Trainings and Workshops for Journalists
Over 2007-2008, some of the trainings and workshops I'lam organized for journalists
Workshops on Media Law, Censorship and Journalism
On 4 September 2007, I’lam organized a series of five three-hour legal workshops for journalists, covering various topics including incitement to racism and freedom of expression in Israeli law, privacy rights, press cards and newspapers licenses, economic pressures, freedom of the press, and how to document human rights violations.
Among the speakers were Adv. Sonia Boulos, lawyer from the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) and I’lam Board Member, lectured on the right to freedom of expression and incitement to racism in Israeli law, and detailed restrictions to freedom of expression imposed on account of ‘security’ pretexts, and Dr. Khaled Ghaneim, a lecturer in the legal department at Haifa University gave a lecture on the relationship between economic constraints and freedom of expression in the media. Adv. Hussein Abu Hussein spoke about human rights violations committed by the Israeli authorities over the past three years. The series attracted around 38 journalists.
Media Workshop on Journalistic Cards: Censorship or Facilitating the Work of Journalists?
Aim: To raise awareness about problems faced by Arab journalists who own an Israeli journalistic card and the manners in which the Israeli government manipulates the procedures of the cards release.
Date: December 2007
Place: I’lam Media Center
Target audience: journalists
Attendance: 25 people
Lecturers: Adv. Suhad Bishara from Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, and Ms. Leila Odeh, journalist from Jerusalem.
The Israeli issued journalistic card allows journalists to enter closed areas such as military areas and official/governmental press conferences; however, some Arab journalists do not own this card and are not familiar with the procedures to acquire it. It was also important for journalists to learn of the legal conditions to obtaining such a card in order not to be manipulated by the Israeli authorities who may be disinclined to issue them.
Lecture: Journalism as the First Draft of History
Aim: The lecture aimed to raise the debate about the historical responsibility of journalists towards objectivity and accuracy.
Date: 17 March 2008
Place: Higher Follow-up Committee for Arab Citizens in Israel office
Attendance: 20 journalists
Lecturers: Suleiman Aburusheid, Editor and head of the Forum of Journalists
Abed Anabtawi, Director of the Higher Follow-Up Committee
Dr Mahmoud Yazbak, History Professor at Haifa University
Dr Mustafa Kabaha, History Lecturer
Owing to the salience of the issue, the event was held in cooperation with the Higher Follow-up Committee for Arab Citizens in Israel, and was covered by six media organisations.
Panel in Ramallah: “Is There a Common Agenda Between the Two Sides of the Green Line?”
Aim: The joint panel in cooperation with JMCC (Jerusalem Media and Communication Center) and PARC (Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees) aimed to develop and facilitate working relationships between Palestinians journalists in Israel and in the West Bank, and to discuss the role of the Palestinian media on both sides of the Green Line. Three activities were run over the length of a day:
- A visit to PARC to introduce the journalists to PARC’s activities in agriculture and fair trade and establish contact with PARC representatives;
- A field tour to the villages in the north-west of Jerusalem led by PARC;
- A joint panel: “Is There a Common Agenda Between the Two Sides of the Green Line?”
Date: 4 May 2008, Commemoration of the Nakba
Place: Ramallah, West Bank
Attendance: 22 journalists in total: 12 from Israel and 10 from the West Bank.
Lecture: 60 Years of Ethnic Cleansing
Date: 6 May 2008
Place: Higher Follow-up Committee for Arab Citizens in Israel office
Participants: 25 journalists
Lecturers: Yosef Jabareen, Architect and specialist in urban planning made a speech on the destruction of the Palestinians cities from 1948 to 2008. Dr Yousif Jabarin, Lawyer discussed the confiscating of Palestinian national identity as a result of Israeli policy and the Israeli civil service effort in the Arab community as another strategy towards that same goal. Abel Al Abtawi discussed the use of the expression ‘Nakba’: From consciousness to negotiation of the meaning of the word.
