To protect accurate, fair and impartial reporting in Ukraine. Supporting public broadcasters in wartime by providing equipment.
It has been a year since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. There are ‘broadcasters’ in Ukraine who, despite repeated attacks that put their lives in danger, continue to provide accurate and impartial information to the public,” says Atsushi Miyao of NHK International, who has extensive experience in training broadcasters. Atsushi Miyao of NHK International, who has extensive experience in training broadcasters, has been leading JICA’s five-year project to cooperate with the Public Broadcasting Service of Ukraine (PBC) until March 2022. On February 9, 2023, the first batch of equipment was safely delivered to the PBC headquarters in the capital city of Kyiv.
We want to support journalists who continue to report under wartime conditions. PBC had temporarily moved its broadcasting base to Lviv in the western part of the country, where the situation was safer. Even now that the PBC has returned to its base in Kieu, the situation remains unpredictable, but journalists from all over the country are putting their bodies on the line to continue reporting the war situation.
As they continue their news activities without regard for danger, their biggest challenge at the moment is the lack of equipment. With the destruction of the TV tower in Kieu, the headquarters has had to replace mobile relay equipment for on-site coverage, which has left them with no choice but to use cell phones and other devices to film and transmit their coverage in the field. In wartime reporting, coverage from the field plays a major role, but the field has been severely restricted. On February 9, the first batch of equipment was safely delivered to the PBC headquarters in Keauhou. The second group will be delivered in the near future.
Transforming the state-run broadcaster into a nucleus to respond to the public’s right to know The birth of PBC, Ukraine’s first public broadcaster, took place in 2017. JICA’s five-year cooperation project began at that time. How did it all begin?
The establishment of the PBC was based on a major problem facing the mass media in Ukraine. The media was full of manipulation of public opinion and political advertisements, and was not providing the information that the people really wanted to know,” said Miyao, who oversaw the project. Mr. Miyao, who oversaw the project, said.
At the time, the four major domestic conglomerates monopolized the major media outlets and manipulated information, while state-run broadcasting was like a government billboard. In response to suggestions from the international community that “true journalism does not exist,” the Ukrainian government, aiming to join the European Union, decided to transform the state-run broadcasting under its control into “public broadcasting,” independent from government control and broadcasting for the public welfare. However, a drastic reform was necessary to change the existing system. Therefore, JICA commissioned NHK International, which has been developing “broadcasters” based on its extensive knowledge and experience in various countries, to launch a project aimed at creating a public broadcasting system and developing human resources.
The overarching goal of the project was for PBC to become a trusted mass media model. During its days as a state-run broadcaster, the average daily viewership was less than 1%. This was proof that PBC was not trusted by the public because of its news and program production that ignored the interests of viewers since the days of the former Soviet Union. It was a sobering experience for me to realize that I had to tell the public from the beginning what a public broadcasting service should be,” Miyao recalls. Mr. Miyao recalls.
Establishment of a nationwide network for accurate and prompt emergency reporting The project has three pillars: first, enhancement of the technology and equipment necessary to produce high-quality programs; second, production of educational and welfare programs unique to public broadcasting; and third, establishment of a system for conducting emergency reporting on disasters and major events. The third is to establish a system for emergency reporting in the event of a disaster or major incident. Emergency reporting is the cornerstone of public broadcasting, as it directly affects the lives and property of the people. Mr. Miyao himself took the lead and worked with the PBC staff to promote reform.
In an emergency, it is of utmost importance that the regional bureaus and headquarters work together to provide accurate information to the public as quickly as possible. To this end, we began by building a nationwide network.
When it was a state-run broadcasting station, the local stations were strongly independent and uncoordinated and disjointed, but we decided to reform the organization by placing all 22 local stations under the command of the head office in Kiew. In order to strengthen the network, we held a number of workshops to exchange opinions with the heads of the head office and all the regional bureaus. Mr. Miyao says that the sense of unity and solidarity was definitely strengthened by deepening ties through thorough discussions.
In addition, we have produced a handbook that outlines our expertise in emergency reporting. Practical manuals that simulate situations such as the Corona disaster and war were read many times to prepare the staff mentally so that they would not be upset in case of an emergency. The handbook was then used to change the mindset of the news field and establish a system, such as by determining in advance the procedures for mobilizing staff in the event of an emergency.
Over the five years of our efforts, the public’s perception of us has changed. According to public opinion polls, the PBC’s viewership and credibility have improved significantly, and it is now recognized as a balanced media with less biased content compared to the conglomerate’s commercial broadcasters.
The most important thing for a public broadcaster is to always maintain a certain distance from authority and not to make a profit,” said Miyao. PBC’s first chairman took that stance, and his outstanding leadership contributed greatly to improving the level of trust in the organization.” This stance has been passed on to the current president, Mykola Chernotytsky, who is 39 years young.
Responding to the invasion with a prepared scenario and further strengthening its capacity for the future Thus began PBC’s steady progress as a public broadcaster. However, in 2022, a state of emergency occurred. In 2022, however, an emergency situation arose. The Russian invasion began while the organization was still in its infancy. Fortunately, Chernotytsky says, they had been discussing the possibility of a Russian invasion in their workshops, so they were able to make some preparations when the possibility of an invasion became high.
© Source JICA
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