News

Content is king...

Does it matter how we communicate or is WHAT we communicate of utmost importance?

They (the techie-geeks and widget-wacks) talk about the internet being “in the clouds” but really the words and pictures we put online/out-there are as immoveable as stone. They will last. They will outlive us. People far-and-wide will read them. Societies will be affected by them… and they will make a difference.

From words carved in stone to papyrus scrolls and then to moveable type, words and pictures have travelled and evolved.

Journey of a Thousand Miles

Editors Note: The blog sums up what I will be expected to do in Malawi as outlined at the week-long orientation session at the ICFJ in Washington DC

My journey to an Africa Development Journalism Fellowship in Malawi started with a significant first step in Washington.

Bon Voyage – Selamat Jalan – 一路顺风

Six media professionals – three print, two video, one business – have tried to absorb over a week’s worth of training, counsel and advice before embarking for five very different efforts to expand the quality and the sustainability of journalism.  We are each Knight International Journalism Fellows, a program developed and managed by the International Committee for Journalists, through grants from Knight Foundation and the Gates Foundation.

Capital-ism

The difference in Port-au-Prince and Washington DC is just a microcosm of what can, and needs, to be done in Haiti's post earthquake reconstruction. There is no comparison, really, between navigating Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, and the orderly, manicured streets of DC.

Good Reporting Can Produce Stunning Results

Any reporter who relies on official sources will often miss the real story. That may sound like a cliche, but in countries that don’t have much experience with an independent press, it’s a lesson many reporters are just starting to learn. When they do, however, the results can be stunning.

In 2008, reporter Kakaire A. Kirunda of the Daily Monitor newspaper set out to write a story about the country’s hospital system.

Mi Panamá Transparente has a new partner in the Panamanian television

In early June 2010, the national television network TVN Channel 2 signed a memorandum of understanding with the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) and the Journalists' Forum for Freedoms of Expression and Information of Panama to produce investigative journalism and promote the use of Mi Panamá Transparente's Web site among the people of this country.

One, two, three... blog!

On June 10th, 2010, the five Knight International Fellows met to learn about blogging. Using our own laptop computers, we were introduced to the way of setting up and working with our own blogs. We were given new Nikon cameras so we can add photos and video to this blog. The idea is to share our progress.

Impact story on measles

Editors Note: A news story set off a nationwide campaign to contain measles which was killing young children in Zambia. A newly employed reporter came to see me a couple of days after she started working. While waiting for a driver to pick her up after she had finished an assignment, she overheard two nurses talking about an increase in measles in children. They were speculating whether there was an outbreak.

She was unsure about how to get verification for the story.

Reporting From Iraq: The Toughest Assignment

For the past six weeks, I have worked as the bureau photographer for The New York Times in Baghdad. This was my first visit to Iraq, and although I have worked in Afghanistan, Gaza and Yemen, I have found Iraq to be among the most difficult places to do my job. The fear is what makes working here difficult.

Reporting From Iraq: Why It Still Matters

During Frederik Pleitgen's business visit to Iraq, he was faced with daily unpredictable obstacles that hampered the effectiveness of his reporting. The country's economic development is moving, but there are many still many social and political issues surrounding the Iraqi populace. The next weeks will be telling as the political powers attempt to form a government. And we must remember that more than 90,000 U.S. troops are still on the ground here, seemingly on their way out, but not home yet.