International Training Programme (ITP) on Media Development and Democratic Media-Regulation in a New Digital Era ( Armenia, Moldova, Ukraine)

This ITP is a fellowship programme that provides a forum and platform for constructive, creative dialogue between high-level representatives from media, government, academia and civil society on how to improve self-regulatory and regulatory frameworks for media. This programme involves more than training of individuals. It is a full-scale capacity-building programme aimed at real change towards a more efficient and sustainable planning and implementation of media self-regulation.

INTRODUCTION

The long-term vision for this programme is to contribute to free, trustworthy, independent, and inclusive journalism and media in Armenia, Moldova and Ukraine, with the aim of ensuring access to information within a plural media environment. We seek to empower participants and their organisations to make strategic decisions and take actions that contribute to a media landscape founded on reliable journalism by countering disinformation and propaganda, facilitating a faster and smoother EU integration process. In this sense, the programme recognises the significance of creating an enabling environment for democracy and fundamental human rights.

PROGRAMME STRUCTURE

The training programme consists of five compulsory phases. It is a mix of online training, interaction and physical meetings in the participants’ home countries as well as in other European countries, such as Belgium and those in Scandinavia. The evolution of the Change Initiative is the golden thread weaving through all phases.

The programme is proposed to run for one year, beginning in October 2023 and ending in October 2024. For more detailed information as well as timetable, please see the brochure.

TARGET GROUP

The programme targets individuals who can promote standards and self-regulation of the media sector in their country in different ways. The programme has been designed as a fellowship initiative, offering an opportunity for influential individuals and organisations from the relevant fields to acquire specialised knowledge and skills to gain comprehension of the principles and procedures involved in driving complex change projects. The programme empowers participants to collectively advance the agenda for enhanced self-regulation.

Although it focuses on individuals, the programme primarily targets organisations, and efforts are made to establish long-term relationships with the key organisations involved. Such collaborative organisations should be willing to commit themselves to participation for one year and be ready to cooperate with other organisations in the programme, even though they may have different opinions on regulatory frameworks. Capacity and interest to drive processes to achieve long-term goals is a prerequisite to becoming a collaborative organisation.

There will be three categories of participants involved in this programme, namely:

1. Public officials (e.g., senior officials at media regulators and parliamentarians),
2. Civil society and academia (e.g., media lawyers, media staff, managers of self-regulatory mechanisms, media advocacy organisations, practice-oriented academics in the field of media holding key positions etc.)
3. Media outlets (e.g., senior staff/managers working with media ethics or similar

Participants will be carefully selected based on a comprehensive set of criteria to ensure a diverse and meaningful cohort. These general qualifications include:

• Holding a key position within their organisation;
• Displaying the ability to influence strategic decisions;
• Demonstrating a strong commitment to starting and driving change processes;
• Good knowledge of English and official language in home country.

The number of participants from each country will be 22-25, i.e. in total for the three countries, 66-75 participants will be recruited to the programme.

BENEFITS FOR PARTICIPANTS AND THEIR ORGANISATIONS:

At the end of the training programme, it is envisaged that participating individ­uals and organisations shall have obtained:  

• Improved understanding of recent/proposed legislation in the EU to promote a better implementation in the respective country: AVMS Directive, Copyright Directive, EMFA, DSA, the Political Advertising Regulation, and the Code of Practice on Disinformation. This also includes a better understanding of applicable freedom of expression standards adopted by the Council of Europe and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights.
• Improved understanding of and new ideas about the different types of capacities that are needed when implementing the legislation and regulations.
• Access to expanded international and national networks as support for effective work with self-regulatory frameworks.
• Better understanding of the various parts of the self-regulatory framework and exploration of different areas and methods of applying this framework.
• Higher degree of awareness related to the present digital security landscape, the responsible regulators, and the accountability of platforms and media houses.
• Increased knowledge of experiences, methods, and tools as well as strengthened self-confidence to conduct structured, long-term change work and dissemination of knowledge and experiences obtained through the programme.
• Better knowledge and understanding of how the Swedish (and Danish) media support/subsidies system works and its importance in a democratic society.

OTHER REQUIRMENTS

Due to the nature of the programme, family members are not allowed to accompany participants to the courses held in the region, in Sweden or other countries.

COSTS

The organisers of the programme will cover the costs for the programme fee, literature, accom­modation, meals, health insurance, and international travel to the scheduled courses in phases 2 and 4.

Participants and/or their employers are responsible for any other costs such as:

• personal expenses;
• visa fees;
• domestic travel – in connection with international travel and meetings held locally;
• any local airport taxes and departure fees or such; and any costs for programme work taking place at the home organisation.

APPLICATION

• Application should be made online by the 17th of Septemeber 2023.
• Make sure your application is complete and accurate.
• A candidate must be nominated by his/her organisation.

Apply here.