Monthly Bulletin, August 2024
The Republic of Moldova has an insufficiently dynamic information environment, says the IREX’s annual Vibrant Information Barometer. The report tracks how information is produced, disseminated, consumed and used in 18 countries in Europe and Asia. Moldova scored 24 points out of a possible 40, equivalent to a somewhat dynamic information environment. Specifically, the score shows that in Moldova “quality information is available and most of it is editorially independent, based on facts and not intended harm.” Most citizens have the rights, the means and the ability to access a wide range of information. Most people recognize and reject misinformation, while some do not. Among the recommendations aimed at the Republic of Moldova are to denounce any threats or acts of aggression against the press, as well as communicating to the public law enforcement responses to such incidents to the public to ensure accountability and deter similar attacks in the future. The Vibrant Information Barometer, now in its fourth edition, “assesses how dynamic are information systems of countries in today’s age”, based on 20 indicators grouped under four principles: the quality of information; the way information flows; the consumption of information and consumer engagement; and how information influences public behavior. The conclusions are based on data and scores provided by experts in each country. |
The Moldovan Journalist’s Code of Ethics should be revised to take into account “developments in online media, including the consequences of the use of intelligence in the creation of media content”. The recommendation can be found in the first independent monitoring report of Moldova’s progress in the accession process to the European Union, launched in Chisinau at the end of July. President of the Council’s Experts, Viorica Zaharia, is hopeful that the process to complete the Code will start this year. According to the report, “regular monitoring reveals that several media outlets, including the especially the online ones, continue to admit gross deviations from the provisions of the Code of Ethics of Journalists of the Republic of Moldova. The quality of media products suffers from a lack of staff/human resources and news. Also, the phenomenon of plagiarism from other media sources is on the increase, with more and more portals taking content from the national press or from abroad. Experts also found that most media outlets do not have internal ethical codes or guidelines in their editorial offices, and the Journalist’s Code of Ethics in Republic of Moldova, approved in 2011 and revised in 2019, needs to be improved.” The President of the Council of Experts of the Press Council added that the Code of Ethics will be set rules on the use of artificial intelligence. |
The Association for Cyber Security and Data Protection (ASCPD) in collaboration with the National Cyber Security Directorate (DNSC) in Romania have recently launched a guide on how to protect personal data and oneself from online dangers. It aims to help children, parents and teachers to realize the importance of protecting personal data and cyber security. The guide provides practical and easy-to-implement recommendations for managing children’s personal data in a context where minors are increasingly exposed to online risks. Among the tips given by the authors Daniela-Irina Cireasa and Daniela Simionovic, are for children to make their parents friends on social networks, to never give out personal data, to check personal settings, to check privacy settings, and not to disclose their passwords on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or Twitter. The guide also contains recommendations for parents and teachers. |
IJC Updates |
At the end of May, the Ministry of Education and Research and the Ministry of Culture approved, by a joint order, the Interministerial Plan for the Integration of Literacy Information and Media, a document developed by the IJC. Among its many objectives, the plan envisages the implementation, in the years 2025-2026, of teaching activities for the integration of media education in early childhood education. Representatives of the field recognize that media literacy for preschoolers is not a simple objective, but it is increasingly necessary. The interministerial plan includes, among its objectives, the development of critical thinking skills and information literacy for five- to seven-year-olds, the first step being to intervene in the curriculum of pre-school institutions. Subsequently, the authorities aim to create a guide for educators and the development of more teaching resources. In May 2023, with the support of International Media Support (IMS), the IJC presented the draft National Literacy Program Information and Media Literacy (AIM). The document was approved by the two ministries on May 17, 2024. Financial resources for the implementation of this plan will be allocated from the state budget and external funding sources. The material is published as part of the campaign to promote the inter-ministerial plan for the integration of information and media literacy actions, carried out in the framework of the project „READ – Responding, Expanding and Acting on Disinformation”, implemented jointly by International Media Support (IMS) and the Independent Journalism Center (IJC), with the financial support of the European Union. |
