��̳ Media Action Feed

Coping with conflict: making media to support children in Syria

2017-11-19T16:51:52+00:00

As the world marks Universal Children’s Day, Julie Boutros describes how we’re helping children in Syria survive and cope with the conflict. By supporting media based in the country to make tailored ‘lifeline’ content – animations, radio dramas, discussion programmes and a documentary – we’re tackling issues around child rights, development and survival.

Children in Syria have paid the heaviest price in a conflict that has affected their daily lives for more than six years. Going to school, playing outdoors, or enjoying a healthy and safe life has become difficult for many children living in areas affected by conflict.

The media has an important role to play in reaching children - and their parents – and helping them to survive, cope and recover.

So we set a new challenge for local independent journalists and producers still working inside Syria to come up with innovative ideas for Lifeline content to help improve the well-being of children in their communities.

We received 97 applications for 6 opportunities and here is some of the content produced by those we mentored.

Animations to help children with PTSD

During war, children are exposed to violent acts: they may witness killing, have lost a family member or experienced a very difficult journey fleeing from one city to another. This may increase the chances of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) developing.

Radio Rosana – an independent media outlet in Syria – wanted to help parents identify the warning signs of PTSD among children, what to do and how they could support their children at home. We mentored them to create a series of four animations.

Mais Katt from Radio Rosana, said: "We did a lot of research on the subject matter and I had to re-write the script on several occasions. I consulted with psychosocial experts and worked with a great team at the ��̳ who advised on the creative, dramatic and technical part of the production, as well as editorially."

Danger of walking into a minefield

Explosive weapons have dramatically affected the lives of more than 5 million Syrians, of which 2.2 million are children who are directly exposed to its dangers. This affects their daily lives – exposing them to risks while simply walking to school, or playing outdoors in places where there has been intensive fighting.

We supported an independent producer make a cartoon to help children identify explosive devices – including devices disguised as toys that tempt children to pick them up.

We also coached a radio station that created a series of discussion programmes. One episode on explosive remnants of war (ERW) featured experts talking about how to identify explosive remains and what listeners should do if they find one.

Livelihoods destroyed

"The war has destroyed families’ livelihoods meaning it is common for children to drop out of school to earn money" says Nisrine Alaa Deen – an independent Syrian producer - who was also mentored to produce her first documentary on this subject.

"I found Ahmad after months of researching a story for my documentary on child labour. He is one of the lucky children who didn’t endure family separation", she says.

But he and his brother lost two years of their education after their parents lost their business and all of their savings and ended up working with their father selling street food to earn a living.

Nisrine captured the realities of child labour on film but took a solutions-focused approach. The documentary captured how Ahmad’s mother enrolled him on a new curriculum for children who have missed years of schools. Ahmad’s mother was very cooperative because she wanted other parents to see that it is still possible for children to catch up on the years they have missed.

Mothers’ meeting – a radio drama

Radio station Arta FM in North-East Syria wanted to make a radio drama targeted at mothers and pregnant women in Jazeera but they had no experience of how to make one, so we connected them with the producer from Hay el Matar – a ��̳ Media Action radio drama for Syrians living inside and outside of the country.

The Arta FM producers also spoke to local women about their experiences and maternal health experts to shape the drama.

The result? Characters Layla and Salma – two women who meet every week for coffee to discuss, and debunk, the myths and common misconceptions held by women about pregnancy.

"Talking about contraception, abortion, pregnancy, periods and so on in conservative or rural communities can be tricky. But the women we encountered wanted to know about their children’s health; to know how they could help themselves in the difficult circumstances that Syria is going through today." says Shiar Youssef from Arta FM.

For children at all ages

Life remains incredibly difficult for children across Syria but it is so important that these producers get the help they need to improve their programming for children and parents. This helps reduce the mental and physical risks faced whether as a newborn baby or a child missing out on school. Our partners use their own language: they know best what is happening in their community and how to speak to their audience to make an impact.

About Julie:
I’ve been working to support the humanitarian response for Syria over several years. Initially I was producing films for refugee centres in Lebanon and Jordan – helping to give Syrian families safe and accurate information after they’d fled their homes. We then produced radio drama – Hay el Matar – helping Syrians living inside and outside of the country to cope.

