Nepalese PJ project explained; Story topics discussed
(Kathmandu, Nepal)-60 journalists from India and Pakistan attending a cross border reporting workshop heard a fascinating presentation today from Nepalese journalism legend Kunda Dixit about his peace journalism project, which consisted of three books and a documentary film chronicling the Nepalese civil war (1996-2006).

Kunda Dixit

The project was centered around a photo book, “A People War,” that featured most prominently the impact of the war on everyday citizens—a hallmark of peace journalism. Dixit said the book was necessary since “the media has an important role, especially when the State tries to bury the conflict.” He said “A People War,” two additional books, the film, and photo displays around the country were important tools of reconciliation, “bringing people together” while providing a catharsis for the war’s victims. The second book, “Never Again,” chronicled written statements made about the war in a guest book that traveled the country with the photo displays. The most poignant statement in this book, Dixit said, was five simple words: “After the blood comes tears.”

The afternoon session at the workshop featured female Nepalese peacemakers discussing human rights and climate change.

In the morning, I led a session that reviewed peace journalism and guided the journalists to create peace journalism-inspired story topics in four areas: agriculture, environment, business/economy, and health. Their story suggestions are below.

Tomorrow, the journalists will be headed into the field to work on their cross border reporting assignments. Stay tuned for details.

PJ STORY IDEAS—From Indian and Pakistani Journalists

Story on draught, fetching water

Water wells; residents digging own wells because of government inaction

Challenge of getting reliable health information to women and girls in rural areas

Crop rotation as tool to save resources

Single use plastics

Resolution of conflict as driver of economy in Pakistani tribal regions

How Kashmiri lives are being impacted by changes in government policy

Air pollution, and its impact on infertility, and the associated stigma

Water conservation and recycling

Feasibility of health facilities serving those on both sides of the border

How Covid has impacted small and marginalized communities

Women’s self help groups and investing/reinvesting in small businesses

Women led dairy cooperative—can it be emulated in both countries?

Stories on achievements of grassroots female leaders

Collaborations on saving river dolphins

Unsung heroes stories

How small vendors can use solar panels

Rag pickers-how they aid recycling, but are mistaken for thieves

Small women’s co-ops that manufacture hygiene products

 

Cross border workshop launches in Nepal
(Kathmandu, Nepal)—Two fascinating presentations kicked off the Cross Border Reporting Workshop this morning. The workshop brings together 60 Pakistani and Indian journalists to collaboratively study and report on issues of mutual interest.

The first keynoter, Nepalese Journalist Kanak Dixot (pictured, center), made a plea for bolstering tolerance and cooperation in the region. He said that since journalists are “gatekeepers of society…they should have an open mind so that they can open the mind of society.” Dixot’s appeal is for South Asians to develop an identity as South Asians, one that transcends a “super nationalistic mindset” and instead embraces a “shared future.”

Sri Lankan journalist Dilrukshi Handunnetti followed up with a fascinating presentation and workshop centered around issues of disinformation. She began her presentation with a very peace journalism-oriented discussion of story framing, and the tendency to tell stories in the region only through the frame, or lens, of the India-Pakistan conflict. PJ, of course, asks journalists to transcend these frames, and offer counternarratives. She said these frames are often ‘us vs. them’ presentations by media in both countries of threats to national security, of ‘them’ as the enemy or threatening our ideals. Frames centering around Kashmir are also prevalent, Handunnettis noted. She finished by giving the journalists some tools for thinking about disinformation, including focusing on actors, networks, and behaviors of those spreading information.

In the afternoon, the workshop participants met in four subject matter areas (business/econ, health, agriculture, environment) to discuss cross border, collaboratively reported stories they will be producing in the coming months.

The workshop is sponsored by the East-West Center, and underwritten by the U.S. Embassy-Islamabad.

I’ll have more from Nepal later this week.

I'm really outa' here, and going to Kathmandu, Nepal

I think I'm going to Katmandu

I think it's really where I'm going to

If I ever get outa here

That's what I'm gonna do

K-K-K-K-K-K-Katmandu

I think it's really where I'm going to

If I ever get outa here

I'm going to Katmandu

--Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band (1975)

Nepal has always seemed like one of those places that is so exotic that visiting there seems out of the realm of the possible. Yet, here I am on my way to Kathmandu.