The IJC is inviting teachers of working in Russian-language educational institutions in the northern regions of the country to participate in a training program in media education. The program will be conducted in Russian and will be organized on September 6-8, in Balti. The training will be based on the curriculum for the optional Media Education course from secondary school (grades 7-8), developed by IJC and approved by the Council National Curriculum Council. The trainers will be Loretta Handrabura and Natalia Griu. The training is organized in the framework of the „READ – Responding, Expanding and Acting on Disinformation” project, jointly implemented by International Media Support (IMS) from Denmark and the Independent Journalism Center (IJC), with financial support from the European Union. |
In the academic year 2024-2025, 12 educational institutions in Moldova will implement the Program on integrating media education content in core subjects (English language in grade 10). For the second consecutive year, the program is endorsed by the Ministry of Education and Research of the Republic Moldova (MEC) and is implemented by IJC in partnership with DW Akademie. Twenty female teachers from the 12 participating educational institutions developed their media skills and learned how to infuse the new media literacy concepts into the 10th grade English language media education curriculum during a training organized on August 7-9, 2024 in Chisinau. IJC Program Manager Mariana Tabuncic, program manager at IJC, said at the start of the training program that in the last academic year, the program was realized in Romanian language in sixth grade, and in the coming academic year this program is to be implemented in the subject English language in the tenth grade. Cristina Leva, DW Akademie’s project officer in the Republic of Moldova, said that the aim of the training, supported by DW Academie, is to provide quality standards in Moldovan education. For three days, guided by trainer Natalia Griu and project manager Media Literacy in Lithuania, Arminas Varanauskas, the teachers have explored the content of the English-language textbook to identify the best opportunities and perspectives for integrating media literacy concepts into English. The teachers believe that infusing media literacy concepts into English courses will help students to develop critical thinking and become creators responsible content creators. The program is run by the Independent Journalism Center (IJC) in partnership with DW Akademie and with the support of the Ministry of Education and Research of the Republic of Moldova. The training program is part of the project “Strengthening Media Education Skills in the Republic of Moldova”, implemented by the IJC and the Ministry of Education and Research, supported by Deutsche Welle Akademie and funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. |
Women’s Law Center (WLC), in collaboration with the IJC, will run a training program from September 12-13 for journalists about reporting violence against women. The training will be given by experts with experience in journalism, women’s rights and psychosocial support. Participants will learn how to create accurate, informed and balanced reporting on violence against women and domestic violence, avoiding the pitfalls of sensationalism and respecting ethical rules. They will also learn interviewing and writing techniques that respect victims’ dignity and rights. The training program is organized by the Women’s Law Center in collaboration with Independent Journalism Center and with financial support from Sweden. |
On September 20, Moldova kicks off the electoral campaign for the presidential election and referendum on our country’s accession to the European Union. We are already inundated with personal attacks, hate speech, manipulation, propaganda, and falsehoods in the news. What are the risks citizens are exposed to and, most importantly, how do we protect ourselves? Find out in the August cuMINTE Podcast with media expert Ion Bunduchi. Podcast cuMINTE, COMPETITION At the end of last edition of the cuMINTE podcast, a competition was launched for the listeners’ best answer to the question: What does the school of the future look like in your vision?The winner was selected by podcast guest, the Minister of Education, Dan Perciun. It is Victoria Stratan. The question for the current edition of the podcast is: How do you think we should combat fake news? The winner will again be selected by the podcast guest, this time by media expert Ion Bunduchi. The IJC will award the prize for the best answer. The cuMINTE Podcast is produced by the Independent Journalism Center with the support of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR). The views expressed in this material do not necessarily represent those of IWPR or its partners. The cuMINTE podcast studio was created thanks to the regional project “Civil Society Resilience and Media Response to the War in Ukraine”, funded by the European Union/European Union in the Republic of Moldova and implemented in partnership with the Prague Civil Society Center and the Netherlands Helsinki Committee. |