This online mentoring programme called Community voices: child rights, development and survival is a ��̳ Media Action and UNICEF project.

A Syrian Drama

2017-03-15T09:00:00+00:00

On the sixth anniversary of the Syrian war, Caroline Nursey, our Executive Director explores how a radio drama is helping bring communities together despite years of conflict.

The war in Syria has raged for six years. We have all seen the harrowing images on the news of cities under siege and children pulled from the rubble of bomb-damaged buildings. But even for people who aren’t being shelled – the conflict touches every part of their lives.

Infrastructure has broken down, water and electricity is unreliable, the proportion of Syrian children attending school has dropped from almost 100% to 50% and people do not trust each other anymore.

People need all sorts of practical assistance, but they also need help in looking forward to a better future and considering how they themselves need to change to make that happen. And this is one area where media can help.

At ��̳ Media Action we carry out extensive audience research to establish which media format can best reach people in need.

Sometimes it’s a television debate, at other times an ad campaign. And sometimes – as you’ll see in this film – it’s a drama.

This external content is available at its source: How drama helps to foster a sense of national identity in Syria

Hay El Matar (Airport District) has all the hallmarks of a classic soap opera; romance, personal ambition and revenge. “It’s about love and war, it’s about leaving or staying, it’s a question of life,” says the drama’s executive editor, Hozan Akko.

Each episode is scripted by a team of Syrian writers and touches on a different issue relevant to life in Syria today; the ongoing civil war, domestic violence, education and migration – to name a few.

“Syria’s conflict has divided neighbourhoods, gone through the centre of families, destroyed friendships, pitted neighbour against neighbour…the whole fabric of society has been shredded,” says Lyse Doucet, the ��̳’s Chief International Correspondent, who has reported extensively on the conflict.

Fuelling this division is a media that supports one side or the other.

That’s where drama can have an impact. It has a unique power to get people thinking and talking about their differences and what unites them.

The writers have a variety of political points of view so their characters and stories help listeners break the stereotypical view they might have about people with different beliefs.

Hay el Matar has been on air - and online - since last September and listeners told us they found it positive and humanising - portraying how Syrian people come together in times of need. Many focused on the character Nidal who offers assistance to a displaced family, saying this reflects the helpful nature of the Syrian people, and that “every house has a Nidal.”

The power of drama to change attitudes and help people take action is well established in the UK. For many years soap operas have been bringing important social issues into our homes. From the reality of living with HIV on EastEnders to the fight for trans rights on Coronation Street.

Just last year The Archers explored emotional abuse in relationships with Rob’s treatment of Helen. The story had such an impact that the National Domestic Abuse Helpline saw a 20% increase in calls, largely attributed to the 'Archers' effect'.

At ��̳ Media Action we’ve recognised the importance of drama as a tool to aid social change in developing countries since our early days.

In Afghanistan our radio drama New Home, New Life - sometimes known as the Afghan Archers - began in 1994 and continued uninterrupted through the war, tackling issues like child health and education as well as mine awareness and the Taliban’s restrictions on women. A rapid decline in land mine injuries is just one example of the impact directly attributed to the programme.

In Nigeria, our radio soap Story Story highlights the effects of corruption or a lack of government accountability on ordinary people. And it’s incredibly popular - reaching an audience of over 13 million. Our research shows that more than half of listeners said the drama made them think differently about some of the issues featured.

Drama works because we can relate to characters on all sides as we follow them through, often difficult, storylines. Sometimes the characters change their minds - and sometimes we change ours with them. For Syria, as we’ve seen in other conflicts, greater understanding is the vital first step towards a lasting peace.

Hay El-Matar is produced in partnership with Batoota Films and broadcast on ��̳ Arabic in Lebanon on 93.6 FM and in Syria on 720 MW. It is also available to listen in Arabic on the programme website and SoundCloud.

We are not funded by the ��̳ licence fee and depend on the generous support of donors. Help support our work.

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More on our work in Syria
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'How to' films help refugees eat more healthily

2017-01-25T11:00:00+00:00

Refugees, nutritionists and film-makers created a series of short ‘how to’ films to help Syrians living in tough conditions in Lebanon pull together quick, simple, affordable and healthy meals for their families.

