19th International Journalism Festival focussed on diverse global media issues

Perugia, April 13 (OurVoice): The nineteenth edition of the International Journalism Festival was held in the historical city of Perugia in Italy from April 9 to 13 this year.

On the occasion of the festival the whole city of more than 2000 years old of Perugia turned into a festival mood. Most of the government and non-government buildings and auditoriums turned into festival venues for different schedules with the world renowned media professionals.  
More than 200 sessions and side events were held with the noted journalists and media entrepreneurs from the leading media outlets across the globe. The cooperation partners for this festival included Google News Initiative, Knight Foundation, McKinsey & Company, Microsoft, you.com, Regione Umbria and Citta di Perugia.
The sessions and side events included from the decentralising media support for the world’s majority, safety fundamentals for journalists and editors, management and culture clinics, journalists as founders: reinventing journalism for the next era, voices across borders: journalism in exile amid rising autocracies, journalists under fire, the power of editorial cartoons, the evolution of the censorship narrative: challenges and threats facing fact-checkers in recent years, how to grow thriving media businesses in the toughest circumstances, strategies for media business development and revenue diversification, media sustainability, audience development, innovation and technological transformation in journalistic reporting and audience engagement, media viability of public interest journalism and editorial practices for mitigating cultural biases in international reporting.
Media Organisations for Stronger Transnational Journalism (MOST) project consortium led by OBC Transeuropa, Le Courrier des Balkans, New Eastern Europe, European Pravda, Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN), El Orden Mundial and Tactical Tech funded by the European Commission CREA Fund held two-days events in the sideline of IJF 2025 in Perugia.
The session stressed on the international reporting and its challenges. The current geopolitical turn in European self-identification makes some of them evident. A look under the hood shows the many problematic notions often taken for granted that warrant some reflection instead.
Moderated by Chiara Sighele the session was addressed, among others, by Luisa Chiodi (OBCT), Edgar Mannheimer (Kalam Podcast) and Wael Eskandar (Tactical Tech). The speakers discussed the fundamental question of whether international reporting can be reformed, by opening a conversation on achievements and difficulties in experimenting with alternative ways to do international reporting from Europe and on Europe.
Among others, Vice President of Regione Umbria Tommaso Bori, Director of Research of Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism Richard Fletcher, Co-founder and CEO of Rappler Maria Ressa, Editor-in-chief of Netra News Tasneem Khalil, Director of Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa Luisa Chiodi, Acting Director of Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism Mitali Mukherjee, Program Director of DW Akademie Ghana Ama Kodio, media consultant and trainer Emma Thomasson, Co-founder and Executive Director of The Self-Investigation Mar Cabra, Chief Executive of Internews Europe Meera Selva addressed various technical sessions in the IJF this year.