to it,” said April Lanuza, a graduate student in journalism and Latin American studies at the University of Arizona who spent days guiding the Tunisian students around. “It’s been an eye-opening experience for me in terms of what we have here, the resources ... Here I work with huge, sophisticated cameras, professional equipment. They don’t have access to that. They need to learn to use what they have. They are full of questions. They are eager. They are curious. And they are picking up everything fast.” The exchange included visits of professional media outlets, including the studios of Arizona Public Media. Photo by Seyf M'RabetIn Tunisia, it must seem like the world is spinning particularly fast these days. It was only in 2011 that Tunisian protesters threw off generations of autocracy, toppled a dictator and sparked the Arab Spring. Since then Tunisia has managed to mostly escape the kind of violent after-shocks seen in Libya, Egypt and Yemen, countries that followed it in toppling long-standing leaders. Its young democracy wrote a new constitution, forged a compromise between secular and Islamist parties and, despite sporadic terrorist attacks and a faltering economy, has held free elections and spawned a flourishing press culture. Journalists in Tunisia are by no means free of repression – they can still be prosecuted under pre-revolution legislation, or under new anti-terrorism laws – but they are largely free to debate political and social issues. Developing into reporters in that new world are Issa, an English student and budding radio journalist, along with her colleagues on the exchange, freelance photojournalist Seyf M’Rabet, and Basheer Aldhorai, a Yemeni student getting a masters degree in Tunisia in journalism. Student Manal Issa, left, on a visit to the department of Native American Student Affairs (NASA APASA) at the University. Photo by Seyf M'RabetFrom their rooms at the Sahara Hotel, ironically named for the desert that crosses their country, the three students set off each day of their visit to explore a place so different and at the same time so similar to their home. They shared with their hosts fears about the future of journalism, threats to press freedom, the difficulties of seeking out information from their governments. On a Facebook group established months before the exchange they posted photos, video and commentary of their experiences. They visited the newsroom of the Arizona Daily Star, went to a college basketball game, even interviewed students at a campus cafe. Even now, from home, the group is active with new posts. “This is the real meaning of exchange,” M’Rabet said. “To share cultures and to see how the world is really so small. Back in Tunisia we need to develop our profession using that we have learned here. This exchange has already changed my life completely. It has made me see how to open my own world.” At a farewell dinner at the end of their visit, the students gathered with their American counterparts in the apartment of a professor at the university. Over a meal of traditional Tunisian couscous, “We talked, we ate, we danced, we talked about the challenges in our countries and about their futures,” said Saoussen Ben Cheikh, Project Manager for Internews, who accompanied the Tunisian students. “We brought into that apartment the stereotype that American people have of us and we changed it. We were just like any other students, cooking together, listening to music. Breaking barriers. Making this crazy world more peaceful, less ignorant. That’s what this project is all about.” . . . Supported by the Public Affairs Section of the US Embassy in Tunisia, Internews’ Al-Jisr exchange project aims to improve understanding of the role of journalism in a democracy among Tunisian and American students. A special thanks to the Journalism School at the University of Arizona in Tucson for their enthusiasm for and engagement with this project. (Banner photo: Hall at the University of Arizona. Credit Seyf M'Rabet)

Two men and a woman sit at a table working on laptop computers while another woman stands behind them.