It is winter – and families of Syrian refugees in northern Lebanon are cooking in their tents – huddled around small, fitful fires to escape the cold and rain outside. Sometimes up to three families share a single stove – white and blue gas canisters or wood-fed fires on raised, iron containers – which double up as heaters in the frosty nights.

In this harsh environment, preparing filling, affordable and healthy meals can be hard. Many people rely on food baskets provided by charitable organisations which – vital as they are – only contain non-perishable ingredients such as pasta, chickpeas, lentils, rice and cooking oil, omitting the more balanced elements of a healthy diet, such as fruit and vegetables.

Food for thought

Vegetables are cheap and readily available in Lebanon. To inspire refugees to cook healthier meals, we filmed four recipes that show how simple, tasty, nutritional and affordable dishes can be cooked-up using locally available ingredients.

Rice with mixed vegetables - Syria Lifeline

Most of the meals can be prepared in just a few pots, with limited utensils. They include a rice and vegetable dish that contains vital antioxidants and vitamins to help boost the immune system; and a lentil and mince-meat dish, which will provide a source of protein, folic acid, fibre and iron.

The short films are available to watch at UNHCR registration centres and Relief International community centres in Lebanon and available online.

BuzzFeed style

The films were purposely created ‘BuzzFeed’ style – filmed from above to a soundtrack of upbeat music. “Many people forget that we Syrians aren’t just refugees – we’re people too,” says Marianna Al Tabbaa, a Syrian researcher who worked on the project. “A really surprising finding from pre-film research – was that presentation really mattered. If you see something delicious, you’re more likely to cook and eat it. For many Syrians surviving under harsh conditions, a nice looking meal is really important.”

During feedback, refugees told us the films had inspired them to try new recipes, gave them nutritional information – and ideas for healthier substitutes. “I don’t use olive oil in my cooking. [Now I’ve watched the films], I might consider switching” said a female Syrian refugee, living in northern Beqaa. “It’s healthy. I had no idea this simple recipe is so healthy,” said another.

In a crisis – providing healthy food for your family is a priority. “People are fighting to feed their children” says Marianna. “They are being smart and creative with their cooking.”

That’s why our films are so important. Food aid is vital for Syrian refugees – but so is information on healthy ways to prepare it.

The films are produced as part of the Syrian Lifeline project, a collection of films designed to support Syrian refugees. We are not funded by the ��̳’s licence fee and depend on the generous support of donors. Help support our work.

Related links

Watch the Syrian Lifeline films
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram
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Changing perspective – the power of vertical video

2016-09-15T15:57:48+00:00

This external content is available at its source: Your phone is now a refugee's phone

I was watching my one-year-old son playing on a beach in Turkey when the terrible photo of Aylan Kurdi lying motionless on a beach further along the coast appeared on social media. I will never forget the shock of seeing this while my child played happily in the same sea.

When ��̳ Media Action's research team told me about their refugee project - a series of in-depth interviews about the communication needs of refugees in Europe - I was very keen to make a video to support it. Initially we planned to make a conventional motion graphic explainer video in a 16x9 widescreen TV format. But since the target audience was humanitarian agencies working in the field, I decided to play with the vertical mobile phone format.

When designing videos I think it's vital to look for inspiration in a wide range of source material. Sometimes ideas come from unusual places. I had seen a Japanese music video called RUN and RUN which featured a mobile phone user interface, and I realised that we could use the same visual idea but for a very different purpose. Another source of inspiration was an excellent BuzzFeed article by Rossalyn Warren, which was discussed at the 2016 Polis conference on Journalism and Crisis.

People feel a strong personal connection to their mobile phone, and many viewers watching the refugee video for the first time assume the first message from ‘Dad’ that flashes up on the screen is from their own father. And that's the whole point. It makes the crisis personal.

Throughout, we were trying to create something disconcerting - the sense that your phone has been taken over and you are no longer in charge of your destiny. The refugees interviewed for the research report said “who can you trust” was a key question for them. The “unnamed contact” in the film, who says the border is closed, reinforces this idea.

The decision to use an iOS screen was a practical one, as it was all I had access to. However, there’s evidence that refugees - particularly those from Syria use both Android and iOS smartphones.

