“Media freedom starts with the safety of media professionals”

How can media and media development organizations create more secure structures in media development? What problems are likely to be overlooked when crises emerge? How can media professionals keep digital, financial and legal security in mind as well as their mental health? 

International experts will discuss these pressing questions and more at this year’s Forum for Media and Development (fome) symposium, “Rethinking safety: Protecting media freedom in times of crisis,” on October 5-6 at Deutsche Welle in Bonn. The event is organized by DW Akademie and Reporters Without Borders Germany. Online participation is free. 

Carsten von Nahmen, Managing Director, DW Akademie

Carsten von Nahmen, Managing Director, DW Akademie: “We’re living in a time of multiple crises that pose special challenges not just to our societies but to journalists worldwide. Media freedom starts with the safety of media professionals – physically, psychologically, legally and economically. We can only overcome the crises of this world if we protect free media.” 

Christian Mihr, Managing Director, Reporters Without Borders Germany

Christian Mihr, Managing Director, Reporters Without Borders Germany: “In the last two years, international crises continue to occur at a blinding pace. Whether in Russia or Ukraine, Afghanistan or Iran, the journalists’ safety has consistently worsened, and media development organizations have had to frequently respond quickly to emergencies. To quell these crises, however, it is critical to work long-term toward a secure atmosphere and corresponding structures for an independent reporting. 

The Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi will open this year's Forum for Media and Development (fome) symposium

The Iranian lawyer and human rights activist Shirin Ebadi, who was awarded the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize and since 2009 has lived in exile in the United Kingdom, will open the event. The symposium is supported by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung. 

The Forum for Media and Development (fome) is a coalition of 31 media development and cooperation initiatives and organizations in Germany. 

For more information on the event program and to register, go to: https://fome.info/ 

DW Akademie is Deutsche Welle's center for international media development, journalism training and knowledge transfer. Our projects strengthen the human right to freedom of expression and unhindered access to information. DW Akademie empowers people worldwide to make independent decisions based on reliable facts and constructive dialogue. DW Akademie is a strategic partner of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. We also receive funding from the Federal Foreign Office and the European Union and are active in approximately 70 developing countries and emerging economies. 

Reporters Without Borders documents violations against a free press and the freedom of information worldwide, and alerts the public when media workers are endangered. The organization calls for more safety and better protections for journalists, and fights both online and offline against censorship, the use and export of surveillance technology and restrictive press laws. The human rights organization also supports journalists facing persecution, as well as their families, and instructs media personnel in digital security. Since 1994, the German section of Reporters Without Borders has been located in Berlin and was part of the founding of the international organization Reporters sans frontières, with headquarters in Paris.