Albanian Media Institute - Instituti Shqiptar i Medias

AMI NEWSLETTER, January 2012

THIS YEAR WILL MARK DECRIMINALIZATION OF DEFAMATION SAYS PRIME MINISTER

In a meeting with journalists Prime Minister Sali Berisha said that 2012 will be the year of decriminalization of libel and defamation. The current amendments to the Penal and Civil Codes regarding defamation are in the agenda of the Parliamentary Commission of Legal Affairs and then will be considered by the Parliamentary Commission on Media.
In present Albanian legislation defamation is both a criminal and a civil law issue. A set of amendments was introduced in 2004 from the Albanian Media Institute and the Justice Initiative, but it was never submitted for approval to the Parliament. Having in mind the changes that have taken place in the last years, AMI, with the support of Civil Rights Defenders, initiated a new process of revising, lobbying, and discussing amendments to defamation. The revision has also considered the range of problems that has emerged in the last years, especially regarding the development of Internet. The current draft has been consulted with international organizations and experts of the Justice Initiative. A group of MPs from both political wings have become familiar with the changes and have expressed their support.

PARLIAMENTARY COMMISSION ON MEDIA PREPARES FOR FEEDBACK ON DRAFT LAW

The Parliamentary Commission on Media will start a new session of consultation with stakeholders regarding the approval of the current draft that will regulate audiovisual services. Currently two main laws regulate broadcasting in the country, the Law on Public and Private Radio and TV Broadcasting and the Law on Digital Broadcasting, merged in one. Even though the second law passed in 2007, it has not started implementation yet, in the absence of a Strategy on Digital Broadcasting. The new draft aims to merge regulation in only one law, which would cover all concerned areas. The workgroup that has worked on the draft has had several sessions of cooperation and exchange with Council of Europe, European Commission, and OSCE experts through the process. Some of the sensitive aspects that are expected to be discussed in this framework include the impact of switchover to digital on the media and on the public, the media ownership provisions, the formula for election of members of regulatory bodies, the competencies of regulatory bodies, etc. The first public discussion session took place in July and September 2011. The work group has worked to reflect the remarks and suggestions of stakeholders and those of international experts.

ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION ON MEDIA ROLE DURING ALBANIAN TRANSITION

The roundtable discussion “The role of the media during the transition of the Albanian society” took place on January 19 in Tirana, with the participation of journalists, editors, academics, media experts, civil society representatives, and journalism students. The participants became familiar with the main findings of two studies regarding media and transition in Albania. The first one was “Main trends of media development in post-communist transition in Albania: Where are we now?,” presented by Ilda Londo, AMI researcher. This study focused on sketching the main phases of development and main trends that affect media professionalism and independence in the last 20 years, such as media market, media transparency, media ownership, media links to politics, advertising market, self-regulation and media ethics, and media regulation. The second study was “Media vs. politics: Transition to (in)dependence,” presented by Besnik Baka, researcher. This study focused on the specific relation of media outlets to politics and the different factors that affect media independence in this realm, such as political pressure, media clientelism, state advertising for the media, the link between media owners and politicians, etc.
The roundtable continued with an open discussion of the participants, highlighting such issues as the need for a more balanced view on the role of media owners, the transformation of the profession of journalist in this age and the current situation in Albania, the impact of technology on the profession, the role of emergence of electronic media, the status of the public broadcaster, etc. The need for greater transparency on the media financing sources, for audience research and print media circulation, the implementation of the Labour Code for media employees, and for establishing self-regulation were some of the recommendations of the participants for improving the role of the media in the society. The roundtable was organized by Albanian Media Institute, with the support of Friedrich Ebert Foundation.