I deliberately used the visual conventions of UIKit - a comprehensive collection of HTML, CSS, and JS components - altering them occasionally in unexpected ways. For example the dialogue box that appears in the video to say there’s no internet connection is the standard iOS error message. The one immediately after is a contrivance designed to make you think what you would do in the same situation.

The “camera section” was created using a series of still images re-filmed with my phone. There were some strange looks as I sat in an open plan office with a coat over my head to shield the reflections from the overhead ceiling lights from the screen. The images were provided for free by Getty Images and offer a powerful and truly harrowing insight into the journey of refugees across Europe.

I decided to avoid all keyboard input on screen, as it slowed the video down, and didn't add anything to the experience. Interestingly in pre-testing nobody seemed to notice that this was missing.

All the other photographs – in which people are lit by their screens - represent the idea of the mobile phone illuminating the refugees’ situation.

The final frame “the refugee crisis is not going away” came from the idea of receiving a notification and ‘dismissing’ it (tapping ‘OK’) – a visual to show that the international community has been notified about the refugee crisis but has not yet found an adequate way to address it.

I’m proud to have worked on this project for ��̳ Media Action. It’s a completely new video format for us and has been shared the world over. I’m certain that the new format has raised awareness to a wider audience that communication is aid, and vital during crises.

And finally – for those of you who are interested in making something similar - the video was built in Adobe After Effects using a combination of screen grabs, Photoshopped iOS templates, Xcode's Simulator, and Telestream's Screenflow for video capture from my iPhone 5. This is why the camera section shows an iPhone 5 UI scaled to fit an iPhone 6 target size – it’s all I had.

The film is featured in the new Global Goals app, which launches at the Summit for Refugees and Migrants in New York on Monday 19 September 2016. Tom Hannen is now an Executive Producer at the Financial Times, You can contact him on Twitter.

Scriptwriting for Syrians

2016-09-01T15:00:00+00:00

A new radio drama for Syrians hopes to bridge divides and help people deal with the pressures of prolonged conflict.

To the relief of her family, a woman miraculously emerges from the rubble of a collapsed building on a small street in a Syrian suburb. She is scratched and dusty but otherwise unscathed. Amidst the sirens, there is the faint sound of broken wood and glass cracking beneath her feet. She’s escaped with her life – but her family business, a small restaurant, has been completely destroyed in the blast. Gazing back at the restaurant ruins, Archi has already resolved to rebuild what she has lost.

This is a scene from Hay El-Matar (Airport District), a new radio drama for Syrians living inside and outside the country which premieres this Sunday.

Najwa Kondakji plays the role of Archi, a character in the radio drama Hay El-Matar

The 150-part drama series – accompanied by a weekly discussion programme - has all the hallmarks of a classic soap opera: love affairs, family feuds and tragedy. By portraying experiences common to many Syrians, Hay El-Matar hopes to foster peace and help people across different ethnic, geographical and religious divides to cope with the prolonged conflict.

Despite being a fictional character, Archi’s story of resilience reflects many of the challenges faced by Syrians at home and abroad. We recently played recordings of the storyline to Syrians living in a refugee camp in Lebanon. Many were inspired by Archi’s resolve to revive her business against the odds.

“[Archi’s] determination to keep the restaurant open no matter what circumstances and negative things happen around her, is something I can relate to; I feel like I have her determination too”, said a teenage boy, living in a refugee camp in Beqaa, east of Lebanon.

By Syrians for Syrians

Hay El-Matar’s dramatic storylines are inspired by real experiences.

There are four Syrian writers and 40 Syrian actors working on the drama, as well as myself and a deputy editor. Some of them live in Syria which helps them to write stories that reflect the reality of life there. They are powerful stories because they are authentic, timely and Syrians can relate to them.

Actors practise for a studio recording of radio drama, Hay El-Matar

Before Hay El-Matar, I’d always worked in TV and film so writing for radio was a particularly interesting challenge for me. The medium gives me much more freedom to be creative. Effectively my writers and I are blind – our challenge, to make others see through sound.

