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Press release
Date 21 March 2005       

The European Week of Media and Minorities brings
together producers and audiences to promote cultural
diversity in the media

The European Week of Media and Minorities was
presented by the NGO's of Europe as one of the main
events to establish in the upcoming years, when the
NGO Forum addressed the 7th European Ministerial
Conference on Mass Media Policy in Kiev on March
10-11. This week, seminars, presentations, school
activities and roundtables with news editors or public
officials already take place within the framework of
the European Week of Media and Minorities in seven
countries. They are to promote the public dialogue
about the representation of minority groups and to
empower minority audiences.

Addressing the participants from the 46 member states
of the Council of Europe at the Ministerial Conference
on behalf of the NGO Forum, Ed Klute said: "The
European network Online/More Colour in the Media took
the initiative to unite many networks and initiatives
concerning media and diversity. NGO's from all over
Europe will join their efforts in the establishment of
an annual European Week of Media and Minorities, with
the slogan: 'Opening up to Diversity'. The activities
will encourage the dialogue and further co-operation
between media professionals, NGO's and the audiences."

This week, such activities are already taking place in
Greece, Slovenia, Italy, Spain, The Netherlands,
Denmark and Finland. 

In Greece, for example, a Diversity Day organised in
co-operation with the national TV station ERT3 will
feature two discussion panels as well as 'diversity
spots' and documentary productions on the position of
minority communities and vulnerable social groups.

A press conference in Spain presents a monitoring
report specifically on the representation of ethnic
minorities in TV advertising.

In Finland, speakers at the seminar Towards Real
Diversity in Europe will include spokespersons of
national and local government and public broadcasting
as well as guests from Latvia and The Netherlands. 

The European Week of Media and Minorities extends
beyond discussion. In an event in The Netherlands,
high school students participate in workshops in which
they'll write dialogues for scenarios, be cast for a
role in a TV-commercial, or schmink gruesome injuries.
The students of one high school are introduced to the
Viewers Test, an online tool TV that audiences can use
to evaluate the multicultural quality of TV
programmes.

The scope of the European Week of Media and Minorities
will increase next year, with the participation of
several international networks. The significance of
the event was underlined at the Ministerial Conference
by Brankica Petkovic of the Slovenian Peace Institute.
"Activities that are developed by NGO's to empower
minorities in the media and facilitate dialogue
between journalists and minority groups should be
supported", she said, asserting the importance of a
platform "to organise public awareness campaigns such
as the European Week of Media and Minorities". 

For more information, see: http://www.olmcm.org 

 -End-

The European Week of Media and Minorities – Opening up
to Diversity

For more information, please contact:

Online/More Colour in the Media (OL/MCM)
Joost van Beek
[log in to unmask]
Tel.: +31-(0) 30-2399035
Fax. : +31-(0) 30-2302975
http://www.olmcm.org 

For more information on the European Week of Media and
Minorities in your own country, please contact:

Denmark: Bashy Quraishy, Fair Play, [log in to unmask]
Finland: Ahmed Akar, City of Helsinki /
RASMUS-Network, [log in to unmask]
Greece: Chara Loka, DREAM - Discrimination, Racism,
Equality And the Media, [log in to unmask]
Italy: Jonathan Ferramola, Cospe,
[log in to unmask]
The Netherlands: Giovanni Massaro, Mira Media,
[log in to unmask]
Slovenia: Brankica Petkovic, Peace Institute,
[log in to unmask]
Spain: Raul Martinez, XenoMedia Comunicació / Centro
de estudios y documentación sobre racismo y xenofobia,
[log in to unmask]


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