Dart Centre Asia Pacific

We are thrilled to share the good news that the President of Pakistan has announced a civil award for DCAP alumni and senior journalist Arshad Aziz Malik. This award recognises Malik’s remarkable contributions to journalism. Malik is widely regarded as one of Pakistan’s foremost journalists, known for his exceptional investigative reporting and commitment to delivering facts to the public. Malik participated in a DCAP trauma training program in Thailand in 2013. His work inspires journalists in Pakistan and beyond, as he remains a leading figure in the fight for transparency, justice, and the public’s right to know. Congratulations Malik!

Upcoming webinar that may be of interest: Bystander Intervention: How to be an ally when you witness online abuse. Held with Right to Be as part of the #ElectSafely campaign on 8/20 4-5p.m. EST. This training will teach journalists and press allies how to support and intervene when they see online abuse against media professionals. Please spread the word about this webinar to reach as many journalists as possible.

APPLY NOW! Dart Centre Asia Pacific has just opened applications for a weekend retreat program for 12 journalists working in regional Australia. The Dart Centre is the only global organisation dedicated to supporting journalists on issues relating to covering violence, trauma and disasters. Dart Centre Asia Pacific is affiliated with the Dart Centre US, which is a project of the Columbia Journalism School. This program will be held on the Bellarine Peninsula in Victoria on October 4-6 2024. The program will include group interactions and experiences, supplemented with more formal learning about trauma and its impacts. It is designed to help you to identify trauma responses in yourself and others, interview trauma survivors, support colleagues in your newsroom, and build a protection plan for your trauma exposure, including exposure from technology-facilitated violence. The cost of the program, accommodation and all meals will be paid for by DCAP, however our funding does not extend to covering the full cost of travel. You will receive a $150 travel contribution towards the cost of making your own way to and from the retreat venue APPLICATION ARE NOW OPEN & WILL CLOSE ON 31 AUGUST 2024. If you are interested, APPLY NOW! APPLY HERE: https://lnkd.in/gxW56vm8

🚨 Attention freelance journalists 🚨 Applications are now open for the 2024 Reporting Safely in Crisis Zones course! In partnership with the ACOS Alliance and the Bronx Documentary Center, the Dart Center is offering its annual four-day crisis zones reporting course for 16 freelance journalists at no cost. The course will be held October 3-6, 2024 at the Bronx Documentary Center in New York City. This course will teach you how to operate with caution in volatile situations, with an emphasis on conflicts and civil unrest. The training is also relevant to working in natural disaster situations such as earthquakes, hurricanes and tsunamis. While most hostile environment training for journalists deals with ducking crossfire and kidnappers, this course will teach you how to avoid unnecessary peril through preparation and planning before, during and after assignments. Participants will emerge from the course with a better understanding of how to work with local producers, shun attackers and protect their digital footprints. The course is open to freelance journalists working in print, photography, video, and/or audio with at least two years of professional experience. Applications are open through July 31st, 2024 at 5pm EST.

“You’ve got to acknowledge that trauma can come in so many different forms.” As the ABC’s chief foreign correspondent until 2021, Philip Williams had covered many traumatic news stories in Australia and around the globe over the previous four decades. In this episode of the Dart Centre Asia Pacific In Ten podcast, he spoke to Lisa Millar about what he encountered and what he found helpful. His first encounter with traumatic stories was, ironically, when he worked on an ABC rural program, where people’s livelihoods had been snatched from them. “To be a good reporter, you have to empathise with people.” Later, he tells Lisa, how covering the Beslan massacre affected him badly as he witnessed the deaths of hundreds of people, many of them children. He also shared tips for balancing the need to get the story with engaging with people sensitively while paying attention to self care.

With two wars continuing to dominate world affairs, ongoing humanitarian crises and public health emergencies, increasing climate-related disasters and extreme weather, and more than half the world living in countries holding national elections, trauma-informed journalism is more important than ever before. During this time of cumulative, unrelenting trauma, please help us support those who keep us informed. As we approach the EOFY, we are asking individuals, businesses and trusts to please consider donating to Dart Centre Asia Pacific. Each donation will assist us in supporting journalists and media workers across the Asia Pacific region through the provision of psychosocial education and training and wellbeing support. Please use the QR code below or the following link to donate today: https://lnkd.in/gcW2V5RC

With two wars continuing to dominate world affairs, ongoing humanitarian crises and public health emergencies, increasing climate-related disasters and extreme weather, and more than half the world living in countries holding national elections, trauma-informed journalism is more important than ever before. During this time of cumulative, unrelenting trauma, please help us support those who keep us informed. As we approach the EOFY, we are asking individuals, businesses and trusts to please consider donating to Dart Centre Asia Pacific. Each donation will assist us in supporting journalists and media workers across the Asia Pacific region through the provision of psychosocial education and training and wellbeing support. Please use the QR code below or the following link to donate today: https://lnkd.in/gcW2V5RC

Last week our Project Lead Amantha Perera joined a two-day Masterclass facilitated by Our Watch on reporting on violence against women. As Australians grapple with the increase in violent deaths of women this year, Our Watch provided this important opportunity for #journalists to deepen knowledge of reporting on the issue.   Amantha highlighted the importance of building a “digital flak jacket” to enhance safety when working with potentially #traumatic content online. Journalists use a wide range of online platforms to research and distribute their work and communicate with sources and audiences. Social #media platforms that allow interaction with others, wikis that allow collaborative editing, or content hosting services like Substack and WordPress, can all present online safety issues for journalists and media professionals, including social media moderators. There are, however, steps you can take to better protect yourself. “An important aspect of creating safe and professional digital workspaces for journalists relies on understanding our individual context of consumption,” shared Amantha. “It is also important to identify what clear protective measures we can put in place to help build our personalised digital flak jackets,” he said. If your organisation would like to hear more about how to build a digital flak jacket, or have Amantha present to your staff, reach out to us today!

“You have to give yourself permission to feel things.” In this episode of the DCAP In Ten podcast, senior Nine reporter, newsreader and Europe correspondent Brett Mcleod spoke to host Lisa Millar about starting out as a radio reporter and what he learned as his career unfolded. From covering conflicts in Ukraine, Israel, Madrid, Istanbul, Bangkok and Iraq, Brett shared how he copes with covering difficult stories in challenging locations. Brett acknowledges journalists are often heavily invested in covering tough stories, but that comes with a toll: “It can be very difficult to land back in the real world again … once you leave that adrenaline, excitement and tiredness, and all that, back to normal life can be a tough thing.” He says to expect that readjustment period when doing this reporting. Listen to the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/gBf82gPi

This guide on how news personnel can prioritise self-care when covering traumatic news has been co-developed by Mindframe and Dart Centre Asia Pacific (DCAP) to support media workers’ wellbeing when reporting on suicide, mental health concerns and other challenging stories. https://lnkd.in/gRTyMr-y