Activity Details (ID# 4978)

Activity Synopsis

The aim of this workshop was twofold:
- Give the journalists key elements to achieve independent and strong news
- Give the journalists editorial tools on balance and fairness, visual storytelling

 

The reaction to this first EBU training of television and radio journalists at TRM Chisinau was positive. Both trainers were pleased to find the participants had a good grasp of the modules from the beginning, and we found their answers to the practical exercises sophisticated and professional in approach.

The support of the TRM International Relations department was extremely professional. Unexpected requests from the trainers were handled immediately and in a friendly, helpful manner. The translation was good, the materials were organized to our satisfaction, and fine lunches were arranged for the entire group in a separate dining area each day.

The results of the workshop are excellent. 84 % participants found the workshop completely useful, 92% completely enjoyable and it met completely their expectations for 92% of participants. The participants liked the topics chosen and the practical and efficient approach chosen and they praised the speakers:
'' Each idea had practical examples and exercises. The presentations were very well organized and a lot of information was covered in just 5 days. Good structure: simple to complicated. Teachers are very professional. Each of their words was an idea, each phrase a subject. It was great. The methods were introduced without imposing teachers' point of view. I liked very much the atmosphere, the interesting interactive approach . We were colleagues and that was fine. We learned in 5 days more than in 5 years at University.''
 

Thanks to an excellent partnership between the Council of Europe, TRM and the EBU, the impact of the workshop was very strong.

Whether the good will generated in this first workshop will translate into clear results and better newscasts remains to be seen. All sides expressed a willingness to raise professional standards, and the journalists especially were enthusiastic about the methods presented.

However, the quality of TRM's newscast is poor, consistently leading with stories of ongoing political process or debate in parliament, illustrated by wide angle images of deputies in their chairs. There was little evidence of visual storytelling, narrative structure, or stories about the problems of ordinary ''real people''.
 

Journalists from Television Radio Moldova