Taking a Positive Step for Digital Rights in Nigeria

A conversation more than four years ago sparked an idea: In Nigeria, rather than fighting against government actions one-by-one that restrict or erode free speech and online privacy, what if advocates could convince the government to enact a law protecting these rights? Today, thanks to the relentless efforts and ingenuity of a local, grassroots organization, Nigeria’s Digital Rights and Freedom Bill has passed through both the House and Senate, and is poised to become law with the President’s signature. “What we wanted to do with the bill was to give something that was proactive, something that answered all the questions,” said ‘Gbenga Sesan, Executive Director of Paradigm Initiative, a social enterprise and Internews partner that advocates for digital rights in Nigeria and West Africa. “As governments are increasingly restricting free speech and access to information online, it is crucial for activists, human rights defenders and internet freedom advocates to work with their governments on positive solutions to protect human rights online,” said Babette Ngene, Director of Internews’ Internet Policy Programs. “Paradigm Initiative is a shining example that sustained advocacy work can lead to concrete and positive policy change.” With an Internet penetration rate of 46%, Nigeria has the largest number of Internet users in Africa, and the seventh largest in the world. Paradigm Initiative’s hope is that the legislation can be a model for the region. A computer lab in Nigeria. Credit: Christopher Congdon/Flickr/CC“The interesting thing is now, any of the excuses that the government wants to come up with, in terms of data privacy, in terms of hate speech, in terms of anything, has been answered in that bill,” said Sesan. How an idea becomes law: long-term advocacy and support The seeds of the bill were planted at a training Internews convened with digital rights advocates from across the continent. “The training that we did with [Internews staff] in Nigeria in December 2013 was very useful. It situated digital rights for us as an important part of the entire ICT policy conversation,” said Sesan. Prior to the training, much of Paradigm Initiative’s advocacy had been against policies and actions by the government that were an infringement on citizens’ rights. During this training, which included lawmakers, the business community, and civil society, Paradigm Initiative was consistently challenged to identify what protections they would want. That challenge led Paradigm Initiative to draft the Internet Freedom Declaration for Nigeria. Ultimately, working with local civil society organizations and stakeholders, and ultimately turning the Declaration into a draft law. Through targeted advocacy, Paradigm Initiative was able to identify a House sponsor for the bill, which passed through the House in January 2018 and then the Senate in March. The bill “provides for the protection of human rights online, to protect Internet users in Nigeria from infringement of their fundamental freedoms and to guarantee application of human rights for users of digital platforms and/or digital media.” ‘We believe in your work’ Internews’ internet freedom policy team focus on establishing trusted partnerships with local organizations around the world and funding flexible, local, digital rights initiatives based on the expertise of those partners. Country by country, organization by organization, Internews has spent more than a decade supporting the growth of grassroots internet freedom advocacy initiatives, and helping local advocates and organizations build networks and connections within the global internet freedom community, and inform international debate. Beyond convening the digital rights training that served as the impetus for Paradigm Initiative’s legal approach, Paradigm Initiative also credits Internews with providing the first international recognition of their cause. “The first validation we got from outside of Nigeria was from Internews, saying ‘we believe in your work … We were doing something that was new on the continent, that wasn’t popular. People were asking questions like, ‘Why are you not focusing on HIV/AIDS or like other kinds of problems?’ But we knew that [digital rights] was a matter of life or death eventually,” said Sesan. Paradigm Initiative also credits Internews with providing operational support and technical assistance throughout the process. Internews funding supported the establishment of Paradigm Initiative’s second office in Abuja, Nigeria where the advocacy work for the Digital Rights bill occurred. The growing organization sought help to establish systems of reporting and accounting that allowed the organization to grow steadily and diversify its funding base. “If we were turned upside down and shaken today, many of the things that would fall out of our pockets would be Internews templates,” said Sesan. For Paradigm Initiative, which has now expanded its focus beyond Nigeria, the goal is to make the Bill a model in the region, not an anomaly, and to see the tide turn toward protection of digital rights for all citizens. . . . Internews global Internet Policy Programs aim to support and build local human rights organizations around the globe to engage directly with governments, private organizations, and academics on freedom of expression issues online and offline. For twenty years, Internews has supported more than 85 grassroots organizations in more than 40 countries. With this support, these organizations are now leading voices for digital rights in their respective countries. (Banner photo: Computer lab BTS in Nigeria. Credit: Christopher Congdon/Flickr/CC)

A man holding a smart phone stands by the side of a road. He's wearing a straw hat.

‘Lives are not going to get better without real access to information’

