March 29, 2024

OPC Holds Two Panel Discussions Overseas

A Ford Foundation grant has enabled the OPC to take its message abroad this year. It is an idea that has been discussed for many years, but there was never enough money to make it a reality. This November, the OPC worked with the Frontline Club of London and the American University of Paris organizing panels on similar but nuanced forums, with Syria the focus of attention.

The Paris panel was held at a particularly vulnerable time. Two weeks before the November 12 discussion, two French broadcast journalists were kidnapped and then shot in Mali. Also, several French journalists have been missing in Syria since the beginning of 2013. The audience talked about the dangers of reporting and photographing and expressed solidarity with missing colleagues.

The London panel at the Frontline Club was attended by journalists who had just returned from Syria and were eager to exchange ideas on freelancing and its dangers. Both discussions attracted capacity audiences.