The Media Dialogue Programme helps journalists improve their professionalism, says Simon Derry

The death of Lebanese journalist Samir Kassir, killed by a bomb planted in his car, brought home to everyone working on the BBC World Service Trust's Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Dialogue Programme the unpredictable and often arbitrary violence that can be meted out to journalists in the region.

Samir was an electrifying contributor to our first Media Dialogue sessions, held in the Phoenicia Hotel in Beirut. He spoke about the rights and responsibilities of journalists and the importance of objectivity. He was one of many distinguished journalists there who talked about how media in the region should improve and change.

The dialogue programme is designed to get journalists to work closely with one another, to think about ethical and coverage issues, and to improve professionalism. The first phase consisted of symposia in Beirut, Cairo, Damascus and Rabat, broadening debate and stimulating discussion on these issues.

The seminars attracted well-respected commentators from the region. Debate was brisk and lively, disagreement was strong. In Damascus, everyone was surprised by the level of engagement. Representatives of government media were taken to task by other journalists. For many, it was the first time they had been able to express their views openly in Syria.

For many, it was the first time they had been able to express their views openly in Syria

The symposia were organised and run by the Trust's MENA project team, led by Ibrahim Helal. At each seminar, the broad mix of journalists was joined by BBC presenters, including Lyse Doucet and Nik Gowing, and by senior figures from the BBC Arabic service.

As well as running the symposia, the Trust also brought 26 young journalists from across the region to London to take part in a month-long programme examining the role of a pluralist media. The programme was advertised in Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco and Syria. Young journalists were put through a tough selection procedure before being invited to join the programme. The courses allowed the journalists to meet colleagues from across the UK and Arabic media based in London.

The MENA programme is now in its second phase and is working closely with partner stations to identify development needs and provide guidance and support. In Egypt, the programme is helping State TV to refocus its news output to provide more audience-focused, objective stories that are covered in an interesting but fair and balanced way.

The project has run a programme in Lebanon, working with four different TV stations from across the sectarian divide and providing support in all areas of newsgathering. The programme also works with an online news site in Syria and is starting its first print training programme in Amman, Jordan with the three main newspapers there (Al-Rai, Addustour and Al-Ghad).

In 2006 the programme will be working in the Gulf and Maghreb regions, and will be rolling out the Trust's online journalism training system, iLearn, in Arabic.

No amount of training can prepare a journalist for the daily battle to produce fair, balanced and objective news, sometimes in extremely adverse circumstances. However, in a small way the MENA programme is trying to offer advice and support to help young journalists improve their professionalism - something that Samir Kassir cared about passionately.


Related Links

World Service Trust's Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Dialogue Programme
Syria News
World Service Trust's iLearn programme