December 2020: Wishing you a powerful 2021!

While December in CMFE is a newsletter-free month, we want to take the opportunity to share our wishes for a healthy and happy new year to all. 2020 has been a different, a tough year. We have learnt a lot – also things we would have been happier without. But it is over, the year. And we share with you the warmest wishes for the new year for you and all around you, hoping that the sensation we, in the north of Europe, have every year when the light slowly but surely begins to return after winter solstice, could also for you mark the beginning of a lighter, healthier, happier new year. A new beginning – also for the important community media sector. Happy new year! Read on!

CMFE presentation to Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) members

CMFE is a new member of the Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) and was therefore invited to present itself to the 200+ GFMD membership on October 22.

Covering a lot of ground, you will in the attached one hour recording find a presentation including CMFE’s origin, mission, membership and organisation, CMFE’s strategic thematic work areas and goals, CMFE’s recent research and collaboration projects, and CMFE’s plans for the future. Continue reading

New Neighbours trainings on multilingual broadcasting

Three training workshops are taking place in September and October in the framework of the EU-funded project New Neighbours. The CMFE workshops aim to empower more migrants and refugees, women in particular, to produce their own media contents on community media. Tools and techniques for multilingual broadcasting (using more than one language within the same program) will be a core element of the trainings, referring to materials developed by community radios and training institutions in the past fifteen years.

CMFE is working with three local partners in Italy, Slovenia and Spain who wish to strengthen the role of intercultural broadcasting in their organisations. The workshops will focus on core competencies such as presentation and interviewing but also on workable methodologies for creating intercultural programming teams and motivating volunteers from migrant communities. Continue reading

Radio ARA hosts CMFE GA and Media Pluralism Conference

The challenges Luxembourg’s media landscape is facing give an outlook on general challenges for the European general public and its media actors. Almost 50% of Luxembourgs population do not possess its nationality, there are three official languages (Luxembourgish, French and German) and 3 additional languages considered the main language for bigger parts of the population (Portuguese, English, Italian).

Almost a third of Luxembourg’s work force are people crossing the border every day. What does this diversity mean for media institutions in search of their public? How to secure representation and participation? And how is media pluralism guaranteed? These questions hit Luxembourg’s media landscape during a time of preoccupation with other, global crises: the decline of revenue, audience and credibility. Continue reading

Global Dialogues, 17.9.2020: 2pm (CET)

On Thursday, September 17, the last of three Europe-focused ‘Global Dialogues’ takes place in one of the world’s new online meeting rooms – via zoom and live on facebook. You will here meet representatives from 6 community radio stations (see below under ‘Classifieds’ where you also find recordings) just like we on September 2nd hosted representatives from 6 European national community media associations. Much earlier, on July 3rd, UK and Ireland shared their experiences during Corona – and beyond.

Through the work with, listening to and taking part in these global gatherings, the power of community media – once again – stands out as the platforms for the anchoring of democracy at the grassroots level. The testimonies were clear, community media is where you can take part, have a voice, be an active citizen – no matter who you are. It is where fundamental (human) rights are talked about and defended, and it is where you, we, learn to operate and influence policy and thereby conditions of life.

This is possible through the authenticity and credibiilty of the community media, our colleagues shared, as an empowered and focused civil society, based upon values. There is no ‘neutral, objective’, there is right and wrong – and a source of information the listeners trust in our challenged world of ‘fake news’ and aggressive agendas.

So: listen in, take part, share your observations, opinions, experiences on September 17, 2pm CET!