#MediaForum2019 in Prague: Free journalism, human rights and new technologies

On 20-22 November, Prague hosted the Second International “Media Forum 2019: Freedom of Journalism in the Context of Human Rights, New Technologies and International Information Security”. International media experts, journalists, diplomats, lawyers and political analysts will address the most pressing issues in the world of the media and try to secure fundamental solutions. More than 80 experts from around the globe are scheduled to participate in the media forum that starts today.

The problem of lack of freedom of speech and disrespect for human rights is growing dramatically in the new era of emerging technologies, constantly changing ways of communication and unstable system of international political relations. Global media community and international information security, law experts and diplomats should join their forces to work out general coping mechanisms of supporting independent journalism and secure exchange of information. This is the main aim of the Second Media Forum organizers - International Affairs magazine (Russia), international independent platform «Modern diplomacy», International Relations magazine (Bulgaria).

In the era of advanced technologies and highly developed economic systems the global community is existing in the conditions of total vulnerability. The trends which seemed inspiring before, have yielded unexpected results: globalization has aggravated local conflicts, tolerance has laid bare the issue of values and meanings, multiculturalism has brought forth the subject of identity and tradition. Finally, the question about the "power of law" and "the law of power" has come to the fore.

The world has entered an era of ideological multipolarity. This was acknowledged by Francis Fukuyama, the author of the End of History. “What I said back then (in 1992) is that one of the problems with modern democracy is that it provides peace and prosperity but people want more than that... liberal democracies do not even try to define what a good life is, it’s left up to individuals, who feel alienated, without purpose, and that’s why joining these identity groups gives them some sense of community. This extended period, in which a certain set of ideas about the benefits of unregulated markets took hold, in many ways it’s had a disastrous effect.”

Are the media ready to appropriately reflect the new reality that challenges much of what is known as the “mainstream”? This is the subject of the session "Contemporary Journalism in the New Ideological Multipolarity."

100 years ago, Max Weber, in his famous address to the students, spoke about the growing discrepancy between a scientist’s mission and the new requirements he has to meet. The search for the truth began to be ousted by the applied effectiveness of the acquired knowledge. Isn’t something similar happening to modern media now as we witness their undisguised commercialization and bias? And how to retrieve public confidence in the media? Walter Hussman, a regional publisher in the USA, believes that “the solution is for reporters, editors and news executives to look inward, and not only to recommit ourselves to being fair, objective and impartial in our reporting, but to convince the public we are doing it”. We also need to separate and clearly label news and opinion.

How is this result achieved and what does the journalist do to achieve it? Finally, do the boundaries between traditional and new media coincide with the concepts of responsibility and irresponsibility of journalism? This and other issues, which are connected with a journalist’s duty, will be the subject of the discussion in the sessions "The Contemporary World and the Accountability of Journalism" and "Journalism of the Post-Information Era, or "the Golden Age of Misinformation ".

The Internet and the new information technologies have provided humanity with an ocean of opportunities, which is fraught with considerable danger and a lot of trouble. At present, cyber security issues affect nearly every user of the Net: be it an individual, a large corporation or a country. Fear of nuclear war is replaced with an equally destructive threat. Cyber wars have a tendency to grow - from point and local to large-scale and even global, with unpredictable consequences. How are cyber security issues presented in modern media? Experts will discuss these and other issues at the session "Information and Communication Technologies in the Media."

The first Media Forum was held in Bratislava, Slovakia in 2018. It was immediately considered to have the potential to grow into a promising new platform to address aspects of international cyber cooperation, and its role in today’s reflecting an evolving landscape of media standards, including the safety of journalists in military conflicts, relationship between media and governments, as well as challenges to political pluralism and cultural diversity.

Media partners of the Second Media Forum: Vision & Global Trends, International Institute for Global Analyses (Italy), Diplomat Magazine (Netherlands), National Association for International Information Security (Russia), The European Perspectives Journal (Slovenia).

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