Using fiction to discuss real issues

One of the aims of the drama is to humanise the conflict. Life goes on in Syria despite the fighting. Through fiction, we’re bringing people together to discuss real issues affecting real lives – which may also give them a degree of psychological support. As a young Syrian women said, she would listen to the programme together with her family, “because it’s a shared pain.” I hope as the series develops, it can act as a shared healing too.

Hay El-Matar is produced in partnership with Batoota Films and broadcast on ��̳ Arabic in Lebanon on 93.6 FM and in Syria on 720 MW. It is also available to listen in Arabic on the programme website and SoundCloud.

Related links

App designed to help Syrian refugees

2016-06-15T16:11:06+00:00

This external content is available at its source: https://youtu.be/dhiSwA7Hz7I

‘We’ve started a WhatsApp group for refugees living in this area’ a middle aged man said enthusiastically, explaining how the platform was helping the group share information and provide each other with much needed support.

The man, formerly a respected school teacher in Syria, was speaking to a group of people at a drop-in information centre (called Dawaween in Arabic). Forced to flee his home in Syria to Lebanon five years ago, he was determined to help his community build a future. ‘Syria is our homeland and we must be prepared to rebuild it on our return’ he remarked assuredly. His peers nodded in agreement.

Information is aid

With more than a million Syrian refugees in Lebanon, and the crisis entering its sixth year, accurate and useful information about services and resources has become vital for their day-to-day survival.

Run by Relief International, the Dawaween acts as a hub for refugees to access information about vital health, education and legal services. Free internet access allows refugees to stay connected to the outside world and a child-friendly play area is strewn with toys to keep the kids occupied. Visitors are able to watch a host of educational but entertaining ��̳ Media Action films providing practical tips on topics including food hygiene, shelter management and ways to avoid head lice.

A group of women watch a ��̳ Media Action film in a Dawaween information centre in Lebanon

A mobile app for refugees

Like the school teacher, many refugees use smartphones to keep in touch with loved ones and to seek support. With this in mind, we have developed a free, Arabic-language app to give refugees in Lebanon information on services and facilities including schools, universities, hospitals and community centres, all searchable by area. Moreover, the app features a “hotline” number and a “shout out” section wherein refugees can record comments or make enquiries which are then referred to relevant legal, medical and humanitarian organisations providing services and support for refugees.

Knowledge is power

In times of uncertainty timely, reliable information and channels for two-way communication are crucial in helping refugees to stay safe and survive. I hope that like WhatsApp, our new app will play an important role in this endeavour.

The app can be downloaded to Android mobile phones and tablets via the Google Play app store. Users should search for the “Dawaween” app and follow the download instructions.

Films for Syrian refugees: Do it Yourself, Do it Together

2015-06-18T10:43:41+00:00

An elderly man, one eye milky blue with age, peers into the camera. Immediately behind him lie neat rows of white tarpaulin shelters, walls flapping in the wind.

“Each person builds his own shelter,” he says matter-of-factly, “Once he’s done, he goes on to help his neighbour.”

Standing tall in the dusty courtyard, he explains why; “We’re all Syrians here, and we’re all one.”
Satisfied with the footage they’ve captured at the Beqaa refugee camp in Lebanon, housing over 400,000 Syrian refugees – the film crew wrap up.

The man they’ve just filmed is just one of the two million Syrians who have fled conflict in Syria since it began in 2011. His message of self-sufficiency and solidarity makes up part of a series of 25 documentaries, mini-dramas and animations providing practical tips for refugees.

The films – produced by ��̳ Media Action in collaboration with local and Syrian film-makers, artists and actors since 2013 – cover a range of topics including access to education, aid, legal advice and missing family tracing services.

Now that the crisis is entering its fifth year, there is concern that these services and facilities are dwindling.

Do it yourself, do it together

With this in mind, our most recent set of films is themed on the different ‘DIY’ ways refugees can help themselves (and each other) cope with life as a refugee. Born out of consultations with aid-agencies and refugees, simple ‘how to’ films and documentaries – like the one featuring the elderly man in the Beqaa camp – provide refugees with useful tips on topics ranging from building safe and stable shelters to purifying water, looking after new-born babies and treating common conditions such as scabies and lice.

Reaching refugees

The new set of films is ready, but how can refugees watch them?

