Training Journalists on Refugee Stories

The right storytelling can be a powerful tool in educating and informing the public about the state of the refugees, and foster accountability on the part of the authorities, promoting justice and equity.

In Lebanon, the second round of the “Covering Refugee Stories” workshop has been organised from May 30 to June 3 in cooperation with the Al Jazeera Media Institute.

Fourteen Syrian and Lebanese journalists, of whom 50% were women, learned the necessary tools and skills to cover refugees’ stories in a professional and humane manner. This included advice on how to plan their stories, how to conduct themselves ethically in the field and document human rights abuses.

The opportunity that CFI gave us, to get training on covering refugee issues, allowed us to see from a professional angle the coverage of all human rights issues. For me, the most beautiful part was learning how to humanize the subjects and numbers. During the training workshop, the trainer focused on the strength of the journalist and his ability to change the balance of power, and advocate for refugee issues by covering them properly, emphasizing that the press is the fourth authority in society. The trainer not only gave us information about how to cover refugee issues, but also made us benefit from his field experience, highlighting the challenges that we can face when reporting.

Joelle Abdel Aaal - freelance journalist (Lebanon)