About EJC - Press Releases
Data Journalism Awards (DJA)
Maastricht - January 19, 2012
The Global Editors Network (GEN) is proud to announce the launch of the first annual Data Journalism Awards (DJA), the international competition recognising outstanding work in the growing field of data journalism. The GEN initiative is supported by Google and is organised in collaboration with the European Journalism Centre.
An international jury of data journalism and media experts will select the six winning submissions. Jury members have been selected from prestigious international media companies including the New York Times, Reuters, and Les Echos and the president of the Jury is Paul Steiger, founder of ProPublica (see below).
According to Steiger, “journalists and media organisations increasingly use numerical data and databases to gather, organise and produce relevant information. The Data Journalism Awards champions the evolution of this field by rewarding editorial excellence and highlighting best practices in data journalism.”
Data Journalism Awards candidates can apply to one of the three following categories:
1. Data-driven investigative journalism
2. Data visualisation & storytelling
3. Data-driven applications
Both National/International and Local/Regional projects are welcome and will be judged separately. The work submitted must have been published or aired between 11 April 2011 and 10 April 2012.
A total of EUR 45,000 (around USD 57,000) will be awarded to the six winning projects.
As of today, applicants can submit their best data journalism projects at http://www.datajournalismawards.org.
The competition is open to media companies, non-profit organisations, freelancers and individuals until 10 April 2012. The six winning projects will be announced by jury members at the annual News World Summit (NEWS!) being held in Paris, France, from 30 May to 01 June 2012 and hosted by the Global Editors Network.
“At Google, we’re keen to help support and stimulate innovation in digital journalism,” said Peter Barron, Director of External Relations. “We see exciting possibilities of leveraging data to produce award-winning journalism.”
Media partners of the Data Journalism Awards are the Online News Association, journalism.co.uk, OWNI, Wired Italy, AHREF and the Forum for African Investigative Reporters (other media partners added later).
About the Global Editors Network
Founded in 2011, the Global Editors Network (GEN) is the first non-profit, non-governmental association that brings together editors-in-chief and senior news executives from all platforms – print, digital, mobile and broadcast. By breaking down the barriers between traditional and new media, GEN aims to define an open journalism model for the future and to create new journalistic concepts and tools. GEN brings together like-minded people that are forward thinking and enthusiastic about defining tomorrow’s journalism.
Antoine Laurent, DJA Project Manager
Global Editors Network
Mobile: + 33 6 29 16 06 13
Office: + 33 1 53 01 21 61
Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Liliana Bounegru, DJA Coordinator
European Journalism Centre
Mobile: +31 63 403 97 47
Office: +31 433 254 030
Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Jury Members for the Data Journalism Awards:
Paul Steiger, ProPublica, USA, President of the Jury
Members:
1. Justin Arenstein, African News Innovation Challenge
2. Peter Barron, Google, UK
3. Wolfgang Blau, Zeit Online, Germany
4. Reginald Chua, Data Editor, Thomson Reuters, Hong Kong
5. Frederic Filloux, Les Echos, France
6. Joshua Hatch, Online News Association, USA
7. Aron Pilhofer, New York Times, USA
8. Paul Radu, Investigative Journalism Association, Romania
9. Gianina Segnini, La Nacion, Costa-Rica
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Read the Data Journalism Awards announcement on the official Google blog, 19 January 2012.
Posted on January 19, 2012 by EJC
Filed under announcements.
EJC launches Press Freedom 2.0 Bolivia
Maastricht - December 12, 2011
The European Journalism Centre on December 2, 2011, officially launched a five-year Dutch Foreign Ministry funded programme to support press freedom initiatives and improve training for journalists and journalism students in Bolivia.
The programme kick-off event, hosted in the capital La Paz by Asociación de Periodistas de La Paz, was timed to coincide with the launch of journalist training activities implemented by EJC programme partner, Fundación Para el Periodismo, which included an intensive three-day business news reporting training for 22 practising journalists and a Trainer for Trainers course, led by the Director of the Clarín Journalism Masters Programme in Buenos Aires, Mr. Miguel Wiñazki.
Bolivia is EJC’s second largest target country within the Press Freedom 2.0 portfolio. The programme will focus on the protection of journalists’ rights, media ethics, balanced and unbiased reporting, investigative and business news stories produced to the highest levels of journalistic standards in order to inspire both journalists, university faculty, media owners - and the public - to raise the bar on what constitutes professional reporting. The programme will support the development and launch of key press freedom-related campaigns and activities led by local partners.