Reporter Lawi Weng was dismayed. Far in the north of his country, he had heard whispered, tens of thousands of minority Shan people were starving in camps where they had been herded when their homes were destroyed by fighting. Some had disappeared in mysterious circumstances. But at the time – in early 2017 – their stories were untold in the national media. Weng knows something about refugees. He has been one himself. And if people were starving, he wanted to tell the world. His editors at Irawaddy, the online newspaper where he is a reporter, were sympathetic, but Weng knew Irrawaddy had limited resources and likely couldn’t support a reporting trip. Weng went another way. With a reporting travel grant from Internews, Weng visited camps where mothers were rationing milk and families were down to their last stores of grains. The result of his trip was a three-part series on the camps in the village of Namtu - and the beginning of actions by the government to address the problems of neglect and corruption which have long plagued the camps. “It is so important to report the stories of these ethnic conflicts from the perspective of the people who are caught up in them,” Weng said of his work, rare in a Burmese media environment that has typically rewarded reporters for covering national politics, not news from the hinterlands. “I wanted to help these people, and I also wanted to let the Burmese people and the international community know. Someone has to know or the fighting will never stop.” In this country slowly emerging from a half century of military rule, still teeming with ethnic conflict, economic woes, and restrictions on freedom of speech, courageous young reporters like Weng have been bravely making a difference. Weng, the son of a farmer from the Mon ethnic group who fled to Thailand as a teenager, was taken in by Mon exile groups there and returned to his country in 2013. “The country has been so poor, and so poorly governed, and the people deserve better lives, but their lives are not going to get better without real access to information,” said Michael Pan, Myanmar Country Director for Internews. “Information is very important. We have a dark side here, a very dark side that has been underscored by the lack of understanding among peoples, among cultures, among ways of life. With understanding, with asking questions, with going out to report the real stories, you can solve problems. We have been sort of like a police state that is slowly transitioning and becoming a better society.” Starting last summer, Weng himself faced severe penalties for his reporting. He and two other reporters were arrested and detained by the military in northern Shan State after reporting on a drug-burning ceremony in an area controlled by Ta'ang ethnic armed organization. They were ultimately charged with unlawful association, which Weng knew was unfair. “We were journalists, and we have to communicate with everyone as journalists.” Weng and his colleagues were released, with charges dropped, in September. Journalists like Weng and his colleagues are forced to navigate shifting freedoms in Myanmar. Since 2012, when reformist governments began to lift restrictions on the press for the first time in a generation, more than half the country’s 2,000 or so independent journalists – and many of its leading reporters – have been trained by Internews in the elements, basic and sophisticated, of reporting. For a decade before, Internews helped fledgling Burmese journalists from offices it maintained across the border in Thailand, offering trainings in neighboring countries for reporters and would-be-journalists from Myanmar. Internews’ work is grounded in the belief that information is a root solution to development challenges, particularly in democratic reform and peace processes. “Internews really played a very significant role in the emergence of independent media in Burma,” Pan said. “When it launched there was no press freedom at all, no independent journalists. It was a catalyst, and now we are seeing the fruit of our work in the reporting of reporters like Lawi Weng and others, writing stories that can have an impact on political discussions, that can shed light on the darkness, like the conditions within these camps.” In Yangon, Internews has for the past six years trained journalists in a mock newsroom environment it calls Newslab. For several months, reporters work out of a simulated newsroom, conceiving, reporting, writing, and editing stories, all utilizing modern newspaper technology and cloud storage. Internews runs news conferences and holds off-the-record conversations with politicians, representatives of think tanks and nonprofits working on electoral issues. There is face-to-face coaching and mentoring. News outlets send staff to the training, and often publish the stories they produce. “From early on here, we invested our efforts in mid-level journalists, in creating a cadre of reporters who are true professionals,” Pan said. “Now we are starting to see these professionals whom we have trained really populate the newsrooms.” Newsrooms like that of Irawaddy, an online paper which had been published in exile for years but which is gaining respect and making a mark in Myanmar’s increasingly competitive and sophisticated media market, where nearly two dozen daily newspapers and 200 periodicals play off each other. Or like the journalist based in Mandalay who received a grant from Internews to cover a measles outbreak in northwest Burma. Trainers from Internews worked with him to help him develop the story, and before long, the reporter was writing about an enterprising physician who was leading a public health initiative to combat infectious diseases. The doctor won a humanitarian award from the local government and the reporter was honored with an award from a Yangon journalism organization for best feature on public health. “The story was a perfect example of how journalism is supporting the democratic transition in the country,” Pan said. “It humanized the situation, it discussed larger issues like the public health budget. It touched people’s lives and it got the people working on the front lines of this issue deserved recognition.” For Weng, 39, the impact of the support from Internews went far beyond one-time funding. It convinced his editors to let him pursue a beat focused on ethnic conflicts. That made him one of the few reporters in the country writing from that perspective. As a member of a minority group himself, Weng says he feels driven to tell such stories. He didn’t learn to speak Burmese along with the native Mon language until he was an adult, and long after he learned and began writing in English in Thailand. “Most of the media, they are Burmese, they are not ethnic people and they don’t have a lot of experience around ethnic areas. They have never been there, they don’t know what’s going on and they may think, this is not important,” Weng said. Today, Weng remains committed to reporting, but acknowledges the challenges he and others face. Asked if his arrest and detainment would change his reporting, Weng said, “I do not feel their action changed my journalism. But, my office does not want me to travel anymore as they feel I’m on a ‘blacklist.’ For myself, I will always try my best to do my report. But I am worried about no one will dare to do investigative reporting [anymore]. “Because of the Internews program, reporters like me and other ethnic reporters, we went to these communities and understand the situations. A good reporter has to travel a lot, and write what they have seen from their traveling.” “That grant from Internews means that now I know the area, I know the ground. The next time I can report about refugees or fighting I can use that knowledge. And I will.” . . . Brian Hanley is Internews Regional Director for Asia Programs. Internews’ NewsLab and travel grants for reporters have been supported by USAID.

