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"...By giving voice and visibility to all people - including
and especially the poor, the marginalized and members of minorities - the media
can help remedy the inequalities, the corruption, the ethnic tensions and the
human rights abuses that form the root causes of so many conflicts."
The media can play a critical role in exacerbating war or consolidating peace. In the former, the media can incite violence by propagandising and distributing misinformation or biased information. Or by covering up the truth media can also be complicit in hidden violence or atrocities that take place. In the latter, the media can be a powerful tool in peacebuilding and democratic development, by shining light on abuses; providing and sharing information; holding the powerful to account; and serving as an outlet for different opinions and perspectives.
Yet serious discussion in the West on the media and conflict resolution is usually hi-jacked by an emotional debate about the news media and objectivity. Many Western news journalists are angered by the suggestion that they have a responsibility beyond objective reporting, and seem to believe that the suggestion is a criticism of the ideal of objectivity. On the contrary, the classic news journalist's aspiration to objectivity is itself an important tool in conflict resolution. Without reliable news and information, people in conflict zones have to rely on rumour; and rumour invariably spreads the distrust and stereotyping which feed war.
Many journalists already debate the potential that the new, 'live from a conflict zone' reporting may feed a conflict, and the need for journalists to be aware of this potential. Despite this, there's a chasm in the debate. Media is much more than news and current affairs. Yet few individuals or organisations working in conflict zones have taken on board any of all the possible media interventions, apart from news and current affairs, which can have a positive impact on a conflict.
There are two reasons for this apparent blindness. In the international media environment, news and current affairs journalists are the ones who deal with conflict. The result is that news journalists feel that they are the only ones with a stake in the debate, and so dominate the discussion. Secondly, most NGOs and international organisations working in areas of conflict view the media as either a PR tool, or as a loudspeaker to announce disaster, claim support, and denounce evil. The next, essential step, that of creating and supporting positive media interventions in conflict is a long time coming. Such interventions will take the media and the agencies beyond news and current affairs (to say nothing of PR), and into the more complex areas of non-adversarial talk shows, programme or article exchange between zones of conflict, cartoons (enshrining or breaking down stereotypes of 'the other', the enemy), 'intended outcome' radio and TV dramas and soap operas, vox pops (giving a voice to the voiceless), comic books, theatre, music and song. Media is all these things, and more; drama, story, character and humour, these are what attract us as humans, regardless of whether we live in war-torn Africa, Western Europe or the US.
People in conflict zones, even refugees, continue to go about their usual lives, perhaps in a more circumscribed way, but they still listen to and make music, dance, laugh at cartoons and TV comedies, tell stories and exchange ideas with a neighbour. They form their own opinions by sifting carefully through all the information and opinion gathered from these different sources. Life doesn't begin and end with news and current affairs. In fact, in most conflict zones people quickly grow tired of political speeches, debates, and reports of more violence - the subject of the albeit very important current affairs programmes. Listeners tune out and lose hope, seeking solace in radio or TV drama and music programmes.
So the term media should be broadly understood as a mechanism through which information and opinion is disseminated to a population. Also, it wouldn't be good to focus solely on the output of a media programme. The process through which media programming is developed is as important as the product itself. Often we see in societies in conflict a lack of local expertise at every level of production. Production teams may be dominated by one particular group and so do not reflect the ethnic/gender/social demography of the society. Production may be under pressure from a particular political group or standpoint. There may be a lack of professional equipment. Or the absence of the necessary legislation. Or a lack of training; journalists, for example, need the skills and training to question and verify facts, and to present accurate reports of events - violent clashes or peace negotiations - in such a way as to promote understanding rather than knee jerk reactions. Successful interventions will therefore also concentrate on developing local capacities.
Media and conflict resolution is a relatively new field, but not that new. We have selected 12 examples of ongoing media interventions to be described in depth in this publication. These 12 have been selected according to criteria of geographical scope, type of intervention and stage of the conflict (early warning, conflict resolution, reconciliation, etc). Of course we realise that there are many other possible examples. The selected case studies neither represent the whole range of media and peacebuilding projects, nor do they describe the work of all organisations active in the field. Most important at this stage - we feel - is that all possible forms of conflict resolution media are more widely practised, debated, and improved. To do so, one has to be informed. This publication aims to (begin to) address the gap in documentation, policy analysis, lessons learned and understanding of media and peacebuilding interventions taking place around the world. The findings are presented in a systematic way that is useful - we hope - to donors, policy makers, media at large, NGOs, and academics.
The purpose of this book is to build on an existing body of research and our experience of the role that media can play in peacebuilding, and to provide a set of guidelines on the processes which make media interventions in a conflict effective and sustainable. In order to do this, an operational framework has been developed (chapter 1) and tested on several projects worldwide. In each case study, the best practices from each project, as well as the lessons learnt and an illustration of the dangers and constraints are brought out for the benefit of others working in this evolving field. The Directory at the end of this publication provides a more extensive overview of 69 key organisations working with media and peacebuilding.
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