Difference between revisions of "Internews"

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Revision as of 04:12, 30 December 2005

Internews, formed in 1982 as Internews Network, Inc., is a 501(c)(3) organization incorporated in 1986 in California. In 1997, Internews "decentralized its organization into 14 national media organizations, operating under the umbrella of Internews International," working in "51 countries worldwide, spanning Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America." [1][2][3]

Internews is a U.S. Government funded and sponsored organization which works to distribute its propaganda message all over the world. Its work appears to be closely aligned with one of its more significant funders, the National Endowment for Democracy.

About

There appears to be very little information about Internews on the internet or in the mainstream media, but according to the Internews website:

Internews works to improve access to information for people around the world by fostering independent media and promoting open communications policies. Internews' programs are built on the conviction that providing people with access to vibrant, diverse news and information empowers them to make their voices heard and to participate effectively in their communities.
Internews was founded in 1982 by David Hoffman, Kim Spencer and Evelyn Messinger with the goal of using media to alleviate Cold War tensions between the U.S. and the former Soviet Union . (Kim Spencer has since become President of Link TV [see below] and Evelyn Messinger heads Internews Interactive [see below].) Internews' first project was organizing “spacebridges” – video conferences linking American and Soviet studio audiences.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, independent TV began to emerge in the former Soviet Union and Internews began its work training media professionals, producing local radio and television news, and advocating for fair media laws and policies. In the past decade, Internews has also been working for an open and democratic Internet and liberalized telecommunications laws, and it has developed special programs for training journalists how to cover HIV/AIDS effectively (Local Voices), and how to report on conflict (Reporting for Peace ["a special training programme for journalists who work in regions of conflict"][4]). Meanwhile, Internews has expanded its activities into Africa, Asia and the Middle East. [5]

Partners & Projects

Internews Europe

  • Activities: "Within the framework of the European Commission's program Asia IT&C (EuropeAid), Internews Europe has been selected for its Internet regulation project in Indonesia and in Vietnam."

Internews International

Internews Interactive

  • Website: http://www.citizenschannel.org/
  • "Internews Interactive (InterAct) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, founded in 1997, created to develop interactive citizen dialogue by making interactive, informative and educational programming that engages citizens in addressing community and national problems. Their innovative use of new tools for television and the Internet, broadcasting and cable, helps people overcome geographic, economic and cultural limitations." [7]

LinkTV

The two pillars of American democracy - free enterprise and free media

Internews president David Hoffman summed up his aims in the June 24, 2005, Washington Times article "Winning the war of ideas; Washington should back private broadcasting" he co-wrote with Helle Dale:

"How do we win the war of ideas? Resist the temptation to control the message. Depend instead on two pillars of American democracy - free enterprise and free media. The federal government should support the role of private enterprise in meeting the challenge. Private enterprise is better equipped to win hearts and minds than anything that governments produce. While there may still be a need for U.S. broadcasting for strategic reasons, the bulk of public funding should go towards local, private broadcasters. Use our traditional diplomatic muscle to encourage and support legal reforms in the Muslim world, which are moving these societies out of the darkness of anti-Western and anti-Semitic scapegoating into the modern world of global communications. Let the marketplace take it from there."

Funding

In 2004, the Internews budget was $27 million, 80 percent of which came from the U.S. government, Dale Keiger wrote in the June 2005 issue of John Hopkins Magazine:

"Hoffman insists that Internews turns down money from any source if it carries a requirement to promote an American geo-political agenda..."

Jeremy Baker wrote in the January 9, 2004, issue of USA Media Monitors that

"Roughly 20% of Internews funding comes from a broad range of standard philanthropic outfits... Among these are the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Kellogg Foundation, the John D. and Katherine T. Macarthur Foundation and others. Just the kind of donors you’d expect for such an idealistic endeavor. George Soros has also fed the kitty and is one of Internews’ most ardent supporters. But as we go on down the list we notice other interesting entries, ones we don’t typically equate with such egalitarian concerns." Among these are AOL Time Warner, General Electric, the Ford Foundation, Microsoft and the Rockefeller Foundation.
"Also appearing on this lngthy support list of anti-government-media-control mavens are a swarthy gaggle of government agencies from all over the world, including France, Russia, Germany, Austria, Canada, Britain, Sweden and Greece. But the long list of U.S. governmental agencies is hard to miss as well. Unesco, the U.S. Information Agency, the U.S. Office of Transition Initiatives (part of the U.S. Agency for International Development, a major Internews funder) are but a few."
"In the 1990s, Internews began to attract serious money. George Soros and his Open Society Institute became supporters, as did, eventually, the Knight Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, and dozens of others. USAID had made the large grant to establish the Russian independent television network. Evelyn Messinger secured a large sum from the National Endowment for Democracy to study independent media in Eastern Europe. Internews secured $8 million to set up a media center, a news agency, and broadcast and print outlets in Ukraine."

For Example:

  • $750,000 over three years "For operating support, expansion of the Global Internet Policy Initiative and to establish a free press initiative in the Middle East." March 11, 2003
  • $500,000 for one year "To rebuild radio journalism in northwest Indonesia in the wake of the Indian Ocean tsunami." March 2, 2005
  • "The Health Journalism Partnership pilot phase is supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Open Society Institute." December 1, 2005
  • Markle Foundation: "In this project Markle assisted Internews Network, Inc., in developing a license application and strategy for an innovative, interactive 24-hour live channel dedicated to quality, international affairs programming on two major Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) systems." July 1999
  • The Paul Klebnikov Fund: Internews Broadcast Scholarships

Directors and Staff

For full biographies of all staff, see links below

Directors

Source: internews.org.

Officers

  • David Hoffman – President - Internews Network
  • Jeanne Bourgault – Chief Operating Officer - Internews Network
  • Annette Makino – Senior Vice President for Communications - Internews Network
  • Don Allen – Vice President for Administration/Acting Chief Financial Officer/Treasurer - Internews Network

Source: internews.org.

Key Staff

Source: internews.org.

Lobbying

  • U.S. House of Representatives active lobbyist ID for INTERNEWS

Contact

Internews Arcata
Administrative and Accounting
P.O. Box 4448
Arcata, CA 95518-4448
Shipping: 876 7th Street
Arcata, CA 95521
WORK: +1 707 826-2030
FAX: +1 707 826-2136
EMAIL: info AT internews.org
Website: http://www.internews.org/

Articles & Commentary

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