Following the success of the meeting of Venice (12th February 2005), where representatives of
the Arab and western media focused the discussion on different problematic issues dealing with
war reporting, the second meeting of the international all-news channels has been organised in Turin (Italy), on the 18th February, by COPEAM and RAI News 24, with the support of Eutelsat,
official Sponsor of the Olympic Games, and devoted to the topic: “Two-speed information.
All-news channels between non-stop news and journalism of investigation”.
This year the representatives of Al Jazeera, Bbc, CNN, Russia Today, Sky Tg 24 (Italy), NTV Turkey, Euronews, RAI News 24, as well as RAI and EBU – European Broadcasting Union, gathered together to discuss upon the relationship between rolling news and “journalism of investigation” within the all-news channels editorial policy.
In a moment in which the media system is on trial for the explosive case of cartoons and the international panorama registers a new pick of violence, this day of professional dialogue, of exchange of points of view, even of self-criticism - beyond the different national and religious background, the
market competition, the different information culture
- has been particularly important.
The specific problems dealing with the research of a balance between non-stop news and need of
deepening the facts; the difficulty of carrying on reportages on the ground due to journalist’s safety
reasons, but also to the costs of these operations and to the organisation inside the channel; the
impact that the new technologies have on the way of doing information: this is the thematic and professional framework within which the discussion between participants developed.
To what extent the media are responsible for thecase of the cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed
(QSSL) issued by the Danish newspaper? How to reconcile the duty to inform, the impartiality, the
freedom of expression with the respect of all the viewers? How to conceive an information, a message that can be addressed to the global and multi-cultural audience without risking to generate
misunderstanding or misinterpretation? What limits to the freedom of expression? To these fundamental questions the professional panel of Turin has tried to answer. An open and shared analysis. A cultural and professional exchange: this is the right answer to the extremisms. Starting from this conviction, COPEAM and RAI News 24, together with the participants, have adhered to the idea of providing this international Group with a regular agenda of meetings. New challenges and new targets for the “Olympics of Dialogue”.