“The European Journalism Centre has come to Bolivia to help fill a large void,” says, Renan Estenssoro, Executive Director of Fundación Para el Periodismo. “Bolivian journalists need to debate important issues such as freedom of expression, but we also need more training to improve our professional level in order to cover these issues responsibly and with professionalism. EJC’s assistance in this way will be fundamental.”
The EJC Bolivia programme will also develop regional exchange projects and work with sources of expertise and best practice from across the region, including the Clarín Journalism Masters Programme in Buenos Aires.
“Media development does not take place in a bubble and therefore EJC’s approach is to tackle issues facing media in the country in a multifaceted and open way,” says EJC Bolivia Country Manager, Melissa Rendler-Garcia, “and also by liaising regularly with other donors and partners working in this field in Bolivia at the regional and international level.”
The project is funded through the MFSII Programme of the Dutch Foreign Ministry in The Hague. It is part of a much broader global project entitled Press Freedom 2.0 that includes other Netherlands-based media partners such as World Press Photo, People on a Mission, Free Press Unlimited and European Partnership for Democracy, working in 11 countries on five continents.
“We are grateful to the European Journalism Centre for supporting press freedom and journalism training programmes in the country,” said Pedro Glasinovic, the President of Asociación de Periodistas de La Paz. “The best defense against attacks on press freedom is to offer journalism of the highest professional and ethical standards.”
Posted on December 12, 2011 by EJC
Filed under announcements.
Financial news service in Zimbabwe
Maastricht - October 17, 2011
The European Journalism Centre and the Thomson Reuters Foundation on 26 September officially launched a five-year Dutch Foreign Ministry funded programme to establish a financial news service in Zimbabwe.
The programme kick-off event, hosted in the capital Harare by the Dutch Ambassador H.M.B. Joziasse, was timed to coincide with an intensive ten day business news reporting training for 30 hopeful future Zimbabwean stringers for the news service, led by veteran Thomson Reuters trainer Nick Kotch.
“The Source”, registered temporarily as a trust on its way to local incorporation, will be the first financial news service of its kind in the country. It will be dedicated exclusively to providing accurate and informed business news and analysis regularly, and thus will potentially play a pivotal role in the overall future economic development of the country.
The news service’s founding principles and structure will safeguard its impartiality and independence. Skills training and mentoring to Thomson Reuters standards will ensure its competence and a sound business model will help it become self-financing.
The primary goal of the programme is that The Source will be a news service owned and operated by Zimbabweans, serving Zimbabwean media organisations, financial organisations, and their fellow citizens and provide trusted information that will also be of value to potential foreign investors.
“Our ambition is to help create an independent, accurate and timely economic news service for Zimbabwe with integrity as its watchword,” said Nick Kotch of the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The project is funded through the MFSII Programme of the Dutch Foreign Ministry in the Hague. It is part of a much broader global project entitled Press Freedom 2.0 that includes other Netherlands-based media partners such as World Press Photo, People on a Mission, Free Press Unlimited and European Partnership for Democracy, working in 13 countries on five continents.
“My hope is that the tools and methods of best practice financial journalism - so important in any developmental context yet often overlooked - can be shared at the global level,” says EJC Zimbabwe country manager Josh LaPorte, “so that other countries struggling with media ethics and professionalism can learn from the Zimbabwean experience”.
Posted on October 17, 2011 by EJC
Filed under announcements.
The MAITRE website launches
Maastricht - July 27, 2011
MAITRE - Media Actions for International Training of Researchers – is a project funded by the European Commission’s FP7 KBBE Programme, which aims to enhance the knowledge about food research by improving the media skills of food scientists.
The European Journalism Centre (EJC) participates in the project as part of a consortium formed by Minerva Consulting and Communication, Fundación AZTI -Tecnalia and the European Association for Food Safety Aisbl - SAFE.
Kicking off the 1st of April 2011 and running until the 31st of March 2014, MAITRE will revolve around 50 training seminars across Europe hosted by senior journalists and targeting a group of roughly 600 researchers mainly involved in KBBE funded projects.
MAITRE´s website seeks to be the main source of information of the project, as well as becoming the platform that encourages better interaction and further collaboration between journalists and food scientists.
For more information, please contact:
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Posted on July 27, 2011 by EJC
Filed under projects, website.
CL!CK ABOUT IT international photography competition back for a third round!
