East-West Center Announces 2016 Senior Journalists Seminar

 
The 2016 Senior Journalists Seminar (2016SJS) will bring together 12-17 international journalists for an immersive 21-day dialogue, study, and travel program to Washington, DC; Salt Lake City, UT; Honolulu, HI; Jakarta/Yogyakarta, Indonesia; Delhi, India PLUS participation in the 2016 International Media Conference. The 2016SJS will begin in Washington, DC with an overview of the American political system, including the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment, federalism, the separation of powers, and congressional influencers on foreign policymaking. Other foundational sessions will examine the religious make-up, diversity of religious identity, and the prayer and attendance practices of the American public as well as cultural and religious identity in American art, pop culture, and new media. In Salt Lake City, journalists will experientially explore America’s multicultural and multi-religious society, the experiences of minority religious communities, initiatives bridging faith divides, and how cultural and religious identity, experience, and diversity is expressed in the literary, visual, performing, and media arts.  The Honolulu study tour will feature a public reception and participant presentations summarizing religion’s role in their home countries. Throughout the U.S. study tour, journalists will also consider U.S. political, military,  and cultural engagement with the Muslim world as well as counterterrorism efforts. Travel to Jakarta/Yogyakarta, Indonesia and Delhi, India will contextualize and compare religion’s role in the public sphere across the Asia Pacific; provide first-hand exposure to and more nuanced understanding of the diversity of Muslim societies; and build the professional networks of participating journalists. Interactive experiences and meetings will be included in all three countries to deepen journalists’ understanding of Muslim cultures through the arts, culture, and new media. Finally, the media’s role in choosing, framing, and disseminating stories with a religious element and its effective shaping of public perception and U.S. relations with the Muslim world will also be explored.
 
The 2016 Senior Journalists Seminar will wrap at the East-West Center’s 5th International Media Conference where several hundred international journalists will gather to discuss the increasing links between South and East Asia, and to share the latest information on the global news industry. In addition to distinguished keynote speakers and panels of working journalists, the conference will also include on-the-ground updates on news and media issues in the region, a wide range of practical skill-building workshops, and unique opportunities to network with hundreds of international media professionals. For more information, please visit EastWestCenter.org/imc2016.
 
As the Senior Journalists Seminar requires participating journalists to attend various religious services as respectful observers and includes both high level government meetings and tours of impoverished areas, it is important to note that the seminar is both mentally and physically challenging.
 
Who Can Apply:  Media professionals from print, broadcast, and online news organizations, including reporters, writers, editors, producers, columnists, bloggers, and editorial writers with a minimum of ten years of experience are eligible to apply. The Senior Journalists Seminars will include a total of 12-17 journalists from the United States and countries with substantial Muslim populations. Of the total journalists selected, SEVEN-TWELVE will cover foreign and diplomatic relations, security, military affairs, domestic politics and government or religion and FIVE will cover the arts and/or culture.
 
Journalists covering all relevant beats from the following countries are eligible to apply:  Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Palestine, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, and the United States. In addition to the list of countries above, journalists who specifically cover art and/or culture from the following countries are also eligible to apply:  Algeria, Canada, Chad, Cyprus, England, Egypt, France, Germany, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Mali, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE, and Yemen.
 
Successful candidates represent the diversity of religions (e.g. covered and non-covered Muslims, Buddhists, Catholics, Christians, Hindus, and Jews)s, ethnicities, and regional differences within the United States, Africa, Europe, the Near and Middle East, Southeast Asia, and South Asia. Preference is given to those journalists who offer compelling story ideas and clear dissemination strategies. Fluency in English is required.
 
The EWC requires journalists to file at least one story or a series of blogs and/or tweets resulting from their participation in the seminar. Journalists must offer specific story ideas and how you will fulfill this requirement in your application.