Through global, regional, and country-level programs, we work with journalists in developing countries to build their competence, understanding, and commitment to provide effective and high-profile coverage of health and population issues. Our work with journalists includes sponsoring seminars on these issues and providing support for reporters to attend and cover regional and international conferences.
We work in a variety of ways with journalists in developing countries to build their understanding and commitment to provide effective and prominent coverage of reproductive health, gender and other population-related issues. We form global and regional networks of journalists and hold annual or semi-annual seminars to provide the latest information on the issues and give them an opportunity to share their experiences and ideas. We also sponsor journalists to attend relevant regional and international conferences and facilitate their coverage of these events.
Women's Edition
The Women's Edition project brings together senior-level women journalists from influential media organizations in different countries to examine and report on pressing issues affecting women's health and status in the developing world. Journalists are selected to participate in the program for two years, during which they attend four seminars and produce in-depth reports for their media outlets. Read more.
Pop'Médiafrique and Fem’Mediafrique
Pop'Médiafrique is a network of print and broadcast editors ("gatekeepers") and senior journalists from Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal. The participants attend seminars that focus on improving media coverage of reproductive health with data-based reporting and increased communication with local health officials. Fem’Mediafrique is a network of women journalists from the same countries who, in collaboration with the Pop’Mediafrique editors, produce news stories and radio programs on reproductive health issues.
South Asian Media Network
The South Asian Media Network was formed in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to bolster news reporting of family planning and reproductive health in the region. Journalists from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, the Maldives, Nepal, and Pakistan attended their first network seminar in 2006.
Haiti
In collaboration with the Haitian organization, Réseau Liberté, PRB facilitated a media training seminar for 11 Haitian journalists titled, "Empowering women through improved access to family planning and raising awareness of violence against women." The seminar was funded by the USAID Mission in Haiti. PRB continues to provide the journalists mentoring and support to continue their coverage of family planning and gender violence issues in Haiti.
Africawoman
PRB has sponsored several editions of Africawoman, an online and printed newspaper published by a network of women journalists from eight African countries: Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The newspaper is circulated in those countries as well as to community radio stations across the continent. The PRB-sponsored newspaper editions have examined reproductive health, gender-based violence, and maternal mortality.
Conferences
PRB further builds the capacity of journalists who participate in its seminars by sponsoring their attendance at international and regional conferences and meetings on population and reproductive health issues.
Most recently, PRB assembled a group of journalists from across Africa in September 2006 to attend a preconference seminar and to cover a meeting of the African Union Conference of Ministers of Health in Maputo, Mozambique. The 11 journalists wrote or broadcast for newspapers and radio stations in Ghana, Senegal, Mali, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
PRB sponsored a three-day seminar in June 2006 to educate 22 journalists from Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, and Uganda on family planning, maternal mortality, and other reproductive health issues. Organized with the Population Council and the National Press Foundation, the seminar prepared the journalists to cover the 2nd Africa Conference on Reproductive Health and Rights.
Contact Deborah Mesce, 202-483-1100.