About the study course
Module 1
War journalism vs. peace and solution journalism: overview of approaches
Teacher: Katerina Sirinyok-Dolgaryova, PhD, Associate Professor
Module curriculum:
Peace Journalism principles and practices: win-win approach. Hate speech in war reporting vs constructive and conflict sensitive language. Concept of collective healing. Strategies and stories from the transformative justice movement in EU. European values of diversity, anti-discrimination, tolerance and pluralism in solutions journalism. News objectivity and balance. Reactive vs. proactive ways of covering stories. Responsible reporting and problem-solving techniques. Solution journalism cases (UA vs EU comparison).
Module 2
Countering Russian disinformation and propaganda: best EU practices
Teachers: Viktor Kostiuk, PhD, Associate Professor, Olena Usmanova, PhD, Associate Professor
Module curriculum:
Main goals of propaganda and disinformation. Technologies of Russian propaganda. Hidden techniques of disinformation (jeansa, clickbait, infotainment, satire, biased news, fakes etc.). Experience of the EU initiatives EUvsDisinfo, EU Disinfo Lab, East Strategic Communication Task Force. EU strategic communication to counteract propaganda. Mechanisms of countering propaganda in European and Ukrainian media. Advice from Ukrainian national security and media experts. Importance of quality journalism for informed of citizens. Basic criteria of filtering information. Active reader and active listener techniques. Solution journalism as a way to eliminate hostile content about war in Ukraine.
Module 3
Stereotypes and covering vulnerable populations in media
Teacher: Pavlo Miroshnychenko, PhD, Associate Professor
Module curriculum:
Avoiding stereotypes and discriminatory narratives as a principle of peace journalism. Combating homo- and transphobia in journalistic materials about representatives of the LGBTQ+ community in the Ukrainian army during the war. Media narratives of the vulnerable. The rights of ethnic minorities in the wartime: the Roma community from the perspective of anti-discriminatory journalistic practices. Immigrants and refugees. Journalistic view of IDPs in the context of the long war (2014-...): what it was, what it is, what it will be. Combating sexism and misogyny in journalistic texts about women during and at war. How journalistic stories can reflect diversity.
Module 4
Covering war traumatic experience
Teacher: Yuliia Liubchenko, PhD, Associate Professor
Module curriculum:
Journalism ethics during the war. Responsible reporting of sensitive stories. Trauma reporting. Collective trauma and collective grief vs individual trauma. Collective healing techniques. Rules of communication with traumatized people. Journalistic materials as war crimes evidence. Storytelling as a way to portrait the war. How to communicate to military people. European standards of information accuracy and balance. Working with photo and video footage at war. How to interview injured people and relatives of killed people. Children as vulnerable group. How to eliminate secondary traumatizing by media
Module 5
Digital and physical dimensions of journalists safety: EU standards
Teacher: Nataliia Vygovska, PhD, Senior Lecturer
Module curriculum:
Issues covered: Increasing threats to journalists during the creation of war reporting. Types of journalists' threats during armed conflict: physical, psychological, digital security. The work of a journalist in conditions of limited access to resources. Basic rules of physical safety of a journalist at war. Sources of information and how to approach them safely. Limitation of access to information during military operations. EU standards of war reporting safety. EU Council conclusions on the protection and safety of journalists and other media professionals (2022). Digital safety at war: internet, mobile phones and smartphones content protection. Psychological safety of a journalist. Journalists with posttraumatic syndrome. Techniques of healing trauma and eliminating professional burnout.