A woman signs a document sitting at a table. Five men stand behind her and two men sit next to her.

First Steps in the Fight for Journalist Rights in El Salvador

"The idea of creating a Security and Rights of Journalists Roundtable ensued in the midst of an atmosphere of insecurity of this guild, in addition to an environment wherein the relevant institutions were not engaged in the defense of the journalistic guild," - Dalila Arriaza, President of the Association of Journalists in El Salvador (APES). On December 11, 2017, the Association of Journalists in El Salvador (APES) together with Internews, the Salvadoran Office of the Human Rights Ombudsperson (PDDH); the Central American University (UCA), University of El Salvador (UES), Social Initiative for Democracy (ISD), Foundation for Studies for the Application of Law (FESPAD), Association of Independent Journalists of El Salvador (ASPIES) launched the Security and Rights of Journalists Roundtable. The Roundtable was established to guarantee journalist safety and the observance of fundamental rights in an integrated manner, in addition to advancing legal frameworks and public policies, such as protection mechanisms that guarantee the rights of journalists and social communicators, and encouraging awareness-raising processes aimed towards public officials and society at-large. Although the strategy and implementation phases encountered obstacles, APES did not cease to campaign with organizations and raise awareness of the need to have an open dialogue about the challenges faced by journalists in the Central American country. "The goal is to work as a team and not in isolation, so that the efforts of the organizations can be seen from the viewpoint of the defense of human rights, and from public institutions whose duty is to protect journalists, universities from the academic standpoint and other organizations that in the future could join the effort," said Arriaza. For the APES, Internews support during the development of the roundtable has been key. "Internews has never missed the opportunity to assist us, and this sends us the clear message that this is a significant initiative. The fact that Internews is at every meeting and has helped designed our agenda and set our collective goals is important to both the country and the journalist guild. Without the support from Internews, it would have been complicated to move this project forward." "The roundtable is a vital initiative that confirms that strengthening civil society organization, the APES in this case, results in the ability to petition and rally public institutions for the attainment of citizen rights and duties from these institutions. As an international institution, we have seen and cherished the APES’ effort in bringing together important organizations whose values are across the political spectrum, along with the involvement of Salvadoran Office of the Human Rights Ombudsperson," remarks Eileen Menjivar, Technical Director of Internews El Salvador. Dalila Arriaza in an interviewThis year, APES has set out to start working with the roundtable to strenghten in the face of conditions that could jeopardize a journalist's safety. "Thanks to the work by Juan Carlos Botero, with the support from Internews, we have a path to follow. For instance, there is an electoral process in which we want to assure that no problems arise in the protection and monitoring, during and after the March 4 elections," explained Arriaza. "What do we expect from them? The creation of a well-structured workplan and its execution in the short, medium and long term. This plan should reflect the formulation, consultation and approval of the Law for the Protection of Journalists, the activation of Emergency Committees by public institutions, and other initiatives that derive from the meetings of the roundtable. The most important thing will be to take the initiatives to concrete and real action supportive of the journalists and [human rights] defenders,” described Arriaza. "From the APES, we expect their consolidation as a leader in the matter, with structured work methodologies, which will be the most important achievement that Internews activities will have for the strengthening of journalist associations in the Northern Triangle, in this case, in El Salvador,” concludes Menjivar. Internews supports the Association of Journalists in El Salvador (APES) and its Security and Rights of Journalists Roundtable through Internews’ USAID-funded Regional Human Rights and Democracy activities. (Banner photo: Dalila Arriaza, President of the Association of Journalists in El Salvador (APES), signing the creation of the Security and Rights of Journalists Roundtable.)

A woman sits with her hands covering her face.

