edition-dw-akademie-in-the-service-of-the-public-functions-and-transformation-of-media-in-developing-countries-pdf

Conclusions and RecommendationsSo overall progress in the area of political and legal frameworksseems fundamental for a broad transformation. But ifthis is not possible there are still other paths that can be taken.It always seems worthwhile to further the fourth strategic areaof social participation, even in situations where the frameworkscannot be advanced. Because individual citizens as wellas civil society organizations hold the potential for long-termchange in the media system – through public service, communitymedia, or both.In our case studies we could see that media development actorshad applied a number of methods. The most important are:Assessments and studies: organizational needs assessments,financial audits, audience surveys, etc., but also systematic assessmentsand selection of partners,Documentation and supply of information, data bases, e.g., onlegal frameworks and legal advice,Political dialogue events,Political lobbying and support of advocacy, human rightsalerts,Capacity building of journalists, managers, technicians in variousforms, e.g., basic professional training, training of specialskills, capacity building in project teams, mentoring,Initial technical support,Consultancy on human resources/capacity building/vocationaltraining within organizations or networks of organizations,Professional exchange, “horizontal learning” between cooperationpartners, study trips,Expert discussions, panels, conferences,Help desk for community radios,Provision of reference material,Co-productions of programming content between differentmedia outlets,Consultancies with specialized expertise, e.g., financial management,broadcasting law, ethics standards and guidelines,Consultancies related to the work in the newsroom: processesin the newsroom, formats, live production, call-in, onlinejournalism, etc.,Consultancies related to the development and introduction ofnew programming formats: lighthouse programming projects,in particular audience orientation, participation, innovativeformats,Consultancies related to special public events: election reporting,multi-stakeholder dialogues, town-hall meetings,Consultancies related to the strengthening of selected departmentsof the PSM, e.g., training centers or regional offices.The suggestions made by the experts who were interviewed forour case studies mostly focussed pn the solution of concreteproblems for the media outlets. Many of the following suggestionsidentify not only a need but at the same time point tomissed opportunities in the past. Relating to the frameworks,governance and finance, the following were mentioned:– Develop and advocate models for the financing of themedia outlet– Strengthen the capacities of governing board membersand NGOs representatives– Generate support for the civil society sector that is ofrelevance to PSM– Integrate universities into the case of the PSM– Advocate independent commissioning bodies andtransparent licensing processes– Advocate legislative reforms on behalf of community media– Advocate against impunity and legislation that criminalizesjournalists unnecessarilyOther suggestions they made were related to journalists andto the work in the media organization:– Consultancy in newsroom and studio management– Consultancy in revenue and budget planning– Consultancy in human resources management– Consultancy of team building processes withinthe broadcaster– Consultancy in website management– Raising awareness and understanding of PSM on all levelsof the organization– Support for professional associationsFurther suggestions are related to the audiences of the differentmedia:– Establish platforms for public debate and interactiveformats on PSM– Combine institutional reform with visible changes– Find ways to safeguard editorial independence, credibilityand accountability – in order to gain the public’s trust.– Build up and improve audience and market researchEdition DW Akademie In the Service of the Public 287