Seminar on ‘Targeted Journalists’ with The Higher Follow-up Committee
Aim: Following the violations report prepared in cooperation with the Higher Follow-up Committee, a seminar entitled ‘Targeted Journalists’ was held. Present were 40 journalists from various media outlets. The conference discussed the 33 violations against journalists as told in the violations report, among them arrests of journalists, confiscation of journalists’ equipment, journalists prevented entry in certain areas though Jewish reporters did not face similar restrictions, and the non-issuance of work cards for a variety of pretexts, mainly in an attempt to influence the politically and nationally focused reports of the Arabic press.
Date: 28 June 2008
Place: Higher Follow-up Committee for Arab Citizens in Israel office.
Participants: 40 journalists, including the following presenters:
- Dr. Atef Salama, who presented on the situation of Palestinians journalists operating within Israel,
- Journalist Walid al-Omari on the Israeli boycott of Al-Jazeera,
- Journalist Mohammed al-Sa’adi on the death of Reuters journalist Fadl Shana’a in an Israeli military strike.
For coverage on the seminar, you may visit online newspaper coverage at arabs48.
Support for German Media Institute’s 3-day Journalist Workshop
Aim: The German Media Institute organised a journalism workshop over three days. I’lam contributed to the workshop in the distribution of the invitation to the workshop and also engaged in outreach to participants.
Date: July 26 2008
Place: German Media Institute office in Jerusalem.
Participants: 12 journalists participated in the session, including 3 journalists from within Israel, and one of the participants was also the most successful in the ‘Mahawir’ project organised by I’lam.
Trainings and Workshops for Civil Society
I'lam organizes workshops and training courses for different sections of civil society activists: students, women and others. Some of them, over 2007-2008, included:
Workshop on Media Coverage of Arab Women’s Employment Issues
Aim: A qualitative and quantitative evaluation of media coverage on Arab women’s employment issues.
Date: 1 July 2007
Place: Majd al-Krum
Target Audience: Arab women activists
Attendance: 8 women activists organized at the NGO Sawt el-Amel (The Laborer’s Voice), which is also the chief NGO challenging the Wisconsin Plan, that has discriminatorily targeted Arab society in Israel and particularly women. The workshop evaluated and analyzed the results of a media watch survey performed by I’lam Center on Arab women’s employment issues and the economic situation of Arab society in Israel.
Reactions: A recommendation was made following the workshop that the participants should organize a wider workshop with I’lam, which was held on 18 August (see below).
Marketing a Solidarity Event in Support of the Arabs of Akka
Aim: To ensure media coverage and to market an event held by several NGOs in support of the Arab community in Akka.
Date: 21 July 2007
Place: Akka
Attendance: I’lam succeeded to attract journalists from most of the Arabic media institutions.
Result: Impressive media coverage in 11 Arabic newspapers and in Radio Eshams.
Media Capacities Workshop for Arab Women Leaders
Aim: To develop the media capacities of Arab women activists
Date: 18 August 2007
Place: Howard Johnson Hotel.
Target Audience: Arab women feminists in leadership positions.
Attendance: 25 activist women.
The workshop offered practical media skills to activist women who are organizing against the Wisconsin unemployment plan: how to target the media, news values, marketing news, framing the message. In another portion of the workshop the women met the female journalist Ghada Asa'd on how to deal with and attract a journalist, and about the special concerns of women journalists.
Media Workshop for High School Pupils on Israeli Media Policies
Aim: To raise awareness among high school pupils of Israeli media policies.
Date: 22 November 2007
Place: Lhami Hagetaot
Target Audience: High school pupils
Attendance: 20 pupils – Arab and Jewish
Reactions: The mixed group of Arab and Jewish pupils had not received any previous media education prior to this workshop. The lively discussions revolved around the portrayal of Arabs in the Israeli media, and ethical violations of the Israeli media toward Arab society.
Media Workshop on Neutrality, Objectivity and Human Rights in the Media
Aim: Debating and raising awareness amongst students about neutrality, objectivity and human rights in the media.
