Working together in Mosul

Sunday June 10, IMCK organized a workshop consisting of five days on developing basic expertise in news-journalism in TV to improve the quality of journalism in Mosul. Nynke la Porte from the Netherlands was the trainer of the workshop in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. Mazen Tayar, a journalist from Basra, assisted as co-trainer. The practical focus during the workshop was on how to make a good news-item for television.

In this workshop Mosul journalists of different backgrounds not only met each other and were introduced to some practical knowledge about journalism, but at the same time they were taught how to integrate different perspectives and sources in their reports. The workshop aims to boost the expertise of the attending journalists and to create an awareness of the role media can play within the complex situation of Mosul and of the consequences reports can have in the often intense situation.

Mosul is the hotbed of Iraq, where Kurds, Arabs, Turkmen and the different minority groups clash and where a big part of the city is under Islamic control. The terrorist groups are controlling a part of the province as well as the city. Journalists from outside do not go to this area. Mosul is a dangerous place for journalists. Many of them have to work incognito, always afraid of abduction and revenge. Yet Mosul journalists need to know more about the basics of journalism, and most importantly, about how to make sure they are not used by parties or groups to set up people against each other.

In the near future, IMCK will organize a second workshop on improving the quality of journalism in Mosul, but this time the focus will be on print. The US Department of State has made these two workshops possible.

For more pictures of the training see our Facebook. Also information on other workshops can be found on the same page.