DC-SUSTAINABILITY OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED AT THE 14TH IGF

Building on our engagement at the 14th Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Berlin, the Dynamic Coalition on the Sustainability of Journalism and News Media (DC-Sustainability) will be officially launched on Wednesday, 27 November.

For the inaugural session, GFMD have organised a roundtable discussion on the impact of the digital economy on democratic societies. It will also take a critical look at both the benefits and harms of a world where global platforms are dominant distributors of news and information as well as major forums for public debate. Specifically, the discussion will focus on the following issues and questions:

• How to monitor digital platforms’ activities, their market behaviours, and the potential consequences of those activities for citizens, journalists, news media organisations, and advertisers.
• Strategies to address regulatory imbalances – i.e., what are new approaches to the regulation of digital spaces?
• How to better inform consumers/citizens of their rights when dealing with digital platforms.
• What are the mechanisms that would support and sustain choice and quality of news and journalism in digital spaces?
• Market power and behaviour of digital advertising’s two most-dominant companies, Google and Facebook, what can be done to address competition barriers, and how to promote plurality, sustainability, and diversity as well as overall consumer choices.

Moderated by GFMD’s Executive Director, Mira Milosevic, speakers in the session will include:

More information about the session can be found here.

Post-IGF Update

The session was an overwhelming success with more than 100 people joining in person!

Happening now at #IGF2019: more than 90 people are attending the inaugural session of the newest @intgovforum Dynamic Coalition: the Sustainability of Journalism and News Media (DC-Sustainability)

Thanks to all who helped make this possible! pic.twitter.com/52TI2Bzr2Q

— Michael J. Oghia (@MikeOghia) November 27, 2019

Our overall experience at the IGF this year definitely exceeded expectations. We were so encouraged by how much support we received from members of the journalism, press freedom, and media development communities who participate in the IGF. More than 100 participants attended the third-annual Day 0 Symposium on Media Development and Internet Governance, which was a first for us, and really helped to set the tone for the week. The success of the launch of the DC-Sustainability also clearly indicates that there is ample necessity for these topics to be discussed, and we are looking so forward to ensuring issues that impact the journalism and news media sector are on the agenda, that the sustainability of journalism and news media is inextricably linked to multiple digital policy issues that range from combatting disinformation to platform accountability, and that members of our community continue to be heard within Internet policy fora.

In addition to the session, we also ratified the Charter of the DC-Sustainability on 27 November 2019 at the end of the session. You can read it here.

For more information, you can read the session report here, view the recording of the session here (or watch the embedded version below), and see a short interview that GFMD member and founding member of the DC-Sustainability, Deutsche Welle Akademie, conducted with GFMD’s executive director, Mira Milosevic here.