In the DRC, Advocating an End to Impunity in Gender-Based Violence Cases

In the conflict-torn Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a big step was taken in the fight against impunity in sexual violence cases during the United Nations campaign, “16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.” The two main women’s media organizations in DRC teamed up with Internews to conduct forums and talk shows with the goal of improving reporting on the issue and bringing the debate to the public’s attention. The issue of impunity was brought to the forefront by the arrest of eighteen members of the “Army of Jesus” (l’Armée de Jésus), a militia led by Frédéric Batumike, a member of the South Kivu provincial Parliament. They are accused of abducting and raping at least 46 young girls, aged 8 months to 12 years old, around Kavumu from 2013 to 2016. Kavumu is a small city located near Bukavu, South Kivu’s capital city. Most of the victims were taken to Panzi hospital, a unique health facility in Bukavu renowned for the treatment of survivors of sexual violence and complex gynecological injuries, but at least two died from their injuries. The militants believe that the blood from the sexual assaults of virgins give them supernatural protection from bullets during conflicts. The arrests were a turning point as these crimes are often not prosecuted. The trial opened in a military court on November 9. Threats against witnesses have been reported. Batumike’s lawyers also tried to deny competence to the military court. Although the Congolese central government has become more involved in ending impunity for sexual violence, their efforts are often not supported by actions of public institutions. Kavumu’s trial is therefore monitored by human rights and women’s rights associations and the international community. NGOs such as Trial, Physicians for Human Rights and Panzi Foundation are advocating internationally on this case for ending impunity for sexual abuse. With Internews support, women journalists, members of the Association des Femmes de Médias du Sud Kivu (AFEM), reported how Kavumu’s citizens were dealing with the trial and the work of local associations and community based organizations to prevent sexual violence. With partner organizations, Internews held forums to discuss the issue of impunity in addressing sexual violence.On November 25, International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, AFEM leaders participated in a forum, organized in Kavumu, by Freedom House, the Carter Center and the American Bar Association. Citizens of Kavumu were able to discuss the threats and opportunities of the trial with the prosecutor, police senior officials and members of the South Kivu government. Internews recorded the debate and with AFEM produced a radio program – Café Presse – that is available on the Internews DRC radio program exchange tool. It is being broadcast during the 16 days of activism campaign on six main South Kivu radio stations. In Kinshasa, two other talk shows on women’s rights will be produced in collaboration with Union Congolaise des Femmes de Médias (Congolese Union of Women Media Professionals - UCOFEM). On December 10, International Human Rights Day and the end date of the “16 days of Activism” campaign to eliminate violence against women, Internews will close with the production of a talk show with Louise Mushobekwa, DRC’s minister of Human Rights, human rights defenders and women activists. The show will be broadcast nationwide. These activities were funded by the Swiss cooperation and USAID.

A group of people stand around a banner that says, "Liberia Media Development Program"