Maastricht - July 8, 2011
On 8 July 2011 at 13:00 CET (12:00 BST), CL!CK ABOUT IT, the international photography competition organised by the European Journalism Centre (EJC) and sponsored by Oxfam and the European Commission, launches for a third round this time focusing on the topic of “Aid”.
CL!CK3 is aimed at professional/aspiring photographers who are interested in both polishing up their photography skills and getting involved in timely global topics. The competition will run for a total of three months and offers a grand prize of a reporting trip to one of Oxfam’s current projects (destination to be announced). In addition, three runner-ups will be awarded a 500 Euro Amazon gift certificate, two of which will be sponsored by Oxfam and one by the EJC. Finally, a selection of photographs (incl. photos from the overall winner and runner-ups) will be published in various Oxfam publications.
For more information please contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Also read announcement by Oxfam: Your creativity needed: Oxfam’s new photo competition!
Posted on July 8, 2011 by EJC
Filed under announcements, blogging, events.
EJC launches five-year NL Foreign Ministry funded programme in Georgia
Maastricht - June 23, 2011
On 18 June 2011 the EJC officially launched its five-year Netherlands Foreign Ministry funded programme in Georgia, in partnership with Georgian Institute of Public Affairs (GIPA). The “Finances and Transparency-New Approaches for Georgian Journalism” project targets a specific niche issue in Georgia’s media landscape, namely: the lack of in-depth, well-researched economic corruption investigative journalism stories.
The five days of kick off events featured an intensive training of GIPA’s trainers programme led by Thomson Reuters Foundation (TRF) training expert Lisa Essex, and panel discussions moderated by Professor Josh Friedman of Columbia University, featuring the Netherlands ambassador, Pieter Langenberg and media leaders from Georgia. (This event can be seen in its entirety at media.ge)
As Georgia integrates further into the world economy, the issue of corruption and the role of the media become more important, making the upgrading of journalistic professional standards even more important. The project is imperative in the Georgian media context, which lacks in-depth reporting on issues of public finance spending, corruption, and economic crime. According to Maia Mikashavidze, the dean of GIPA “Financial transparency became all the more important in Georgia as the country’s economy develops, becomes sophisticated and higher levels of professionalism are required of journalists to uncover and expose corruption.”
The project has a strong focus on outputs. While a primary component is to build up the capacity of GIPA and expand and develop its curriculum in the direction of specialised economic reporting, the project partners also encourage the regular publication and broadcasting of hard-hitting reportage by Georgian journalists that have an impact; and remind journalists, government officials, the business community and citizens alike, of the social responsibility of the media in this process. Journalists and media owners will be encouraged to raise the bar on what constitutes professional reporting on economic and financial issues, good governance and corruption through the story mentoring component being developed jointly with the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The timing of the project’s start is crucial.
“This is just the right thing at the right time for Georgia,” said Columbia Journalism School Professor, Josh Friedman, who moderated a round table inaugurating the project. “While the Georgian government is still learning to co-exist with a free press, it is saying the right things about the fight against corruption. So there is a window of opportunity now for the EJC and GIPA trainees to take an important part in the ‘society’s watchdog’ role the local media must play to expose corruption.”
The project is funded by the Netherlands Foreign Ministry (MFSII programme). It is part of a much broader global project entitled Press Freedom 2.0 that includes other Dutch media partners such as World Press Photo, Free Press Unlimited and European Partnership for Democracy, working in 13 countries on five continents. “Our hope is that the tools and methods of best practice investigative journalism developed here in Georgia can be shared at the global level” says EJC Georgia country project manager, Josh LaPorte, “so that other countries struggling with press freedom and corruption issues can learn from the Georgian experience.”
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Posted on June 23, 2011 by EJC
Filed under announcements, projects.
NSK- EJC fellowship programme announcement
Maastricht - June 15, 2011
The European Journalism Centre (EJC), in conjunction with the Nihon Shinbun Kyokai (NSK), the Japanese Association of Newspaper Publishers and Editors, invites you to apply for the NSK-EJC fellowship programme taking place 20 November-2 December 2011.
Aiming to promote a better understanding of Japan, the two-week programme will provide a broad overview of the country and feature seminars by top lecturers on Japanese politics, economics, culture and nuclear energy. These sessions will be complemented by a three-day group tour of Japanese social and cultural highlights.
The NSK will cover flight expenses of up to EUR 500 (costs over and above this amount will have to be paid by the individual) as well as accommodation and local transport in Japan.
