09:00-10:30: Keynote and welcome

Meeting room: Sydneshaugen Hødden, 2nd floor

• Jean-Christophe Delmas (Norwegian Helsinki Committee), opens the event
  Moderator of the opening session and welcome address.
• Jørgen Watne Frydnes (PEN Norway, Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee), will provide the keynote address on the state of press freedom in Norway and the EU
  Opening remarks on the state of press freedom in Norway and the EU.
• Simona Constantinescu (Head of Advocacy, FDSC Romania), says a few words on the role the EEA Grants are playing in supporting journalism in Europe

10:30-11:00: Coffee break

11:00-12:30: Freedom of the press in Europe

Meeting room: Sydneshaugen Hødden, 2nd floor

In this session we’ll go through the state of the media sector, while honing in on how SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) are increasingly used to intimidate and silence journalists across Europe.

• Journalist and President of the European Federation of Journalists, Maja Sever, gives an overview of the state of freedom of the press and the role of trade unions in preserving it
• Joanna Szymańska, Head of Europe Office (Article 19) gives an introduction to SLAPPs, their chilling effects on freedom of the press, and the EU’s response through the Media Freedom Act
• Nawojka Ciborska, Activist (Last Generation, Poland) was the target of a SLAPP for her climate activism. Nawojka shares how she fought back.

Buffet served in common area

13:30-15:00: Parallel Sessions

Room 1: Going above and beyond: what role for civic media?

The emergence of “civic media” over the past decade has sparked curiosity and debate, particularly as it blurs the lines between news media and non-governmental organizations.

Moderator: Mirna Šmit (Community Foundation Slagalica, Croatia)

• Even Skyrud, Writer for Erlik Oslo, talks about the incredible impact the street magazine has had on Oslo’s rough-sleepers
• Krzysztof Wiejak (jawnylublin.pl, Poland) journalist at a leading online outlet in Lublin, Poland talks us through his work and the civic media trend.

Room 2: Audio storytelling

The enduring and growing impact of sound in media is the focus of this session, featuring some of the most innovative audio storytelling projects.

Moderator: Agnieszka Lichnerowicz (TOK FM Radio, Poland)

• Tiril Solvang, Journalist (NRK, Oppdatert), shares the recipe behind Norway’s leading news podcast.
• Hilde Sandvik, Journalist (Broen.xyz) and podcast host at “Norsken Svensken og Dansken“, tells all about running a multilingual podcast, badged as badged as “Pan-Scandinavian couples therapy”.
• Host of The Europeans Podcast, Katy Lee  (The Europeans, France), shares how her show works to make European affairs accessible and engaging.

15:00-15:30: Coffee Break

15:30-16:30: Self-regulation and journalism ethics in Norway

Meeting room: Sydneshaugen Hødden, 2nd floor

Norwegian news media has a unique model of self-regulation, one where outlets, journalists and trade unions, work together to ensure high ethical standards and trust in the media remains high

• Eva Stabell (Norwegian Union of Journalists) will discuss the critical role of trade unions in supporting journalists and maintaining ethical standards. She will also cover the relationship between politicians and the media, and discuss the all-important Vær varsom (“be attentive”) charter.

18:30-19:00: Dinner

A dinner buffet will be served at Media City Bergen.

19:00: “The Killing of a Journalist”: screening and panel discussion

Screening of the documentary movie “The Killing of a Journalist” (2022) at Media City Bergen (Atlantis movie theatre), will begin at 19:00.

Join us for the screening of the critically acclaimed documentary “The Killing of a Journalist” about the killing of Slovak journalist, Jan Kuciak, followed by a panel discussion.

Lukas Diko – Editor-in-Chief,  Investigative Center of Jan Kuciak

Annamária Dömeová – Colleague of Jan Kuciak
Reflecting on Jan Kuciak’s legacy and the impact of his work.

09:00-10:30: Disinformation from the local to the geopolitical

Meeting room: Sydneshaugen Hødden, 2nd floor

Disinformation is nothing new, but since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it has truly blossomed. This session will look at some of its surprising and pernicious manifestations.