Date: 16 January 2008
Place: I’lam Media Center
Target audience: College students from Ibelin College
Attendance: 30 students
Reactions: This workshop launched the beginning of solid cooperation between I’lam and Ibelin College. At the conclusion of the workshop, students requested from I’lam the development of four concrete new workshops for their benefit.
Other Trainings and Workshops for Youth and Media Students
Video Training Course
Through our contacts with journalists, media students and teachers, I’lam receives repeated requests to organize a video training course. In response, over July and August 2007 we set the curriculum and schedule for such a training course in coordination with professional trainers including Mr. Raed Basheer, who has worked for several local and international media production companies such as the Israeli educational television channel and the BBC. The objective of this course was to build basic video filming capacities, such as handling a camera, framing and shot structure, and building a film concept from idea to shooting, including script writing, filming and editing.
The course started on 7 September 2007 with 19 participants split into two groups. Half of the training dealt with practical filming exercises outside the classroom and the other half dealt more with the theoretical aspects of filming, including analyzing filming and editing techniques in cinema films. In all, the participants received a total of 33 training hours over 11 meetings.
The participants were mainly print media journalists, radio journalists, and media teachers who wished to explore new professional areas. Mr. Raed Basheer provided training for camera and lighting, Mr. Mohammad Shenawe, an independent filmmaker and producer, trained participants on film concepts and script writing, and Mr. Eyas Salman trained in editing aspects. The feedback from the participants was very positive; all felt that they had gained some of the skills they had been looking for, even though they would have liked to have further extended the sessions.
High School Filming Project
The concept behind this project is to bring the art of video filming and film making closer to young people. In the age of the internet and self-broadcasting and ever-more easily accessible technologies, young people can film their experiences and express themselves to a wide audience through the digital media. This program aims to provide an opportunity to young people to be creative and share their work and views with others. The project runs in local schools but is considered as an additional curriculum program taught after class hours.
Participants receive training in basic camera skills, editing and script development to enable them to develop an original idea for a micro-movie of about three minutes. Participants can decide on their film subject individually, with assistance and advice from the trainer. Participants are encouraged to work independently as much as possible.
Our target groups are high school pupils from the 8th to 11th grade in schools where practical media is not currently taught. We worked with students from the Masar School in Nazareth and the Mar Elias High School in Dabburye, a village near Nazareth.
The participants were given free access to cameras in December 2007 – January 2008 for filming, and editing started after the holiday break in January 2008. The pupils were working with Canon MV900 cameras and edited their videos in Windows Movie Maker, a relatively straight-forward method of filmmaking well within their budding technical capacities.
Nadeem Natour, the trainer for concept and camera, has developed a curriculum in cooperation with the coordinator of the Production Project, which will be re-used by other schools that join this project. The curriculum was divided into three principal subjects: background and theory, filming and editing.
The outcomes were that 30 pupils were trained in camera use, editing and scenario-building. On the eve of June 2008, the Masar participants produced two short films, both entirely produced by the students. The final products from the Mar Elias students were produced at the end of June 2008.
Participants have developed a novel understanding of visual media, and have undergone great efforts to plan their own projects. To a certain extent they are able to work independently and create their individual media content. This training provided only for the very basics, and surely the participants with potential would need more exercise and training to fulfill this potential.
This product will enable I’lam to access target groups currently not being reached and will open avenues for further cooperation. Participants and their family members/school contacts can be added to our database and may serve as a base for the establishment of other projects, such as a cinema club at I’lam. The films produced will be made available on I’lam’s website, the schools’ websites where possible and on DVD. Cooperation with local and international media and Internet outlets for promotional purposes will be initiated.
The Goethe Institute in Cairo was contacted regarding possible funding for this project, and provided 3,000 Euros to support it.
