Empowering journalism for reliable, inclusive news
In Ethiopia, the media have a crucial role to play in fostering peaceful dialogue and promoting reliable information, against a backdrop of great regional tension and widespread fake news. Since 2023, Ethiopia Media Support has implemented a far-reaching programme to build the capacity of journalists pushing back against disinformation.
To Ethiopian media outlets produce carefully crafted, properly checked and well-balanced news reports, crucial to maintaining stability in the country, the project provided support for the Ethiopian Media Council (EMC), the self-regulatory body. In-depth work was conducted, starting with an assessment of the needs of professionals at the EMC, to pinpoint shortfalls and expectations regarding training. Next, a call for applicants was launched to put together two groups of 15 trainers – 30 people in all, 13 of whom were women – to benefit from these courses with a view to sharing what they learned.
Training media outlets for lasting impact
Two main themes were pinpointed: firstly pushing back against disinformation and hate speech, to provide journalists with tools to deal with fake news and information manipulation, and secondly journalism in sensitive contexts, providing the keys to covering sensitive subjects carefully and ethically.
These training courses, each lasting a total of 18 days, helped the selected trainers acquire the necessary skills to then share what they learned with local newsrooms. Two best practices guides were subsequently drafted, for the entire journalist community in the country.
“Thanks to the excellent training experts, the content of both parts of the training course was rich and comprehensive, perfectly combining theory and practice. The presence of local experts at their sides was a great asset to facilitate discussion with the beneficiaries and replace the training in an Ethiopian perspective. Aligning with actual local conditions as experienced by the beneficiaries was a major plus.” Rebecca Bourdet, Ethiopia Media Support Project Director
The project wound up with a workshop, following on from the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists (IDEI), organised by UNESCO in Addis Ababa in 2024, which gave the 30 trainee journalists a chance to attend.
In partnership with the Cooperation and Cultural Action Department at the French Embassy, Ethiopia Media Support was part of a broader programme to consolidate the media in Ethiopia. It helped to consolidate media outlet capacities with regard to fact-checking and journalism in sensitive contexts: taking one more step towards top-quality news reports, serving social cohesion and democracy.
