Media Information

Responsible Media (Journalism) in Sierra Leone:A national agenda for peace and development

2009-04-23T18:14:01Z

A Paper presented at the Theological College, Freetown

Introduction

Academic staff of the Theological College, Principal, Deans, Students, Ladies and Gentlemen!I must admit and express how happy I am to be chosen to give this lecture since I understand that you had the opportunity to choose, perhaps a better and eloquent personality, from among many that are my contemporaries. However, as always, I am certain that I will not disappoint you and that by the time we leave here, and perhaps after a fruitful exchange of ideas on the issue under discussion, we would have again raised the relevance of the local and international media. If not for my seventeen years within the Sierra Leonean Media, but also because I have had some opportunity in doing just what you have asked me to do in both local and international fora over the recent few years.

THE MEDIA: TRAINING AND PROFESSIONALISM

2009-03-21T12:01:20Z

Introduction

The old adage that a journalist is born and not made appears to have continued to gain currency in the Sierra Leone media, despite attempts to improve professionalism in the field through training. This is unfortunate, writes Bernadette Cole. Sound education and training is essential for professional, responsible journalism.

THE PRESS, FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND DEMOCRACY IN SIERRA LEONE

2009-03-21T11:53:09Z

The 1991 Democratic constitution of the Republic of Sierra Leone specifically protects press freedom – unlike many other constitutions in Africa and around the world. Section 25(1) of the constitution forbids the hindering of “Freedom of expression… the freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas without interference… freedom to own establish and operate any medium for the dissemination of information, ideas and opinions, and academic freedom in institutions of learning”

A Foreign Journalist’s Life in the Heart of Sierra Leone

2009-03-21T11:49:28Z

I always find it comical when I talk to people who say they’ve been to Sierra Leone before. I hear it all the time from UN personnel, certain IMATT soldiers, and countless NGO workers. “I love the beaches! What do you like most about Freetown Rob?” “Having my back to it as I travel up line,” I always say.

THE CHANGING FACE OF THE MEDIA IN SIERRA LEONE

2009-03-21T11:44:05Z

The changing face of the media in Sierra Leone cannot be fully assessed without an in-depth consideration of the political atmosphere in which the media operates. The political scene, to a great extent, influences media practice in every step of the way. Since the establishment of the first newspaper in the colonial era, the media in Sierra Leone has had to go through many phases of political change and that has affected journalism extensively.

The Media Before, During and After the War

2009-03-21T11:40:32Z

In this discussion of the trajectory of the media – print and electronic – before, during and after the war, I focus The Media Before, broadly on the following areas: Access, Technological Development and General Practice.

SLAJ: The last battle?

2009-03-21T11:33:27Z

It may sound a little cruel, but I would really like to see the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) fighting for its very survival. That’s the time you get the best out of the greats and the upstarts.

Not a pyrrhic victory.

2009-03-17T11:09:55Z

“We would be doing what we know best” was an answer when Isaac Massaquoi was once asked as to why he wanted to team up with another journalist, David Tam-Baryoh, to put resources together to secure and operate one of the biggest commercial radio stations in Sierra Leone. After several months, if not a whole year, the radio (FM 91.3) is now on air. It is heard in panguma and pendembu in the east, Moyamba and Bonthe in the far south and Karina, Kambia and Bimkolo in the north of the country; covering altogether a two-third airwaves portion of Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone Media Report

2009-01-29T16:22:47Z

This is the Sierra Leone Media report by The BBS World Service Trust. Please Click here to view or download and read the complete report. The document is in PDF format and you may need Adobe Acrobat which you can download from http://www.adobe.com/acrobat

CORRUPTION AND THE MEDIA: A SYNERGY OF CONVINIENCE

2009-01-19T16:29:25Z

This work by Mr. David T. Baryoh is an attempt to solve the puzzle of Sierra Leone’s poverty. How can this small West African country; with abundant rainfall and arable land, a network of rivers and with seas teeming with fish….a land blessed with abundant mineral resources with a young population, largely free from the ravages of HIV/AIDS (incidence is still below 5%), be almost last on the U.N. Human Development Index?