The Ministry of Education and Research of the Republic of Moldova (MoE), the IJC and Deutsche Welle Akademie launched the fourth edition of the contest “Media Literacy – Priority in My School”. The aim of the competition is to promote media literacy in schools through the subject Media Education. This year the competition is announced for three categories: Category I – schools where the optional subject Media Literacy is taught in at least one of the primary, lower secondary or upper secondary levels; Category II – schools in which the subject Education for media it is optional, but activities related to media education are carried out; Category III – schools where, in the academic year 2023-2024, the Program on integrating media education content into core school subjects, grade VI, Romanian language. The competition rules can be consulted HERE. The contest is organized by the Ministry of Education and Research of the Republic of Moldova and Independent Journalism Center in the framework of the project “Strengthening Media Education Skills in the Republic of Moldova”, implemented by the IJC and the Ministry of Education and Research, supported by Deutsche Welle Akademie and funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.” |
Access to information among the elderly remains relatively low in Moldova, says journalist Eugenia Apostu, in an opinion piece published on Media Azi. For the most part, she writes, subscribing to a good newspaper with information costs too much and some elderly people have no access to any source of information. Those who bring them “news” are their neighbors and villagers, who do not always have the most accurate information. The only publications that reach them are often those during election campaigns, full of promises and falsehoods. Another cause is the slow digitization process. On average, only 32.9% of the country’s population over 60 use the Internet, about 41 percentage points below the average for the population overall. The phenomenon is particularly widespread in rural areas. Another problem is that older people are often not covered in the press. The only day the media interest in this category of citizens is on October 1, International Day of Older Persons. The author draws journalists’ attention to the way they write their stories. She says older people have always been consumers of news, be it audio, video or written, but seniors often don’t understand unclear words and the meaning of the news. She recommends that the media publish more information with and for the elderly, subtitling video reports for more accessibility and publishing news in an enlarged text format so that older people can read the information. The material is published as part of the “Inclusion starts with me” campaign. The campaign is organized in the framework of the project “Promoting Social Cohesion in Moldova by Fostering Inclusion and Diminishing Discrimination” carried out by the Independent Journalism Center in the framework of the program “Joint Equal Opportunities Initiative – Phase II”, implemented with the support of the Government of Switzerland. |
IJC and Internews Updates |
From this academic year, pupils at the secondary level (Grades X / XI) will study the optional subject Media Literacy from a new textbook. The content has been updated by the IJC to keep up with the latest developments in the field. The authors of the textbook are education experts Dr. Loretta Handrabura and Natalia Griu. The updated manual provides students with new tools to identify and combat misinformation, helps them better understand how information influences them and keeps them up to date with the latest trends and risks associated with social media. IJC will provide the updated textbooks free of charge to teachers of Media Education. The textbook was updated as part of the project “Media Literacy Advancement and Support to Moldovan Media”, supported by Sweden and implemented by Internews in Moldova. The program aims to contribute to the growth of a diverse media sector. |
Seventeen secondary school teachers were trained in media literacy in a new training program organized by the Independent Journalism Center on August 14-16, 2024. The training was based on the curriculum of the optional course Media Education for secondary school, as well as the updated version of the Media Education textbook, printed in 2024. The course trainers were the textbook’s authors Dr. Loretta Handrabura and Natalia Griu. At the beginning of the training, IJC Program Manager Mariana Tabuncic emphasized that IJC pays important attention to the field of media literacy, thus contributing to the development of a critically thinking society. During the three days of training, the teachers were introduced to the manual and familiarized themselves with terms in the field, discussed the role of images in conveying messages, and online safety. The learning process was facilitated by various interactive methods, which helped participants better understand how to convey information to their students. At the end of the training, the IJC distributed 350 Education for the Media textbooks to teachers who have already made the decision to teach the subject in the 2024-2025 academic year. The training is part of the project “Media Literacy Advancement and Support to Moldovan Media”, supported by Sweden and implemented by Internews in Moldova. The program aims to contribute to the growth of a diverse media sector. |
