Understanding Peace Journalism and Conflict Journalism by Abid Zafar

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Understanding Peace Journalism & Conflict Journalism Abid Zafar Lecture #1 International Islamic University Islamabad-Pakistan

Transcript of Understanding Peace Journalism and Conflict Journalism by Abid Zafar

Page 1: Understanding Peace Journalism and Conflict Journalism by Abid Zafar

Understanding Peace Journalism & Conflict Journalism

Abid Zafar

Lecture #1

International Islamic University Islamabad-Pakistan

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Ideology

• The ideas of the ruling class are, in every age, the ruling ideas; the class which is the dominant material force in society is at the same time its dominant intellectual force.” (Karl Marx)

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Ideology

"The class which has the means of material production at its disposal has control at the same time over the means of metal production.” This is done through control over the media, educational curricula, grants and such. This is not the result of a conspiracy, rather, it is a dominant viewpoint that pervades the culture.

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Cont…

• Because it owns and controls the forces of production• Marx believed that religion, the government, educational systems, and

even sports are used by the powerful to maintain the status quo.

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Seven Parent Companies • Sony Corporation of

America• Time Warner• Walt Disney

Company• Viacom• CBS Corporation• General Electric• New Corporation

Due in part to their lobbying efforts, in 1996 congress passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996 which eliminated many of the caps on media ownership that formerly limited the number of newspapers and radio and television stations a single firm could control

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Concentration of Media Ownership

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early 1980s early 1990s today

Number of corporations that dominate the media industry

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Internet = Diversity of Views?• With all the options

available, we still see most people going to the wealthiest media giants

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Understanding Peace Journalism

• Peace Journalism is when Editors and Reporters make choices- of what stories to report and about how to report them- that create opportunities for society at large to consider and value non-violent responses to conflict (Jake Lynch & McGoldrich)

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Peace Journalism

• Uses the insights of conflict analysis and transformation to update the concepts of balance, fairness and accuracy in reporting

• Build an awareness of non-violence and creativity in to the practical job of everyday editing and reporting

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Conflict

• Mental struggle resulting from mismatched or opposing needs, drives, wishes

• Conflict is a relationship between two or more parties (individuals or groups) who have, or think they have, mismatched goals, needs and interests

• Conflict is a process through which two or more actors (‘PARTIES’) try to pursue mismatched aims or GOALS while trying to stop the other(s) from pursuing their goals.

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Conflict situations

Conflicts are likely to arise in circumstances where:- Resources are threatened (employment opportunities, housing, oil, food and water availability) Poor or no communication exists between parties Parties have incorrect or biased perceptions of each other There is a lack of trust Parties do not value the relationship between them Power is unequally distributed

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Galtung Peace Journalism Model

• The original peace journalism model was setout, in table form, by Professor John Galtung, a founder of the Academic Subject of Peace Studies and the set of analytical and fieldwork methods known as Peace Research

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PEACE JOURNALISM WAR/VIOLENCE JOURNALISM

 

• PEACE-ORIENTATED • Focus on conflict formation

• Open space, open time; causes and outcomes anywhere, also in history/culture making conflicts transparent

 • Giving voice to all parties; responsiveness, understanding

see conflict/war as problem, focus on conflict creativity

• Humanization of all sides

• Proactive: avoidance before any violence/war occurs

• Focus on invisible effects of violence (disturbance and credits, damage to structure/culture)

• WAR/VIOLENCE ORIENTATED• Focus on conflict promotion • Closed space, closed time; causes and exits in ground, who

threw the first stone

• Making wars, “Us-them” journalism, propaganda, voice, for “us”

 • See “them” as the problem, focus on who prevails in war,

dehumanization of “them”• Reactive: waiting for violence before reporting

• Focus only on visible effect of violence (killed, wounded and material damage)

 

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II. TRUTH-ORIENTATED• Expose untruths on all sides / uncover all cover-ups 

II. PROPAGANDA-ORIENTATED• Expose “their” untruths / help “our” cover-ups /lies 

III. PEOPLE-ORIENTATED• Focus on suffering all over; on women, aged children,

giving voice to voiceless  • Name to all evil-doers  • Focus on people peace-makers 

III. ELITE ORIENTATED• Focus on “our” suffering; on able-bodied elite males, being

their mouth-piece  • Give name to their evil-doers • Focus on elite peace-makers 

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IV. SOLUTION ORIENTATED• Peace = non-violence + creativity

• Highlight peace advantages

• Focus on structure, culture, the peaceful society

• Aftermath: resolving conflicts, reconstruction, settlement 

IV. VICTORY ORIENTATED• Peace = victory + ceasefire

• Obscure peace-initiative, before victory is at hand

• Focus on treaty, institution, the controlled society

• Leaving for another war, return if the old flashes up again 

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Find 2 Stories from the Internet Reflecting PJ/WJ

Peace Oriented

• Truth-Oriented• People-Oriented• Solution Oriented

Conflict/War/Violence Oriented

• Propaganda-Oriented• Elite-Oriented• Victory-Oriented