The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) will select 15 Burmese
journalists to come to the United States during the 2014 mid-term
elections. The program will combine training, meetings and site visits
with venues in Washington, D.C., as well as North Carolina and
Louisiana. The mingling of training exercises and site visits in the
nation’s capital and the opportunity to be on the front lines with their
U.S. counterparts in two states will give a complete snapshot of the
United States during an election season, much as it has done for other
overseas journalists taking part in ICFJ programs centering on election
and political coverage.
After the Burmese journalists return home, their U.S. trainers will
be available to them for mentoring online as they apply their new skills
and prepare to cover Burma’s own election campaign season. For the
program’s final phase a U.S. mentor who worked with the Burmese during
their U.S. program will come to Burma in February or March 2015. That
specialist will spend 19 days meeting with the participants in four
cities for advanced training centering on Burma’s general elections set
for late 2015.
ICFJ will work with U.S. Embassy Rangoon to recruit and select the 15 Burmese journalists.
Through the combination of experiences, ICFJ expects the participating journalists to gain the following:
• An understanding of the U.S. electoral process, the current issues and
candidates through seminars, site visits and interactive meetings at
ICFJ’s headquarters and with relevant organizations and individuals in
our nation’s capital.
• An opportunity to experience the watchdog role of the independent
media in safeguarding the freedom and fairness of the vote through
attachments with U.S. media hosts in battleground states.
• The opportunity to report on the electoral process and how ordinary
Americans take part in it for their own news audiences at home.
• Practical skills that the journalists can use and share with colleagues during Burma’s own campaign and general election.
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