Institute
Are foreign correspondents redundant?
Saturday 11 December 2010
Sambrook introduced his 100-page analysis to an audience of news professionals at Thomson Reuters’ London headquarters at Canary Wharf on Wednesday and then took part in a panel discussion chaired by David Schlesinger, Reuters editor-in-chief. The other panellists were Lindsey Hilsum of Channel 4 News, John Owen of Al-Jazeera and City University, and Fran Unsworth, BBC head of newsgathering.
Three main factors have contributed to the gradual demise of traditional foreign correspondents, according to Sambrook:
● Economic – cost cutting as the old business model of Western news organisations has had to adapt to tougher commercial pressures
● Technological – the impact of rapid change in international communications, digital reporting techniques and the Internet
● Cultural – globalisation, familiarisation and the rise of local reporters and “citizen journalists”.
On balance Sambrook concluded that he found more reasons to be optimistic than pessimistic about the future of international reporting. Answering his own question, are foreign correspondents redundant, he replies in his paper: “By no means. But they will be very different from their predecessors and work in very different ways to serve the digital news environment of the 21st century.”
The panel agreed on the need for new business models and new operating methods, while insisting on the fundamental responsibility of the media to bear witness through professional reporting directly from the scene – what John Owen called “ground truth”.
They also agreed that the crisis in international news reporting was principally a Western phenomenon, with much greater growth expected in Asia and other rapidly developing societies around the world.
● CLICK to read more about the Reuters Institute at Oxford and Richard Sambrook’s research paper
Foundation hikes funding for Oxford Institute
Friday 11 June 2010
Thomson Reuters Foundation has increased its core funding for the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, an Oxford University programme.
It announced a 19 per cent increase over three years which it said would further strengthen collaboration between academics and practising journalists. The Foundation will give £1.25 million for 2011-2013 to the Institute, which is based in the Department of Politics and International Relations at Oxford. This is an increase of £200,000 over a three year period compared with current funding.
"This renewal (of funding) underscores The Thomson Reuters Foundation’s commitment to building the global reputation of The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (RISJ) at Oxford University as an international centre of excellence for research and debate in journalism," a Foundation news release said.
The Institute was established in November 2006 with an initial five-year grant from the Thomson Reuters Foundation, building on the Reuters Journalism Fellowship Programme funded by the Foundation since 1983. The Fellowship Programme remains at the core of the Institute, a globally recognised research centre in the comparative study of journalism which has an international perspective. It provides a forum for scholars from a wide range of disciplines to engage with journalists from around the world.
Monique Villa, Foundation chief executive, said: “We are very proud of our long association with Oxford and see our support for the Institute as a critical part of the Foundation's mission to improve the standards of journalism worldwide. At a time of considerable turmoil in the international media industry, the role of the Institute in producing high quality research and as a forum for public debate between practitioners, academics and policymakers is increasingly valuable and important.”
● SOURCE Thomson Reuters Foundation
● Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
It announced a 19 per cent increase over three years which it said would further strengthen collaboration between academics and practising journalists. The Foundation will give £1.25 million for 2011-2013 to the Institute, which is based in the Department of Politics and International Relations at Oxford. This is an increase of £200,000 over a three year period compared with current funding.
"This renewal (of funding) underscores The Thomson Reuters Foundation’s commitment to building the global reputation of The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (RISJ) at Oxford University as an international centre of excellence for research and debate in journalism," a Foundation news release said.
The Institute was established in November 2006 with an initial five-year grant from the Thomson Reuters Foundation, building on the Reuters Journalism Fellowship Programme funded by the Foundation since 1983. The Fellowship Programme remains at the core of the Institute, a globally recognised research centre in the comparative study of journalism which has an international perspective. It provides a forum for scholars from a wide range of disciplines to engage with journalists from around the world.
Monique Villa, Foundation chief executive, said: “We are very proud of our long association with Oxford and see our support for the Institute as a critical part of the Foundation's mission to improve the standards of journalism worldwide. At a time of considerable turmoil in the international media industry, the role of the Institute in producing high quality research and as a forum for public debate between practitioners, academics and policymakers is increasingly valuable and important.”
● SOURCE Thomson Reuters Foundation
● Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
