2011 WPI Fellows

Argentina

Ms. Natalia Montagna, is an anchor and producer for Channel 10 TV News in Mar Del Plata. She writes, produces and hosts a TV program called “Línea de Tiempo” which is about international issues, history and biographies for Channel 10 TV News.

“Now is the time to do what I have always dreamt of: being in touch with colleagues from all over the world, visiting the American media, learning from American expert journalists and showing the audience from my country the virtues of American history and society. I wish to pursue my professional growth in order to widen the Argentinian spectator’s knowledge and perspective. I believe that learning from experts, visiting model places, sharing experiences with colleagues from the rest of the world, and focusing on principles and values, are indispensable keys to becoming a highly-trained reporter.”

Australia

Ms. Siobhan Heanue is a TV journalist and presenter for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) in Canberra. She also produces and presents Culture Quarter, which airs on ABC’s 24-hour news channel and presents stories of cultural significance for a national audience.

“I believe I am at the stage of my career where I would benefit from access to the vast diversity of people, places and practices that will be on display during the Fellowship. I want to expand my use of new technologies like social media and online reporting to support this goal and I think news organisations, especially public broadcasters, have an important role in exploring and analysing the kind of arts, heritage and cultural issues and policies that have an impact on national identity. I hope that meeting with and learning from people who operate in these fields will allow me to approach the reporting of transnational issues, as well as on the role of the US in the world, with genuine insight and understanding.”

Brazil

Mr. Alexandre Rodrigues Jorge is a reporter at the daily paper O Estado de S. Paulo. He reports on business, politics and development from the Rio de Janeiro office.

“I decided to apply for a WIP Fellowship because I was attracted by the standard of journalism and solid institutions in the US. I see the WPI program as an opportunity to experience this environment, whilst benefiting from the seminars and field trips to improve my professional skills. In my opinion, journalists from developing countries can learn from advanced nations with a democratic tradition such as the US. Brazilian press has already reached a high level of independence, but it is still trying to practice its responsibility in leading the public opinion in such a young democracy, with many social needs.”

China

Ms. Lin Meilian is senior reporter and section chief of the in-depth section at the English-language Global Times newspaper in Beijing. She has also worked with the Japanese newspaper Mainichi and RTL Dutch Television.

“China is a country full of journalistic walls, whether they are in print, online or in the collective consciousness of its citizens. However, Chinese do know the difference between propaganda and journalism, a driving force behind my desire to be a reporter in China. What excites me most about this program is the chance to work in a free press environment with other talented and passionate journalists from around the world, more specifically in the field of online reporting, as this medium is closely monitored and limited in China.”

Egypt

Ms. Ethar El Katatney is a freelance journalist working in Cairo whose work has appeared on CNN and in Egypt Today and Business Today, Egypt’s premier English-language publications.

“I live in a country where democracy is something we are all struggling for, where journalists are locked up and thrown in jail over the tiniest thing. I’ve already been arrested twice simply for shooting landscapes. There is so much to learn from the WPI fellowship, so many people to meet, so many things to experience. Things I would never get from living in my country. A chance to see the best of what journalism can and should do. To see the issues American journalists deal with, issues that resonate with and impact countries around the world.”

 

Finland

Ms. Eija Väliranta is a journalist and web producer with Apu, a weekly magazine, in Helsinki. She has also worked as a script writer and photo journalist.

“Media is changing fast all around the world and the big question is whether the publishing houses will have enough resources to maintain the newspapers and magazines. The next generation might not be willing to pay for their news any more. But do magazines online make any profit? Is fast food journalism and copy paste techniques becoming a norm? My goal is to learn what the media online has to offer now and in the future. I want to be in the front row with new tools and skills and participate in the ongoing discussion of how journalism online will survive.”

India

Ms. Namrata Acharya is a principal correspondent with the Business Standard newspaper in Kolkata covering the financial sector, including banks, micro-finance, insurance and non-banking finance companies.

“Journalism is a constant learning process, and knowledge is the ultimate tool for a journalist. Having gained reasonable experience in India, I wish to expand my horizon of understanding through international exposure. To this end, I hope, a fellowship like the one promoted by the World Press Institute, will apprise me with global standards, tools and methods of reporting. As a banking sector reporter, I want to understand how journalists in the US have been reporting on the financial sector after the economic turmoil. I would also like to know how they represent the needs of the financially excluded and bankrupt.”

Moldova/Romania

Ms. Andra Miron is executive producer of Publika TV in Chisinau, the first 24-hour news channel in Moldova. Before that, she was a senior journalist and trainings manager at Realitatea TV in Bucharest, Romania.

“I realised that in the media markets of both Romania and Moldova, as well as everywhere across Eastern Europe, the word accuracy has a relative meaning in the newsrooms’ every day work, although it is a highly valued and used term in journalist conferences and education. The East European media markets are relatively new and they have developed quite chaotically, without strong standards or editorial pillars. Too many news reports are based on intuition, rather than basic rules of journalism. I personally need to learn and see concretely how the US media works from this perspective, so that I can then bring this knowledge into the daily operations of the two rolling news channels that I work for in Romania and Moldova.”

Pakistan

Mr. Waqar Gillani is staff reporter with The News on Sunday (TNS), the weekend edition of The News International, a leading English daily of Pakistan in Lahore.

“As a mid-career journalist, I think that the WPI Fellowship will definitely help me become a better investigative reporter. Pakistan needs such mid-career reporters with such experience to promote better responsible journalism. My key concern has been to fight bigotry and ignorance so that my country can become a democratic and progressive state. I want to avail this opportunity of getting an experience to work in the US as part of a WPI Fellowship because of the close links that Pakistan and the US share. Through the WPI Fellowship, I would also like to understand what the American audience thinks of Pakistan and how I, as a Pakistani journalist, can combat the anti-American sentiment in my country.”

Uganda

Mr. Benon Oluka is a special projects writer for the Daily Monitor newspaper in Kampala, where he does in-depth investigative reporting on such subjects as the economy, politics, agriculture and regional issues and their implications.

“I hope to help provide an appreciation of what it takes to report in an African country like Uganda and others within the East African region under conditions that may not often be ideal for people to exercise their freedom of speech. Ugandan media is currently facing a series of challenges, including plans by the government to introduce pieces of legislation that are likely to further curtail freedom of expression in a country where the challenges are already many. I therefore hope to share the challenges that Ugandan journalism faces and to learn from colleagues in other parts of the world how they have dealt with such challenges.”