Discussion, radio show focus on PJ in Cameroon

LIMBE, CAMEROON-One of my favorite parts of our peace journalism project here are the “in house trainings” that we’ve been conducting over the last several days. Today, we visited Eden Radio and Newspaper and the Cameroon Association of Media Professionals and Advocate Newspaper in Limbe, on the Atlantic coast.

At Eden radio/newspaper, journalists talked about the need for short courses in peace journalism, as well as to question whether PJ is objective. My response is that PJ is objective since it doesn’t advocate for peace or for any given solution, but instead is about exploring and leading a discussion about various positions and options.

We also discussed how to put PJ into action in Cameroon. I told the journalists that since I’ve only been here a short time, that they were the ones to decide which of the principles of PJ are implementable here.

The discussion was followed by a 30-minute radio program on Radio Eden about PJ. Alexander Vojvoda of the Cameroon Media Network sat in on the interview, which featured a robust discussion about the nature of peace journalism, as well as its applicability in covering the 2018 elections and the refugee crisis in Northern Cameroon (Nigerians fleeing Boko Haram).

I look forward to more in house visits to radio stations in the coming days.