Reaching refugees with information is challenging to say the least. Syrian refugees are highly dispersed in Jordan and Lebanon and in some areas, access to electricity, let alone a TV is a luxury.
Our solution is simple. Show the films in places where Syrian refugees need to go.

The films provide a useful and entertaining distraction for families waiting in long lines to renew paper work and access aid services at UNHCR refugee registration centers. Information centres run by Relief International in Lebanon – providing access to free wifi and phone charging facilities – also allow people to watch, and download the films to their mobile phones.

Film for refugees

In human disaster stories like Syria, much of the media we see is about refugees for international audiences. What’s unique about our work in Lebanon and Jordan is that we’re producing films for refugees, not just about them.

The films are playing a crucial role in making sure refugees know about their rights, the services they can access, the places they can go to for help – and most importantly, how they can help themselves.

Related links

Watch the films on Vimeo
More about ��̳ Media Action’s work in Lebanon and Jordan
Follow ��̳ Media Action on Twitter and Facebook
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Journalism in today’s Syria: an insider’s view

2012-09-19T11:12:00+00:00

Syria, Assad, internet cafe.

��̳ Media Action has been commissioned to write a research series on support to media where rights and freedoms are constricted. The five country case studies analyses the threats to journalism in Syria, Uganda, South Sudan, Bangladesh and Cambodia and how best the media could be supported. Here, Syrian journalist Maurice Aaek reflects on the threats facing independent journalists during the ongoing conflict in Syria.

According to media reports, nine journalists were killed in Syria during August alone. But the risk of violence is not the only threat facing the press in Syria. The deep split within Syrian society, extreme views, lack of trust and the stereotypes Syrians have already adopted are making journalists’ paths more wearisome, like a journey through the desert with a broken compass.

For months, the authorities and their allies have not tolerated impartial or moderate Syrian journalists. And the opposition is following in the authorities’ footsteps. The attitude is ‘either you’re with or against us’ and Syrian journalists have had to choose. If the journalists are working for known media outlets, then they are classified according to that outlet’s affiliations without being asked.

But, if journalists are independent, the first question they will be confronted with is whether they are a “nationalist or a traitor” (when asked by the Syrian government) or a “criminal or a rebel” (when asked by the opposition). The answer to either question is rewarded by one side and punished by the other.

The deepening split in Syria is also affecting the audience’s consumption of news content. Journalists might consider their images to impartially portray reality but an image only has impact on the viewer once they have figured out who shot and published it, in addition to the photographer and publisher’s stand on the regime and the revolution.

Supporters of each side now watch videos through the filter of pre-determined facts in their minds. Viewers of a video of a killing might defend the suspected killer, assuming dozens of excuses that do not appear in the video, provided that the killer is on their side. And viewers often deliberately discredit the journalist, images and even videos, when the reporting goes against their convictions of who is a victim and who is a killer.

The territory controlled by the government and opposition is also neither clear nor fixed. It has become a complex map changing day to day. It is impossible to move between areas dominated by either of the sides without passing the other. Before angering either side, journalists have to take into account that they will have to deal with both sides sooner or later. Kidnappings, killings and arrests of journalists are not restricted to either the government or opposition supporters.

Another challenge is hostility towards the camera. Syrian independent journalists have always struggled with people refusing to appear on camera and talk about public affairs. Some have explained this as a fear of cameras, while others consider it an overall fear of authority. However, during the past year and a half, the relationship between Syrians and cameras has worsened. Fear has turned into aggression. Today, every camera is treated as intrusive until proven otherwise.

How could a journalist confronted by such challenges produce credible, impartial reporting for all sides? Unfortunately, many journalists are addressing only one side without regard for the other side of the audience. Other journalists have chosen to withdraw from the media scene altogether due to the impossibility of addressing all sides.

The search for a foothold for the professional journalist to tell all sides of the story feels like a mission impossible.

Related links

Supporting media: what works and why?

In fear of stepping on Museveni’s tail

��̳ Media Action’s case studies of countries where media rights and freedoms are constrained:

Syria PDF (18MB)

Uganda PDF (24MB)

South Sudan PDF (24MB)

Bangladesh PDF (21MB)

Cambodia PDF (36MB)

Synthesis report PDF (39MB)

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