How REALIES members’ media projects enhance information ecology
This autumn betterplace lab together with 1991 Accelerator launched REALIES – the support program for specialists, who counteract disinformation and work on pluralistic information landscape.
Here we talk about members of the project, whose ideas focused on media technologies and journalistic tools.
Alla Koshlyak
Radio presenter on Radio HB
Work experience in media inspired Alla to create her own YouTube channel. Videos will appertain to practical advice on how to start or restart a project or business during the war. In addition to life hacks, on this channel, it will be possible to find information about grants, accelerators, support programs, and moreover, interviews with successful leaders. “I want to show Ukrainians, especially from small cities, that there are plenty of opportunities to do what they have always dreamed of,” says Alla. “I plan to look for information that can help people with their needs, and explain, how to use different possibilities – in education, fundraising, consulting, sharing experience.”
Alla already has successful cases of similar projects: she created, managed and hosted the TV show “Business Plan” on Hromadske, show “Owners” on the radio “Aristocrats”, hosted the broadcast “Time to act” about public organizations and volunteers during the war on the Radio HB. (All those who do not understand Ukrainian or Russian, there is available an original link on Hromadske website with one of their works in English and the short explanation of this project in English on Current Time website. Current Time also took part in this project called “Business Plan".)
Alla is sure that Ukrainians should use all possible resources for recovery, including content:
As we see in this war, information and mass media can be powerful weapons. But they are also can be medicine for society.
Daria Verbytska
Head Of Public Relations at Molfar
Her professional task Daria sees as a popularization of journalistic standards among consumers. Because the audience should generate demand for high-quality media content.
A healthy information ecology – is an environment, where reign base journalist standards and violation of the rules minimizes via public condemnation.
Going through the program, Daria plans to work on journalistic investigations within the context of war crimes and corruption of international institutions. The specialist already has similar experience at Molfar, and now it can be the groundwork for creating a similar platform.
Viktor Pushkar
Leading Researcher at Social Transformation Group
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Co-founder and leading researcher of STGroup, Viktor has many times taken part in investigations on issues of human security and human rights, has written scientific works on this topic. The popularization of scientific approach to the formation of the information field is the main specialist’s goal: “Explaining to people, what is going on, how world incidents can affect their personal life, which methods of self-organization exist, we will be able to fight against disinformation”.
Viktor has already published his own articles on Maidan Monitoring and IGI Global. He plans to work on thematic texts for a wide range of readers, as well as create short videos for an audience, that prefers visual content.
We can organize information in such a way that improves the living conditions of target groups and satisfy basic or high human needs. We need to provide relevant messages to the audience, balancing between ease and scientific correctness.
Anastasiia Torianik
Engineer at the Institute of Safety Problems of Nuclear Power Plants of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
Anastasiia is a volunteer at the Humanitarian headquarters of the Zaporizhzhya Regional Youth Center and works as an engineer at the Institute of Safety Problems of Nuclear Power Plants. Besides, she develops a project called “Chornobyl Insight” on combating disinformation in nuclear culture.
The idea of the project is to create a mobile interactive exhibition of scientists and artists, aimed at countering disinformation and fakes about radiophobia. With the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia into Ukraine, the awareness of nuclear culture has been updated. We should answer the question “Whether nuclear power is peaceful?”, stating to the whole world the importance of undeniable compliance and providing nuclear safety.
Long-term Anastasiia’s and her colleagues plan – to create Chornobyl educational hub as an academic complex on base of Institute of Safety Problems of Nuclear Power Plants. Due to this hub, it would be able to organize summer schools concerning nuclear safety, forming forceful science community and thematic projects support.
Liana Derkatsch
Consultant at the Center for Professional Development of Pedagogical employees
Working with teachers, Liana got passionate about the idea of helping teachers to use digital media safely. Modern students are active internet users, but they need well-informed mentors, who can help to indicate vulnerable moments in using the worldwide network.
With her project, Liana wants to empower people to identify risks in information. The group will analyze information from mass media and check it for safety. For this participants will be using different methods like fact-checking, authorship verification, etc.
There will be a series of seminars for teachers on digital security, cyber literacy, etc. Participants will gain theoretical knowledge and improve their practical skills. With this approach, teachers will learn to influence the information ecology positively in the educational process as well as in life.
The specialist aims to find ways of developing her professional skills: “In the war, for me, it is important to know how to behave in the information system, how to help myself and others. I want to be a part of a team, that cares about the healthy information ecology of society, to be an ambassador of this process in educational institutions”.
Oleksander Sokolov
Media producer, activist
Before the full-scale invasion, Oleksandr worked as a creative producer in the show industry. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, he joined the eco activists. He plans to combine journalism with enlightenment in the project #TST’:
Together with a group of ecologists and lawyers, we can talk to government officials and citizens about environmental issues. After this we will organise events where we will talk about corruption and other criminal acts related to the environment and come up with possible solutions.
Olexsander is now looking for partners and investors for the project.
He is sure that shifting the responsibility for the problems – is not the way out. Due to the mentors’ examination and support from other participants of the program, he aims to develop his project and demonstrate methods of forming healthy information ecology.
This blog post is a guest article originally published by 1991 Accelerator in Ukrain.
REALIES - Strong civil society for a healthy information ecology. is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.
The text represents the opinion of the author and not automatically the view of the German Federal Foreign Office and the betterplace lab.