TRAINING COURSE IN ETHICS IN THE BLOGOSPHERE

A training course on ethics in the blogosphere was organized at Albanian Media Institute on January 9-12, with the participation of journalists from print, electronic, and online media. The trainer started by discussing the role of blogs as a different way of disseminating information, as well as blogging as an additional element in promoting free speech and serving as democratic platform. The lecturer made an analysis of Albanian media websites that have their own forums and blogs. The lecturer and participants focused especially on potential cases of violation of ethics, use of hate speech, open-minded discussion vis-à-vis propaganda, accuracy vis-à-vis gossip, public interest versus sensationalism, etc. The lecturer then introduced Albanian journalists to main principles of blogging as a new form of reporting and debate. The participants became familiar with the main sites which create the best place and services for them, in the way that they can create their own web-blogs. They also focused on and discussed different kinds of blogs, their structure, and the different journalism communities making use of blogging. Participants also discussed how the traditional media, in addition to new media, should or could cope with the ethical problems that emerge from use of technologies and blogging in particular. This course was organized by the Albanian Media Institute, with the support of UNESCO.

PRESS FREEDOM IN ALBANIA DETERIORATES ACCORDING TO REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS

According to Reporters without Borders, which has recently published the Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2011, Albania’s ranking went down from 80th in 2010 to 96th. With the exception of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, the other Balkan countries marked lower positions compared to previous years. Montenegro received the lowest ranking. In addition, some EU members also dropped in ranking compared to a year ago.

TRAINING COURSE ON ACCESS TO INFORMATION ISSUES

A training course on access to information legislation, implementation, and challenges for journalists and the public was organized at the Albanian Media Institute on January 16-18, with the participation of journalists and editors from mainstream media. The participants were introduced to the main aspects of Albanian legislation on this area and discussed the way the law is implemented, its main deficiencies and the existing attempts to amend the law in several aspects. Specific attention was paid to the amendments pending in the parliament on the law on access to information, such as the issue of timelines, costs, establishment of information offices, etc. Participants also became familiar with some lawsuits and trials against public institutions related to compliance with the law on access to information. This course was organized by Albanian Media Institute, with the support of the US Embassy.

TRAINING COURSE ON PHOTOJOURNALISM ETHICS IN THE DIGITAL ERA

A training course on photojournalism ethics in digital era was organized at the Albanian Media Institute on January 23-25, with the participation of journalists from print, electronic, and online media. The course focused on the specific genre of photojournalism, especially on its ethical ramifications against the backdrop of digital technology. The participants were introduced and discussed issues such as photos as a visual medium and a way of conveying the news, along with the potential for manipulating the news. Discussing specific examples, the distinction between documentary photos and news photos was made, along with an introduction to a brief history of photojournalism in the world.
The participants were introduced in detail to the specific ethical issues that arise from use of photos, especially digital ones, in the news, such as intrusion into privacy, distortion of image, minors in photos, stereotypes and prejudices when using photos, disaster photos and human dignity, etc. Using specific photos for these cases, the participants discussed what constitutes the line that journalists should not tread when using these photos. Specific attention was paid to manipulation of photography and the cases when this is permissible. Finally, journalists were introduced to and discussed the ethics of digital elaboration of photography, making the distinction between technical interventions and works that are not allowed from the ethical point of view. This course was organized by the Albanian Media Institute, with the support of UNESCO.

NCRT ELECTS NEW COUNCIL OF ETHICS

The National Council of Radio and Television elected the new members of the Council of Ethics, an advisory body attached to NCRT. The new members are Dhurata Shehri, head of Department of Literature at the University of Tirana, Bashkim Gjergji, professor of journalism at the University of Tirana, and Lutfi Dervishi, journalist and media expert. The council addresses ethical issues regarding content in electronic media. Its decisions are advisory, not binding.

ORA NEWS TV STATION CELEBRATES 5th ANNIVERSARY

Ora News TV, one of the main capital-based news stations, celebrated its 5th anniversary on January 31. In this occasion, a cocktail reception was organized. Participants included well-known journalists, media experts, representatives from the foreign diplomatic corpus, politicians, and other personalities.

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