Across Liberia, Candidate Debates Reach Remote Citizens

Early in the morning on August 23, 2017, many people were still in bed as the voice of a middle-aged man carrying a megaphone echoed across the historic town of Butuo, Liberia. Situated north of Nimba County, just on the edge of the Ivorian border, the town received a message that they would be host to the first-ever debate for candidates wanting to represent the region in Liberia’s third post-conflict presidential and legislative elections. About 8am, the middle of the town was already flooded with eager residents wanting to take a glance at the Jeep, mounted with loudspeakers, vibrating information about the debate and the importance of citizens’ participation to make informed decision at the polls. Annie M. Tongor, a candidate Nimba County Electoral District -3, making her case to voters‘’I am over happy to witness this historic event taking place in our town for the first time. Thank God we are talking democracy in Butuo not war because this is the birth place of the Liberian civil war that killed thousands of innocent people. People only remember Butuo when you talk about the war years, but the story is different today as we host a debate that will help citizens vote for the right candidate for this region,” beamed 59-year-old Butuo resident Joseph Dahn, Nimba County. Town Chief Saye Gbartuah expressed his anticipation of a peaceful electoral process in his welcoming statement at the jam-packed Butuo town hall. "This is my first time seeing individuals who wish to represent us coming together to share their platforms and why we should entrust them with leadership. Years back, the decision to select leaders in this region was left to a few powerful people, but today’s gathering suggests things are changing now in Liberia. People hoping to lead us can sit and discuss their plans with the citizens. I think this process alone will help to direct the election in a more peaceful direction. We really appreciate the presence of this debate team in Butuo despite of the bad roads and heavy rain.” An unprecedented turnout of voters to witness legislative debate in Nimba County.A high-stakes, unprecedented approach to local politics The debates targeted 984 candidates contesting legislative positions for the House of Representatives in the National Legislature. Nearly 90% of the candidates attended the two-to-three-hour debates in front of audiences from each district, reaching more than 23,000 citizens in person, including 5,901 women and 16,292 men. The debates were broadcast live and then rebroadcast up to 10 times each, adding up to more than 500 re-broadcasts. This historic and ambitious project was rolled out by the Internews USAID Liberia Media Development program in partnership with 35 local radio stations, the Press Union of Liberia (PUL), Liberia Media Development Initiative (LMDI) and the Center for Media Studies and Peace Building (CEMESP). The grand idea was no less than to encourage more participatory politics. The bar could not have been set higher. While pursuing these lofty ideals, Internews and local partners also had to face the fact that the candidates debating, the audiences watching, and the elections observers gave little thought to the journalistic and societal “capacity-building” aims of the whole project. Many local radio stations and journalists had never moderated or broadcast issues-focused debates before or thought about ensuring balance and objectivity with equal time for all candidates. Implementation of the debates was additionally challenging due to accessibility and poor infrastucture exercabated by the conditions of the roads in wet season, poor communication networks, and a national memory of elections debates being personality-driven. Notwithstanding, the outcomes of the debates were lauded by citizens and candidates. A Maryland Lower House candidate noted: “I admire the able and transparent manner in which the debate was held, giving each candidate the time and space to interact with our people. I believe with the huge turnout of the electorate, our vibrant and young democracy is getting better.” A different atmosphere in elections season “I have participated in elections twice before, but never had the opportunity to engage with citizens in such a forum, to share my vision and aspirations for this district. I admit, I felt a bit apprehensive when I initially got the invitation to attend this debate and nearly declined, but I built the courage to be at this forum. I really appreciate the issue-based approach for this debate, rather than being confrontational or a personality contest. It gave me the opportunity to make my case to the voters why I should be elected in this district, said Barbara Ballah-Wilson, the lone female representative candidate running on the Alternative National Congress (ANC) ticket in Lofa County Electoral District 5. Barbara Ballah-Wilson, the lone female representative candidate running on the Alternative National Congress (ANC) ticket in Lofa County Electoral District 5. The nationwide debate process not only allowed voters face-to-face interactions with candidates, they also helped to rekindle the interest of citizens in the electoral activities. Internews conducted focus groups with audience members after the debates who noted they felt the debates enabled them to hold the candidates accountable for their promises once in office. They also appreciated seeing candidates engage respectfully with each other and citizens and in a peaceful forum. This they noted contributed to a peaceful elections process. “These debate activities seem to be generating lots of interest across the country and increasing the confidence of voters in electoral the system. This was not my experience during the voter registration period early this year. Many people at the time said they were not interested and did not register, but this is gradually changing the other way,” said Lasana Dukuly, head of a local civic action group in Gbarnga, Bong County. Before the rollout of the nationwide debate series, Internews in partnership with PUL, CEMESP and LMDI ran three regional training workshops in Monrovia, Gbarnga and Ganta for more than 60 journalists in debate design and moderation, to ensure a consistent and constructive approach across the nation. The Internews LMD program delivered more than 20 additional training workshops to ensure journalists had a clear understanding of electoral issues, and prepare them to stage additional debates that could provide all candidates the space to articulate their platforms to voters. Internews also worked with the PUL to consult, revise and circulate an elections reporting code of conduct. “The media has crucial role to play in the ongoing electoral process. For candidates and voters, journalists have a primary objective to be impartial and not take sides, but to ensure balance and equal access for all candidates in the coverage of the electoral activities,” said Jan McArthur, Internews Chief of Party in Liberia. “Media can help the electorate make informed judgments,” she said, underscoring the need for a proactive, vibrant and unbiased media to sustain democratic governance in Liberia. The October 10 presidential and legislative elections were crucial to Liberia – the new government will mark the country’s first democratic transition in more than forty years where a sitting president peacefully transfers power to election winners. The past two elections, in 2005 and 2011, were heavily supported and financed by the international community, with UNMIL taking the lead in the process. 2017’s elections were the first conducted independently by Liberia. . . . Jefferson Massah is Community Radio Advisor for Internews in Liberia. Under the Liberia Media Development Program, supported by USAID, Internews provides capacity-building support to 21 media outlets across the country.

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