Internews has sent letters to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid with recommendations for the new Congress on US support for independent media in the developing world.

If you agree that support for independent media should be part of the government's aid to developing countries, please send this letter to your own representative in Congress.

February 2, 2007

Dear Madam Speaker:

As you know, the 110th Congress faces many competing priorities and strategies for improving the effectiveness of US foreign assistance. Internews Network, an international non-profit organization founded in San Francisco and based in Arcata, California, has 25 years experience in international media development.

Based on our experience, we have found that one of the most powerful and cost-effective ways to promote international development is to ensure access to news and information for people in the developing world.

Lack of information – information poverty – is directly linked to all other indicators of international development.

According to UNICEF, information deprivation is one of seven key factors that undermine children's survival, along with lack of food, drinking water, and shelter; 448 million children lack access to information via television, radio, newspapers or telephones.
In 2001, a World Bank study showed conclusive links between privately-owned media and economic, political and social development. In essence, robust, local, independent media contribute to a nation’s prosperity, due to better information for both consumers and producers.

Clearly, increasing the free flow of news and information and reducing information poverty must be central to any development strategy.

In addition to reducing poverty, supporting independent media and information access combats corruption and mismanagement. The World Bank has stated, “Civil society and the media are crucial to creating and maintaining an atmosphere in public life that discourages fraud and corruption. Indeed, they are arguably the two most important factors in eliminating systemic corruption in public institutions.” Vibrant, diverse, independent media help lay the groundwork for the growth of civil society and good governance.

Further, some of the most difficult global issues of our time—including national, ethnic and religious conflicts, terrorism and pandemics—can be resolved only when the flow of information is facilitated. When those who have been marginalized have a voice, and individuals can access accurate sources of news and information, the effect is immediate. In times of stress and crisis, people respond more effectively when they have access to reliable channels of information.

International funding for the building of local, independent media—notably some fifteen years of support by the US Agency for International Development—has had a significant impact in leveraging positive change. A few current examples:

Women Refugees from Darfur: Through a radio program called “She Speaks, She Listens,” produced by Internews, refugee women from Darfur discuss such taboo topics as child marriage, reproductive health and gender-based violence—often for the first time. Doctors Without Borders credits this program with a marked increase in the number of refugee women coming to their clinics for prenatal counseling and childbirth. As a result, health workers are seeing fewer complications in mothers and babies, improving the overall health of the refugee population.

AIDS Widows in Kenya: In Orongo village, Kenya, where up to five men die of HIV-related illnesses each week, journalists covered the story of Betty Tom, a young AIDS widow. Tom successfully fought draconian inheritance laws that denied her of her husband’s property and dictated that she herself be inherited by her brother-in-law. Since her story was broadcast on seven Kenyan radio stations, women from all over Kenya and the neighboring countries of Uganda and Tanzania have been visiting Orongo village to learn how to advocate for their rights effectively.

On the Pakistan-Afghanistan Border: On independent radio stations in Afghanistan and Pakistan, local journalists focus on cooperation, harmony, and peaceful coexistence among people on both sides of the border on a weekly radio program, entitled Da Pulay Poray (“On the Borderline”). It is one of the first programs to address women’s issues—with women journalists—in an extremely conservative region. One listener said, “Before I started listening to the radio, I used to be a very conservative person. For example, I forced my sister to marry a man she did not even know. Since then, I have changed and I will let my daughter marry the person of her choice.”

Internews has trained some 50,000 journalists and media managers around the world since 1992. The combined potential audience of the television, radio, print and online media that Internews has supported with its partners globally will soon reach one billion people.

Internews respectfully submits the following recommendations to you for the 110th Congress:

Increase funding for independent media. Fostering the growth of local media has proven vastly more effective—and less expensive—than foreign broadcasting in promoting the free flow of news and information and the values of a democratic, civil society. Last year, the USG invested $644 million in foreign broadcasting through the Broadcasting Board of Governors, approximately ten times what the USG invests in supporting local, independent media.

Keep independent media separate from public diplomacy. Support for independent media must be structured to be quite distinct from public diplomacy efforts in order to respect journalistic independence and credibility and avoid the perception of being propaganda.

Hold hearings on the role of independent media and access to information. Worldwide, Internet usage has just surpassed one billion, yet more than five billion people still live in countries without a free press. Those without access to news and information remain cut off from the civic life of their countries and from the global society.

Thank you very much for your consideration of these views.

Sincerely,

David Hoffman
President
Internews Network