Applicants must be EU citizens, no more than 40 years old, have at least five years experience as a full-time professional journalist working for an EU media outlet, as well as a comprehensive level of spoken and written English, the lingua franca for the trip.
The fellowship programme is open to journalists and editors from written and online media, news agencies and broadcasting companies. Freelance journalists may also apply.
For further information please download the NSK prospectus here.
To apply for the NSK/EJC fellowship programme, please complete the application form and online registration found at: https://ejcnet.wufoo.com/forms/nskejc-fellowship-programme/ and include all of the necessary documentation by Sunday 24th July at 00.00 CET. Submissions received after this time will not be taken into consideration.
Four European journalists will be selected on the basis of their level of experience and motivation letter provided at the time of application.
Contact EJC Project Administrator and Operations Manager.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) for further details.
Posted on June 15, 2011 by EJC
Filed under announcements, events, projects.
EJC awarded four-year EU contract “Information Events for Journalists”
Maastricht - June 7, 2011
The European Journalism Centre (EJC) has signed a four-year contract with the European Commission to implement information events for journalists related to EU affairs. While the EJC provided similar services to the Commission before, this framework contract is for the first time “inter-institutional”, encompassing a whole range of EU bodies. In addition to the European Commission, now the European Parliament, the Committee of the Regions, the European Economic and Social Committee, and the European Court of Auditors will participate as well. Moreover, the contract is “international” in scope, allowing EJC to invite journalists from all over the world.
Primarily, the contract will allow EJC (in cooperation with the European institutions) to produce seminars, workshops, briefings, and conferences to provide journalists from Europe and across the globe with information and research opportunities on the EU and its policies. Events can be configured to cater to anything from beginners’ seminars to current affairs or to briefings on specific EU activity areas. The contract also allows for the further development of the multilingual website eu4journalists.eu, which offers easily accessible yet comprehensive background insights into EU policy areas and lists useful contacts and other practical information for journalists.
With almost two decades of experience enabling EU coverage in a genuinely journalistic and impartial manner, the EJC is looking forward to expanding the scope of information events and to innovate EU reporting in partnership with the institutions during these times of a fast-changing media ecosystem.
The European Journalism Centre is an independent, international, non-profit foundation dedicated to maintaining the highest standards in journalism in particular and the media in general, primarily through the further training of journalists and other media professionals, and through the development of open communication tools. Founded in 1992 in Maastricht, the Netherlands, the EJC builds on its extensive international network and hosts each year more than 1,000 journalists in seminars and conferences on European affairs. It is also an actor in international media development and implements media-related research projects.
For further inquiries please contact EJC Director Wilfried Rütten at +31 43 325 4030 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
And yes, the EJC is hiring!
First Kamel Shiaa Prize awarded to Iraqi journalist Maryam Mohammed Jaafar
Maastricht - June 2, 2011
The EJC and the Kamel Shiaa Foundation are pleased to announce that the first Kamel Shiaa Prize for Iraqi press freedom has been awarded to the Iraqi journalist Maryam Mohammed Jaafar for her article “Violence is spreading among the Iraqi children”.
The jury, composed of six international journalists, chose the winner out of 33 candidates. It was unanimously decided that the strength of Jaafar’s article rests on its promotion of children’s rights and intercultural dialogue. The article depicts the harsh impact war has on children and, in particular, how they perceive the different religious communities in the area they live in. It explains the trauma children have suffered as the Iraqi nation continues to endure times of conflict.
The prize offers Maryam Mohammed Jaafar the opportunity to spend three months in Brussels. During this period she will be free to report on subjects throughout Europe in addition to receiving skills training to further improve her craft under the auspices of the EJC.
The Kamel Shiaa Prize is dedicated to the memory of the late Iraqi intellectual and writer, Kamel Shiaa - assassinated in Baghdad on August 23rd 2008 - and to all the Iraqi journalists who have been killed or harassed while performing their job.
Posted on June 2, 2011 by EJC
Filed under .
Survey: What is your take on Data Journalism?
Maastricht - May 9, 2011
As governments and international organisations are making collections of data freely available online and more tools for data analysis and visualisation are becoming available, the survey Data-Driven Journalism - Your opinion aims to gather the opinion of journalists on the emerging practice of data-driven journalism and their training needs in this new field. The survey should take no more than 10 minutes to complete. The results will be publicly released and one of the entries will win a EUR 100 Amazon gift voucher. Thank you for your participation!
Posted on May 9, 2011 by EJC
Filed under analysis, announcements, news, development, work, projects.