Moderator: Victor Breiner (Insitute for Resilience Building, Slovakia)

• Morten Langfeldt Dahlback (Faktisk.no), from Norway’s leading factchecker, exposes the proliferation of malicious, fake local media, set up to manipulate public discouse.
• Amund Trellevik (Investigate Europe) shares insights from the far North of Norway, where proximity to the Russian border presents unique challenges for journalists

10:30-11:00: Coffee Break

11:00-12:30: The EU election debriefing

Meeting room: Sydneshaugen Hødden, 2nd floor

Delving into the narratives and outcomes of the EU elections, with a particular focus on the media’s role.

Moderator: Jean-Christophe Delmas (Norwegian Helsinki Committee)

• Lise Rye, Professor of Contemporary European History (NTNU), provides an overarching analysis of the EU election results, identifying trends and their relevance
• Arun Chaudhary, Filmmaker, former creative director for the Obama campaigns and Bernie Sanders campaigns, and now a leading progressive campaigner in Europe shares his efforts to combat the rise of the far-right.

Buffet served in common area

13:30-15:00: Parallel Sessions:

Room 1: Datajournalism for local journalism

Explore how data journalism supports local reporting and storytelling with practical examples from Norway and Hungary.

• Øivind Skjervheim, data journalist (Landslanget for Lokalaviser) Shares insights from the “Samarbeidsdesken”, an initiative by 70 local newspapers in Norway to create a common datajournalism resource
• Data journalists Lasse Lambrechts and Philipp Bock (Bergens Tidende), present their award-winning story “Three shots in Ibsensgate” which uses 3D modelling in an unprecedented way.
• Zsuzsanna Wirth (Direkt36, Hungary), presents her yearlong investigation into the systemic coverup of hospital-acquired infections in Hungarian hospitals.

Room 2: Investigative journalism for the environment

Norway has emerged as a hub for climate and environmental journalism, with us to discuss how are some of best practitioners at both the national and local level.

Moderator: Per Christian Magnus (Center for Investigative Journalism, University of Bergen)

• Astrid Rommetveit, Climate journalist (NRK Vestland), speaks about how the Bergen branch of Norway’s public broadcaster came to rank among the world-leaders in climate journalism.
• The Wasteland project saw 30 local newspapers carry out in-depth reporting on plastic waste, join to hear about the results.

15:30-16:30: Keeping local media afloat: approaches to financing

Meeting room: Sydneshaugen Hødden, 2nd floor

An examination of financing models for local media, from government subsidies to innovative funding strategies.

Moderator: Veronika Móra (Ökotárs Foundation)

• Hanne Sekkelsten (Norwegian Media Authority), provides an overview of the Norwegian government’s approach to subsidizing media
• Oxana Iutes (Internews, Moldova), explores how Internews uses re-granting to buffet local media’s independence in Moldova.
• A leading expert on the media funding landscape, Peter Erdelyi (Center for Sustainable Media), will look into the state of the sector and the effects of the donor-driven model.

Dinner location: Permanenten in Bergen city center.

Mediterranean buffet.

Find the location with Google Maps here.

09:00-10:00: The AI toolbox

Meeting room: Sydneshaugen Hødden, 2nd floor

Moderator: Kuba Wygnański (Shipyard Foundation)

• How can journalists best make use of AI? The answer changes every week, but Helge Svela, CEO at Media City Bergen and former journalist at Bergens Tidende, is well-equipped to try.
• Wojciech Oleksiak (The Europeans) uses AI voice cloning to overcome language barriers in radio,

10:00-10:15: Coffee Break

10:15-11:45: Parallel workshops

Room 1: Administrative capacity for freelancers and small outlets

Workshop

• Civil society stalwart, Vlad Dumitrescu (FDSC), shares his knowledge of effective administrative management in a workshop tailored to small media outlets with little to no administrative capacity.

Room 2: How to engage on social media (Instagram & TikTok)

Workshop

•  TBC

1 hour lunch, buffet.

We arrange four separate study trips which require registration by participants.

• Bergens Tidende local newspaper
• Bergen city tour
• Grieg’s house

The registration form will be published here soon.