In Kathmandu, I’ll be meeting 61 Pakistani and Indian journalists with whom I’ve been working over the last two years on a Cross Border Reporting Project. This project has the journalists teaming up to report about cross border stories of interest like pollution, climate change, mental health, women’s rights, and so on. See the website journalistsforchange.org for more.

The Cross Border Reporting Project is sponsored by the East-West Center in Honolulu. It began with online trainings in peace journalism (taught by yours truly) and in reporting subject matter areas like agriculture, health, business, and climate/environment, taught by subject matter experts from the University of Missouri.

In Nepal, the journalists will review the work they’ve done thus far, and plan for the major cross-border collaborative stories that they’ll be finishing up this fall.

I’ll of course provide updates about the project in this space. Stay tuned.

 Call for Papers-The Peace Journalist

Dear colleagues:

Warm greetings.

The Peace Journalist, a semi-annual magazine produced by the Center for Global Peace Journalism at Park University, is seeking submissions for its October edition.

Submissions should be 600-1600 words, and address peace journalism/peace media research and projects. Please also submit photos, if possible. We do not run articles about general peace projects or processes unless they have a strong media component/angle.

The deadline for submission is Sept. 2. The magazine usually fills up quickly, so the sooner you can get your pieces in, the better. Please submit to steve.youngblood@park.edu.

The previous edition of The Peace Journalist can be found at https://www.park.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/The-PJ-April-2022-web.pdf .

 Thank you,

Steven Youngblood
Editor, The Peace Journalist magazine
Director, Center for Global Peace Journalism
Assoc. Professor, Communications and Peace Studies
Park University, Parkville, Missouri  USA
www.park.edu/peacecenter
@PeaceJourn

Better coverage would frame Ukraine war in terms of peacebuilding
Six weeks after I reported about the lack of reporting about peaceful solutions to the Ukraine war, little has changed. (See blog, May 24)

In May, I asked this: Given the fact that the war must inevitably end with negotiations, have the media responded appropriately by giving the peace talks their rightful place in the public discourse? Has the coverage of peace been proportionate to the blow by blow accounts of the war?

A small, current survey of Google news provides the answer: no.

A Google news search (8/2) of “Ukraine Russia War” came up with 124 million hits. In comparison, there were only a paltry 22.4 million hits for “Ukraine Russia negotiations”—18% of the overall story total. And it goes down from there. There were only 1.4 million hits for “Ukraine Russia peace talks,” 928K hits for “Ukraine Russia peaceful solution,” 629K hits for “Ukraine Russia peace proposals,” and just 159k hits for “Ukraine Russia peace treaty.” 

These findings echo what I said in May: “Anyone who’s been consuming news about the war already knows that the daily coverage of territorial gains, casualties, weaponry, and attacks is crowding out news about peace efforts, negotiations, and cease fires.”

One of the central tenets of peace journalism is to give voice to peacemakers on all sides, and to give societies a chance to consider non-violent responses to conflict. Clearly, this is not happening with Ukraine war coverage. Better coverage would frame the war in terms of peace and peacebuilding.

I’d like to see more media coverage that answers these pressing questions:

-How does adding NATO members, or providing Ukraine advanced weaponry, contribute to, or detract from, peaceful solutions?

-How does escalating the war impact future negotiations/peace talks?

-What is the impact of Russia sanctions on future negotiations/peace talks?

-How can the U.S. and NATO provide an off-ramp for the belligerents in a way that they can save face?

-Even though Russia is clearly the villain here, does vilifying and isolating Russia serve the long term goals of peace?

-What does “winning” look like, and how will a “win” impact long term peace in the region?

-Are there compromises short of a "win" that better serve the cause of lasting peace?

-And, how can the seeds of positive peace be planted now, so that Ukraine and the region can move forward peacefully?

Reporting that answers these question, that frames the Ukraine war in terms of peacebuilding, helps the public in our democratic societies consider non-escalating, non-violent responses to the conflict. Also, answering these questions is just good journalism.