High School Leadership and Media Training- Mahawir
As part of a joint project between the Al-Ahali Center and I’lam, the Mahawir project has been developed as a youth leadership and media training course. The training has begun of four youth groups in four different locations (Majd al-Krum, Nazareth, Akka and Umm el-Fahem) in leadership and media skills. The four groups will produce a piece of media material, either a news reports or a newspaper supplement. Majd al-Krum and Akka groups chose to work with the written press medium; while Nazareth and Umm El Fahem groups are working in video production.
The implementation of the project began in September 2007 with two groups from Majd al-Krum and Nazareth.
In cooperative effort, Al-Ahali started the training with classes on leadership issues, where after I’lam started the theoretical and practical media training for 30 hours (10 sessions of 3 hours).
Majd al-Krum (Written press). A group of 23 young people from Majd al-Krum completed in early January a series of 30 hour meetings on media skills: theories of media effects, theories of media and democracy, censorship, the media and social change, and the media and economic interests taught by Haneen Zoubi and Sonia Boulos.
The students also attended practical workshops on how to produce written media material offered by Mr. Khaleel Haddad, the editor of the Al Ittihad daily newspaper. Pupils learned how to write news, articles, reports, press releases and interviews. Instruction was provided on the ethics of media, critical reading of media and the participants discussed various topics such as the Israeli media and its influence on Palestinian identity, the Arab local media and its influence in shaping the Palestinian identity or the influence of foreign Arab satellite televisions on Palestinian identity.
Regarding practical aspects, the students worked with local newspaper dailies and international news items, discussed issues such as the dialogue and reciprocity between local and global news, the relationship of women and the media, and the link between media corporations and conglomerates, the financial sphere, and reporting. Finally, terminology in news reports was analysed to delve further into the hidden meanings and the impacts of words used.
As an outcome, the group from Majd al-Krum produced an 8-page A4-size magazine.
Akka (Written press). The 17 pupils group from Akka will attend the same theory media classes and practical media training as the group from Majd al-Krum, taught by Mr. Ghassan Bsoul who formerly worked as an editor at HOT television network. The group completed its ten meetings on issues similar to those taught to the Majd al-Krum group. One of the articles written by the Akka group was published in the Arab newspaper, Hadith al-Nas.
In September, the Majd al-Krum and Akka groups collaborated in the production and publication of a 16-page newspaper supplement that took the project’s name, ‘Mahawir’. 4,000 copies of this newspaper were distributed with the newspaper El-‘enwan El-raeesi and also sent to the towns of Majd al-Krum, Akka and Nazareth. The newspaper explored a number of relevant and timely issues such as the work and legacy of the Palestinian poet and author, Mahmoud Darwish, who passed away in August 2008. Other articles dealt with topics such as the socioeconomic reality of Akka’s Palestinian Arab residents and the challenges they face with the municipality and the Israeli authorities, defending freedom of the press in Israel, Arab youth identity and the Arab education system in Israel, Chavez’s policy towards the US, and US-Russian relations in light of the conflict with Georgia.
Nazareth (Video Production). In Nazareth a group of 16 young people were brought together to take part in this training course which began on 26 November 2007. After introductory meetings and activities to build group interaction held at the Al-Ahali Center, the group completed nine academic hours of theoretical training on the making of a television news report. This training was held at I’lam and led by Mr. Ghassan Bsoul, an experienced journalist and TV news editor. Thereafter, the group progressed into practical instruction as taught by Mr. Murad Bsoul, an experienced video media professional, cameraperson and filmmaker, who taught for 18 hours on camera use and editing. On March 15, the practical outcome of this group’s training was finalized, an 8-minute film about the destroyed Palestinian village of Ma’alul in the North of Israel.
Umm El Fahem (Video Production). The group from Umm El Fahem began the training on 2 February 2008 with Al-Ahali Center. After introductory meetings, I’lam started to train the group on practical media aspects on 7 June 2008. The students completed eight sessions for a total of 28 hours media training, including filming, with Wael Awad, an experienced TV and print journalist. The final product was a film completed on August 28 2008 that spoke to the very pertinent issue of career options after high school. | 
