Media Newsletter – 13 December

Find out which 2022 journalism trend is growing stronger in 2023, meet the Malawian journalist who has made it his mission to bring hidden stories to light and find out how you can boost your environmental reporting.

1. Journalism Trends: The rise of audio is set to continue in 2023, according to Media Update, with more consumers looking to reduce their screen time. This is good news for podcasters and a nudge for journalists to further brand themselves as storytellers by getting on audio platforms. Take it a step further by turning your digital platforms into a revenue stream by going professional — find your voice and the kind of content you’re an expert at and be consistent about delivering your content. Find out how you can monetise digital platforms, podcasts included, here.

2. Who’s funding: Have you written about biodiversity in the past and looking for opportunities to attend and report from biodiversity conferences and global summits taking place in 2023? Internews’ Earth Journalism Network (EJN) is offering travel grants of up to $2500 for journalists from African countries to attend the One Forest Summit, 3rd Global Soil Biodiversity Conference, EcoSummit 2023, Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation and International Congress for Conservation Biology. Deadline: 6 Jan 2023. More info.

3. Training opportunity: Boost how you report on violence against girls and women in the Reporting on Violence Against Women and Girls Programme, offered by African Women in Media (AWiM). You’ll learn the importance of storytelling and development, interviewing and protecting your sources and the importance of fact-checking. The free course includes video presentations with animation and infographics and a text version of each module. More info.

4. In the spotlight: Henry Mhango’s passion for bringing injustices like human rights abuses, exploitation of natural resources and corruption to light often puts him in harm's way, but the Malawian journalist - who is the Malawi news correspondent for international news organisations including The Africa Paper, African Business Magazine, This is Africa and BBC - remains relentless about pursuing his vision. His latest investigation, published by the Telegraph, uncovers a new feature on life along Lake Malawi: the fish for sex trade. His exposé with Celina Runako - Racism for Sale, a BBC investigation on a Chinese racist exploiting Malawian children - was named one of the top investigative works of 2022 by the Global Investigative Journalism network. He calls it journalism that matters. Hear what he says about his work here.

5. Stories that moved us: Lorraine Sithole a South African author and publisher is on a mission to get everyone reading, and it is paying off for readers and writers in South Africa. Besides founding one of the longest-running book clubs in Johannesburg in 2011, she also hosts book events that connect writers and readers, and spearheads community book drives, including for children. She added another feather to her cap as the festival director of the Gauteng International Book Festival, which took place in December.

Over in Tunisia, the country’s coastline is being restored one beach at a time. Adverse effects of climate change, especially rising sea levels, have long threatened Tunisia's Mediterranean coastline, which spans over 1000kms. The Tunisian Coastal Protection Agency started installing fences made from pinewood to stabilise the dunes, planted protecting vegetation, built rubber mound seawalls, and installed sand fencing for sand-trapping. And it has started paying off for some communities.

Follow @BirdNewsAgency to read more stories that represent Africa better, away from stereotypes of poverty, disease, poor leadership, corruption and conflict. Media outlets that want to use bird content, for free, can contact tom@africainsight.co.ke