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Publications >> Democracy Newsletter >> May 2007
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Democracy Newsletter |
NED Center for International Media Assistance Inaugural Forum - May 2, 2007 The Center for International Media Assistance of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) held a forum at the US Capitol on the international role of the media in exposing corruption and promoting good governance on May 2, 2007. The honorary co-hosts of the event were the four co-chairs of the Congressional Caucus for the Freedom of the Press, Senator Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.), Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), and Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.). Daniel Kaufman, director of global programs and governance at the World Bank, was the featured speaker for the discussion in honor of World Press Freedom Day. The panel also included three journalists: Myroslava Gongadze, reporter and anchor for the Voice of America's Ukrainian service; Mauricio Herrera Ulloa, investigative reporter for the Costa Rican daily La Nación; and Joyce Barnathan, president of the International Center for Journalists and former executive editor of BusinessWeek. "There's no doubt that freedom of expression and access to information are pivotal to a working democracy," Rep. Schiff told the audience. "There is an emerging consensus among development institutions that a skilled, viable media is a society's most effective tool for rooting out corruption, motivating government reform and reducing poverty." Kaufman said empirical data indicated that in countries with free press, the probability of controlling corruption well was 70 percent, while in countries with partly free press that likelihood plummets to 10 percent. Gongadze gave a touching account of her family's plight surrounding the murder of her husband, investigative journalist Heorhiy Gongadze, in 2000 in Ukraine. She applauded the creation of the Center for International Media Assistance, calling it "a home in Washington where journalists from all over the world can find support and encouragement." Herrera and Barnathan spoke about the challenges journalists face in Latin America and Asia, respectively. The panel was moderated by Rep. Schiff. In addition to the panel, the book Media Matters: Perspectives on Advancing Governance and Development from the Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) was launched at the event. David Hoffman, president of Internews, and Mark Pomar, president of IREX, presented GFMD's new compilation of articles about the importance of media. "Democracy needs a free press," said NED president Carl Gershman, "but the free press also needs democracy. They are mutually reinforcing. So it's good that we are approaching this issue by embedding the concept of support for independent media in an approach to strengthening democracy." The forum was the first public meeting of the Center for International Media Assistance (CIMA). Established in September 2006, CIMA aims to strengthen the support and improve the effectiveness of media assistance programs by providing information, building networks and conducting research on the indispensable role independent media play in supporting sustainable democracies around the world. To view this event, click the corresponding links below:
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