N E W S L E T T E R
spring 2003

Two important workshops in June -- apply NOW. . . . contact brenda@jemstone.net for details

Advanced internet research for journalists, June 1st to 5th in Holland -- this workshop is designed for journalists who already use internet extensively and want to understand more about its limits and its ever widening possibilities. Besides visits, lectures and demonstrations there will be a series of search games, lots of opportunities to exchange experiences with European and other colleagues and several practical sessions on individual stories. Each participant must arrive with a story that requires internet research.

Human Rights and Journalism, June 24th to 28th, in Holland -- aimed at senior editors and experienced journalists, this short workshop will consider many of the issues highlighted by the actions of the US and Britain in Iraq. It includes visits to the newly established International Criminal Court and the Peace Palace; we plan to attend the Milosovic case at the Yugoslavia War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague; and we will be discussing the relevance and importance of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the international rule of law.

Both workshops (in English) are open to journalists from any and all branches of the media working in all the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean. Preference will be given to existing members of the Jemstone Network, but we are also keen to widen the network so please encourage colleagues to apply.
All the workshop costs will be covered by Jemstone; we will provide hotel accommodation and meals; and we will pay for approved travel and flight costs. We will ask each participant to make a contribution of 100 euros.

Apply today to brenda@jemstone.net or Nidal Dalgamouni at the Jordan office, fax 962 6 585 3025. Send a brief cv, three sentences explaining why you want to take part in the workshop, your passport details and ALL your phone and contact numbers. We must have this information now in order to arrange the visas in time.

Other events -- we have funds for another two or three workshops in the autumn, please tell us your priorities. Should we run another broadcasting management workshop, linked to the IBC in Amsterdam in September? There's lots of demand for specialist journalism -- should we focus on economics or the environment or politics and elections or education or technology? Which media 'craft skills' should we concentrate on -- news photography or video editing or studio directing or cartooning? Please send us your ideas.

Firas Al-Majali, a Jordanian television journalist and Jemstone colleague, working for Qatar TV, was arrested by Qatari intelligence officers on 8th January 2002; we highlighted his case a few months ago. He is now free.

Media and development -- on behalf of the development community in Jordan, Jemstone is running the country's biggest development web-site, with news, jobs, events, projects and an organisations data-base (send information to suha@jemstone.net). In addition www.jordandevnet.org is hosting two United Nations initiatives. Volunteer Match is a forum where organisations wanting volunteers post job descriptions and volunteers offer their cvs; this section of the devnet also has details about the recent Volunteer of the Year Award.
Jemstone is publishing on the site the UN's Millennium Development Goals -- a set of eight key development targets, like universal primary education, action on poverty and hunger, dramatically reducing child mortality. This work fits in with Jemstone's wider mission "supporting media supporting development"; we are looking for opportunities to replicate JordanDevNet in other countries and to widen our work on MDGs too beyond Jordan.

New links -- over the past few months Jemstone has built links with the headquarters of the United Nations Volunteers in Bonn, the School of Journalism at Cardiff University and colleagues working in Dubai; we are exploring ways of extending our work with the media both within the Middle East and to Africa and India.

Booklets -- based on our internet survey of Jemstone graduates last year we are now preparing a report on the media's role in conflict resolution and a handbook on media training in the Eastern Mediterranean -- we would welcome additional contributions or comments on either topic; please e-mail to: tudor@jemstone.net.

Recent activities have included workshops on investigative journalism and the importance of audience research; we are actively seeking funding to repeat these events; please contact us if you can help.

tl/28/4/03