Golden Pig at DOK19

elisabe on 27. May 2019

Shahidul Alam from Pathshala and David Engmo, student at OsloMet

Students from four countries opened an exhibition and launched a book with fresh images from China – Golden Pig – during DOK19 in Fredrikstad 24 May.

In his opening remarks, Shahidul Alam, the founder of Pathshala South Asian Media Institute in Bangladesh, drew the line back to the start of the cooperation with partners in Norway around twenty years ago.

Afterwards a new cooperation agreement with Pathshala was signed by Marja Lundell, the Director of the Faculty of Social Sciences at Oslo Metropolitan University, present at the opening in Fredrikstad.

One student and one teacher came from photo.circle in Nepal, from Pathshala in Bangladesh and from Mino Art Center in China – to celebrate with ten Norwegian students, friends and colleagues.

Most of them were participants at DOK19 – a national festival for documentary photography and photojournalism running from 23 until 25 May.

The exhibition outside the House of Literature

Students from China, Nepal, Bangladesh and Norway meeting again

Marja Lundell from OsloMet with Shahidul Alam from Pathshala

No platforming and free expression

elisabe on 10. May 2019

JMICs two-day conference on the above topic took place earlier this week, with appr. 30 speakers and panellists. The participants represented a diversity of views and experiences, which was demonstrated both by the Scandinavian variety when it comes to the #metoo campaign and treatment of right-wing extremists, to a discussion on the invitation of Steve Bannon to the Nordic Media Days in Bergen. Experiences from countries where giving platform to extremists entails mainstreaming terrorists (Pakistan, Bangladesh, Tunisia, etc.) were exchanged. War reporters discussed the challenge of embedding and giving voice to jihadists. And a lively conversation with Peter Münster from Facebook took place after screening the film “The Cleaners”.

Keynote speaker Eric Heinze discussed in-depth arguments for and against No platforming.

A short text cannot pay justice to such a full program. The organizers will consider a publication from this conference.

PRESS FREEDOM DAY

elisabe on 3. May 2019

The department of journalism and media studies supported by JMIC today honoured the Press Freedom day with a keynote on cartoons and free expression, a panel discussion and a film screening. Even if Norway is top ranked in the annual list from Reporters Without Borders, the panel mentioned several issues of concern, such as threats and harassment against journalists, political propositions which limit access to information and journalist autonomy, and surveillance. These factors also open for more journalists exercising a proportion of self censorship, which is a frightening development.

Sidsel Avlund from NRK (Public Broadcasting) presented a survey showing that almost a third of their journalists (29 percent) had experienced harassment, threats etc., and that many of them did not even speak about this to others.

Panel from left to right: Arne Jensen, President of Norwegian Editors Union; Per Elvestuen, Director of Oslo Freedom Forum and cartoonist; Elin Floberghagen, Norwegian Press Association; and Sidsel Avlund, from the Norwegian Public Broadcasting, responsible for journalist safety.

Global Journalism: Conflict, Safety and Peace

elisabe on 3. May 2019

This year’s Master course in Global Journalism: Conflict, Safety and Peace at the OsloMet Metropolitan University had students from Russia, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nepal, Estonia, Morocco and Norway.

During three intense weeks in Norway filled with lectures, visits to Aftenposten and NRK, cultural program and the yearly conference of The Norwegian Foundation for a Free and Investigative Press (SKUP, Stiftelsen for en Kritisk og Undersøkende Presse) the students discussed safety and security, extremism, migration and more, from different angels and experiences.

The course, Global Journalism: Conflict, Safety and Peace, aims at developing advanced competence when it comes to critical research traditions related to post-colonial studies, for example Orientalism and Occidentalism critique, theories of nation and identities, migrancy and transnationalism. Students will also acquire competence in analyzing the links between globalization processes and ethnical dimensions within and between nations and regions. The role of safety for journalists covering war and conflicts is central to the course.

at the skup conference in Tønsberg

Visiting Afteposten

Sabahat Afsheen presenting the situastion for media in Pakistan

At Afteposten

Carlos Parede, Insonesia, at the Skup Conference

Awais Hameed presenting the mediascape in Pakistan

At the Nordic Black Theatre “After the dream”

«No Platforming and Free Expression» 6th and 7th of May 2019, OsloMet

elisabe on 24. April 2019

No Platforming has been much debated across the world due to instances, where individuals have been barred from participating as university speakers, in public panels, and other fora. Opponents to No platforming highlight the dangers of muting controversial voices and fear it can undermine free expression. This conference attempts to address some of the controversies in open and constructive exchanges, and has invited speakers and panelists from several countries, representing a variety of views and experiences.

