The minister said the nation has successfully overcome the menace of terrorism and it would fight similar conflicts with equal vigor and resolve. He appreciated Pakistan Peace Collective and all the partnering organization for organizing the international conference on media and conflict when it was most needed.
The information minister expressed these views while addressing the two days International Conference on Media and Conflict 2019 organized by Pakistan Peace Collective – a research and communication project of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, which concluded today.
The Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain was the chief guest for the closing session, while Minister of State for Interior, Shehryar Khan Afridi chaired an important plenary ‘the rise of terrorism and media perception on Pakistan’ alongside senior journalists and top academicians.
The conference was the first government-led academic initiative in the country, which highlighted and assessed the Pakistani media’s role in covering conflict and violence in the country and beyond. It featured national and internationally acclaimed scholars, academics and senior journalists who analyzed media discourses and their impact on conflicts, including terrorism and violent extremism. The conference also showcased the latest research on media discourse on extremism, terrorism and violence in the country, and also assessed how conflict reporting and peace journalism can be institutionalized both in the media industry and university level across Pakistan.
Sharing his thoughts on the conference, the Chief Executive Officer of Pakistan Peace Collective (PPC) Shabbir Anwar said that the conference served as a platform for top scholars, academics, journalists and counter extremism specialists from Pakistan and across the world to sensitize and educate people on conflict reporting, and combating violent extremism on the communications front. He said that his organization will keep working for standardizing and professionalizing conflict reporting alongside its initiatives for peace building in the country.
The conference on media and conflict features global scholars like Dr. Rune Ottosen, Oslo Metropolitan University Norway, Dr. Elisabeth Eide Oslo Metropolitan University Norway, Dr. Jake Lynch University of Sydney Australia, noted journalist Owen Bennett Jones, Dr. Hassan Abbas, National Defence University, USA, besides a galaxy of celebrated names from Pakistan’s academic and media landscape.
The conference was inaugurated a day before by President of Pakistan Dr. Arif Alvi while Minister of Education Mr. Shafqat Mehmood and Federal Secretary, Ministry of Information, Mr. Shafqat Jalil were part of different plenary sessions.
The organizers of the conference hope that the conference will provide stepping stone for standardizing conflict reporting so that the media’s power and influence in opinion making could be used for conflict mitigation and resolution.
Published in Daily Times, March 1st 2019.
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