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Promoting Excellence in Diversity Coverage: Media NGOs and Roma Representation in Hungary

This presentation by Sándor Orbán discusses the critical role media development NGOs play in promoting diversity and representing vulnerable minorities, particularly the Roma community in Hungary. It highlights the challenges of anti-Roma sentiment, sensationalism in media portrayal, and the need for better representation. It identifies positive trends, such as increased sensitivity in quality news outlets and efforts to diversify newsrooms. The presentation also outlines strategies to promote fair coverage of Roma through media self-regulation, journalistic training, and developing supportive networks within the media landscape.

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Promoting Excellence in Diversity Coverage: Media NGOs and Roma Representation in Hungary

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  1. How to Promote Excellence in Diversity Coverage – the role of media development NGOs in new EU countries----the case of Roma in Hungary Presentation by Sándor Orbán

  2. Background • SEENPM: a Network of 18 media development NGOs from 12 countries (including 4 new EU countries) since 2000 • Mission: to promote excellence in journalism through advocacy, research, training, exchange, dissemination of good practices • Reporting diversity, media ethics, self-regulation, human rights – high on the agenda • Registered in Albania, office in Budapest at CIJ • CIJ, Budapest: first newsroom diversification project for Roma in the region since 1998 • Partners: MDI (reporting diversity manual in 1997), ERRC, AI, HCLU, Freedom House Europe,etc.

  3. Focus on Roma – why? • The most vulnerable minority in Europe • Excluded from employment, housing, education, health services, justice • 5-10 per cent of the population in most Eastern European countries • Deteriorating situation because of the crisis • Anti-Roma sentiments fuelled by extreme right wing radical groups now represented in the Parliament • A wave of racially motivated attacks against Roma

  4. Portrayal of Roma in the mainstream media- controversial trends Positive developments • More sensitivity to vulnerable groups at certain quality news outlets • Media self-regulation/press councils/codes of conduct • Willingness to hire Roma journalists at certain news outlets/newsroom diversification efforts • Regional efforts to strengthen quality journalism including the coverage of minorities (awards, trainer training programs, editorial guidelines)

  5. Negative trends • Tabloidization – growing sensationalism, stereotypical presentation of Roma (e.g. the coverage of the suicide of the former prime minister’s spokesman • Division in media along political lines – open racism/anti-gypsyism at certain news outlets • Devastating impact of the financial crisis mostly on traditional media – deterioration in quality and labour relations • Hate speech in the cyber space on extreme right wing portals and blogs • Frequent criminalization of Roma in reporting • Lack of providing the context, human angle in the stories • We-they discourse – Roma, as passive objects in the coverage

  6. Forced assimilation versus intercultural dialogue Negatives signs • 80% favour the forced assimilation of Roma • the majority believes that ‘gypsy crime’ exists • 75% reject positive action • 23% think that non-Roma can help Roma Positive efforts • Decade of Roma Inclusion (WB, OSI, 12 governments) • Council of Europe campaigns (Dosta, Speak out against discrimination!) • Local initiatives No or limited visible results, often wasted resources.

  7. How to promote a fair portrayal of Roma? - the role of media NGOs • Promote and support media self-regulation (codes of conduct, style books, complaint mechanisms) • Incorporate reporting diversity in journalism curricula • Generate in-depth discussion involving newsroom decision-makers • Support media, especially PSB to produce quality reports on Roma • Train minority journalists and promote newsroom diversification

  8. Roma mainstream media internship program • Launched in 1998 – the first such initiative in post-communist countries, 11th class • One-year program – a combination of classroom training and internship in the newsroom • 104 graduates, 40 per cent work in media, award-winning alumni • 2003: Evans prize, 2009: one of the top 30 reporting diversityinitiatives in Europe

  9. Sosi? What’s up? www.sosinet.hu • Multimedia content produced by CIJ Roma alumni – cooperation with Romanian and Slovak partners • Distribution of the content to mainstream and Roma outlets in Hungary and abroad • Capacity building of Roma news outlets (e.g. Radio C, Roma Press Center) through training and consultancy • Setting up a database of Roma professionals to help mainstream media diversify sources • Reaching out to digital natives through www.sosinet.hu using social media (more than 100 unique visitors per day (average 4 minutes and 4,32 intersite clicks)

  10. Thank you for the attention.

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