See the full program here

The particpants

Andina Dwifatma, writer, Indonesia

Ade Armando, Associate professor and journalist, Indonesia

Quatrina Hosain, activist & journalist, Karachi, Pakistan

Niels Ivar Larsen, journalist at Information, Denmark

Eric Heinze, Professor at the School of Law, Queen Mary University of London

Abeer Saady, reporter & PhD fellow, Egypt and Germany

Lena Anderson, writer and journalist, Sweden

Foto: Fabian af Petersens

Essia Atrous, journalist & writer, Tunisia

Lars Gule, Associate Professor at OsloMet

Nora Mehsen, writer & freelancer

Camara Lundestad Joof, writer & artist

Shazia Majid, author and journalist in VG

Mina Adampour, medical doctor & writer

Anne Birgitta Nilsen, Professor at OsloMet

Ane Stø, leader of Ottar Feminist group

Tine Eide, Assistant Professor & Journalist, OsloMet

Bente Kalsnes, Associate Professor at OsloMet

Peter Münster, Facebook – Head of Communications for the Nordic region

Hans Rustad, Editor of Document.no

Mari Skurdal, Editor-in-Chief Klassekampen

Foto: Siv Dolmen.

Maren Fuchsia Celius-Blix, writer & commentator

Ingeborg Senneset, journalist, author and board member Norwegian PEN

Ervin Kohn, deputy director, The Norwegian Center against Racism

Elisabeth Eide, Professor OsloMet

Ahmedur Rashid Chowdhury, Editor of Shuddashahr Magazine, Bangladesh/Norway

Atta Ansari, reporter NRK

Afshin Ismaeli, reporter Aftenposten

Anna M. Grøndal Larsen, Associate Professor at OsloMet

Ingerid Salvesen, Assistant Professor, OsloMet & journalist

Anne-Cécilie Sibué-Birkeland, Theatre Director at Black Box

Knut Olav Åmås, Director, Free Expression Foundation

Andreas Delsett, Artistic Director Oslo House of Literature

Pål Refsdal, Documentary Filmmaker

Ingrid Fadnes, Assistant Professor, OsloMet & journalist

Access to Information workshop in Bangladesh

elisabe on 23. April 2019

A two day workshop on access to information as a journalistic tool was organized by Article 19 Bangladesh and South Asia and JMIC in Dhaka last week.

The 22 participants came from all over the country, and work on different media platforms.

Main trainer Julfikar Ali Manik (Photo: Rofiqur Rahman Reku/Article 19)

The Norwegian ambassador Sidsel Bleken opened the workshop. Present were also two former Chief Information Commissioners, diplomats, editors, teachers and journalists. The main trainer was the investigative journalist Julfikar Ali Manik, who is a stringer for The New York Times.

Second Cairo media conference

elisabe on 11. April 2019

Bente Kalsnes, OsloMet, talks about digital storytelling (Photo: EMDP, Cairo)

Digital storytelling was the main topic at the Cairo Media Conference held at the American University in Cairo on April 3rd and 4th. Read More

Students from four countries visualizing China

elisabe on 30. March 2019

The students from Nepal, Bangladesh, China and Norway the last day of the six weeks training – with some of the Chinese helpers.

After six weeks in the field students from Nepal, Bangladesh, Norway and China are heading home with the luggage full of new images. Read More

Making transparency possible

elisabe on 22. March 2019

Joseph Stiglitz (right) with Kalle Moene

Joseph Stiglitz was one of the key speakers at the 3rd Making Transparency Possible conference – Interdisciplinary dialogues 2019 which took place at OsloMet Monday 18 March. Read More

Pathshala 20 years

elisabe on 11. March 2019

The Chobi Mela team after the last lecture 6 March.

Pathshala South Asian Media Institute in Bangladesh was started 18 December 1998. The 20 years anniversary was celebrated in Dhaka 2 March with Pathshala Day. Read More