About
As part of our work to bolster the resilience of independent media globally, this programme aims to strengthen media ecosystems in Kenya, South Africa, and Zambia. Through collaboration with local partners, we provide a combination of media and legal support to counter efforts to undermine free and open information environments.
Our work involves raising awareness of media capture, building capacity and upskilling journalists and newsrooms to counteract influence – increasing resilience and strengthening their independence – and providing strategic legal support to journalists and media outlets.
Overview
Journalists and media outlets in certain countries face significant pressures that threaten their sustainability and independence. Legal attacks on journalists have proliferated globally in recent years, as a weapon to stifle critical reporting. In response, we have developed an expanded legal support programme for journalists and media organisations, to strengthen their ability to prevent and defend themselves against these targeted attacks.
To address increasing challenges and threats that journalists and newsrooms face in Kenya, Zambia and South Africa, we designed a tailored package that included operational legal support to help strengthen organisational health and resilience, legal research on media laws to facilitate a better understanding of the regulatory landscape, programmes that address specific legal threats, and the development of practical legal resources for journalists.
Highlights
Our innovative media and legal support included the following key components:
- Mentorship for journalists producing public interest stories, alongside a pre-publication legal review and advice on how to mitigate risk from a local lawyer.
- A raft of practical legal resources and training on defamation and journalistic sources, to better equip media practitioners navigate legal threats. We also developed a pre-publication due diligence tool shared with over 250 journalists and media practitioners that provided a checklist of legal factors to consider before publication. These resources were then embedded into a two-day training course we facilitated for journalists to better understand how to build resilience against legal attacks.
- Legal health checks for media outlets, and research into national legal frameworks, and information on accessing TRF’s own legal support services for journalists at risk. shared and discussed with senior media practitioners.
- Bespoke journalism training, and a mentorship programme for business and editorial planning.
Media outlets
were given legal health checks to help them identify legal vulnerabilities and – where eligible – refer them to our pro bono legal service TrustLaw for ongoing support. Several outlets have already joined the service.
Journalists and media practitioners
participated in events where we shared our ‘Know Your Rights Guides’ on defamation and journalistic sources, to better equip them to report on critical issues without fear of legal attack.
Of our legal training participants
demonstrated increased understanding of the key legal threats that affected their work following the programme.
Our Impact
As a result of the project, journalists reported feeling more confident in their skills and knowledge to confront legal threats and remain independent. Participants said they found the resources useful and highly relevant to their work. Our combined media and legal interventions successfully raised awareness of the legal considerations and key threats that journalist face in Kenya, Zambia and South Africa, and provided essential support and knowledge to better equip them to counter these threats.
As an editor, I will first have a one-day mini workshop with my team of reporters and news presenters to go through the pre-publication due diligence so as to be on the good side when it comes to what should and shouldn’t be aired. I will always, going forward, be guided by the checklist.
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