Training journalists in Armenia

The recent armed conflict in Nagorno Karabakh has highlighted several gaps among the Armenian media community. Many local reporters would be dragged into a conflict zone for the first time in their lives, putting both their lives and others´ in danger while avoiding crossing “red lines” to harmonize with the propaganda blasted by the government. Besides, the international community would mostly rely on foreign reporters on the ground who could boast a wide experience in conflict reporting but often lacked the most basic background knowledge about the region. As a result, the coverage of the last war in Nagorno Karabakh was marred with cliches and silences which made it very difficult to understand what was really going on.

How?

The activity is developed during six full days and in groups of 10-15 people in Goris (Armenia), between Aug 2-7. We offer four different blocks (ten hours each).

1 Print journalism

2 Photography

3 Video

4 Hostile Environment Training (HET)

At the end of the course, the students will be capable of bringing together various multimedia elements, from writing for online to recording and editing video. How to approach the international media and pitch their work as well as Hostile Environment Training are key issues which we also tackle.

Who is our target audience?

Other than full time journalists or journalism students we also look for writers or bloggers who are active in social media and want to switch from activism to journalism. Ideally, participants should be based in sensitive regions like Artsakh or Syunik so they can report from the ground when/if needed.

Who are our trainers?

Our lecturers are professional journalists who work as reporters, photographers or camera operators in hostile environments. Two of them covered the last Karabakh war filing for The Independent, Haaretz or The Middle East Eye, among others, and they had worked in the area several times before.

Block 1: Print journalism

Karlos Zurutuza is a reporter covering human rights and conflict. He´s visited Nagorno Karabakh several times and he also covered the last war (he was evacuated alongside the last journalists on the ground). Over almost two decades he´s filed print and multimedia stories for international English speaking publications and broadcasters such as The Guardian, Al Jazeera, Haaretz, Vicenews, The Middle East Eye, The Diplomat Magazine. Deutsche Welle, Politico… He has received several recognitions such as the NAB Reporting Award or the Argia Award, and he´s also the author of three books.

Block 2: Photography

Andoni Lubaki is a photojournalist digging into stories in the Maghreb and the Middle East regions. During the last decade he´s covered the main events for AP, AFP and his work has been published by Newsweek, the New York Times or The Washington Post. Among his worst moments as a photographer was his kidnapping in Syria by Islamist cells, but he´s also won several recognitions international awards such as the Chris Hondros Memorial Award ot The Picture of the Year. In 2016 he was selected among Spain´s best photojournalists and his work was shown in prestigious venues such as Círculo de Bellas Artes, Palau Robert or the Copenhagen International Festival.

Block 3: Video

Jewan Abdi is a cameraman and a news producer currently working for the BBC. He´s conducted most of his work in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Turkey, focusing on the impact of Middle East conflicts and the war against the Islamic State. As a Kurd from Syria he´s got a great knowledge of the region as well as a unique access to stories which usually remain overlooked. Among the several recognitions he´s received so far he counts two Emmy awards, a One World Award and a Children in Conflict.

Block 4: Hostile Environment Training (HET)

Gilad Sade is a roving photojournalist and an experienced Hostile Environment trainer who grew up in one of the most violent areas in the Israeli Palestinian conflict. That very much shaped how he saw the world and his place in it. Disillusioned, he eventually left his country and started exploring the world. Gilad’s work focuses on raising awareness for human rights throughout the world: he has documented life in Israel and Palestine and in post-Communist conflict zones. Over the last five years he´s reported extensively from Nagorno Karabakh and he also covered the last war (he was evacuated alongside the last journalists on the ground.