media funding and sustainabilty
DESCRIPTION
The Global Forum for Media Development discusses how funding can be accessed and distributed to various stakeholders.TRANSCRIPT
Africa Forum for Media DevelopmentHighway Africa
September 7
Support directly to media outlets (print, on-line, broadcast), whether state, public, private, community, non-profit;
Support to create systems of media regulation and control conducive to freedom of expression, pluralism and diversity;
Support to build professional capacity within media (training etc)
Support to supporting institutions that underpin media freedom, independence, pluralism and diversity: media monitoring, advocacy groups, self-regulatory bodies etc;
Support to technical infrastructure.
There’s not enough of it; Too few donors (government and foundations)
are engaged; A large percentage goes to training; There is not that much support going directly to
media outlets; Not enough flexible funding; Too short term; Media development is not recognised as a
sector in its own right and subsumed under other headings (governance, communication and PR, foreign policy objectives).
It’s overrated; Difference whether support is given to help
build an enabling environment or directly to a commercial media with a business plan;
But: We need to make the case for qualitative
(not just quantitative) data. We need more research and assessment
capacity; We need to make the case for long-term
evaluation.
Make the case for media development: Media development is NOT a means to an
end but an end in itself; Free, independent, pluralistic, inclusive
media are essential to democracy and to human development;
Media development is its own sector; Media development needs more support; We need to work more closely together; We need to engage better with civil society.
Bettina PetersGFMD [email protected]