MEXICAN PRESIDENT Andrés Manuel López Obrador – Call for the First Hemispheric Conference of Independent Journalists: “To Inform is to Liberate”.

Facilitated By Garland Nixon

AMLO: Mexico is not a colony of the United States...

Call for the First Hemispheric Conference of Independent Journalists: “To Inform is to Liberate”.

The President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has stated the need for dialogue and deliberation regarding the role of the media and the manipulation of public opinion through false news and biased information favoring powerful groups in society. He has affirmed that the people must have access to truthful, professional information that is independent of economic and political power. He has highlighted the work of alternative media and independent journalists and, to this end, has proposed holding the First Hemispheric Conference of Independent Journalists (HMIJ).

Objectives

- To learn about the experiences of independent journalists throughout the hemisphere in the construction of alternative information sources, as well as the regional or local media environments in which they operate.

- To analyze the challenges of free and alternative communication in the hemisphere, together with the tools and responses necessary to consolidate communication projects seeking to provide independent information.

- To generate a hemisphere-wide network to promote alternative communication efforts and to pursue the democratization of local and regional journalism.

Registration

1. Registration will be individual and only one person may participate on behalf of his/her communication project or media outlet.

2. Participants from the countries in the following regions may participate: North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean.

3. Only alternative or community media may participate. Commercial media, governmental media, media financed by private companies or political parties are not eligible; only those that are independent of corporate, economic, or political interests are invited.

Invited are media outlets belonging to the following categories (which are not exclusive, and are only mentioned for referential purposes):

- Alternative audiovisual media: media that transmit images and audio. These media also usually generate written content in digital or printed format. The tools they use to circulate their content include websites, YouTube, or socio-digital networks such as X (previously known as Twitter), Facebook, Threads, Tik Tok, Instagram, or others.

- Alternative radio stations: either broadcasting via the Internet or the radio band spectrum, these are projects that use audio to communicate.

- Written media: whose production is based solely on written content, either in print or digital form, or in both formats.

- Alternative one-person projects: either through radio, audiovisual media, socio-digital networks such as X (previously known as Twitter), Facebook, Threads, Tik Tok, Instagram, or others.

4. Registration begins on July 30 and ends on August 25, 2024.

Requests for participation should be sent to: informaresliberar@gmail.com with the required documentation. Note: registration requests must be approved by an accreditation process.

5. Required documents should be sent in a single PDF file and contain:

A. The full name of the participant and his/her nationality.

B. Curricular summary of the participant with scanned copy of his/her current official identification (no more than half a page).

C. Means of contact: telephone number and e-mail address.

D. Description of the media or project, including links to the website and name of the head of the coordination, leadership structure or body (no more than half a page).

E. Certification of listener audience, web page visits, or circulation figures.

6. If your accreditation is accepted, you will be notified by email at the address you have provided between August 5 to 16. You will also receive event details and a specific folio number that will be exchanged for an identification badge during registration on the opening day of the event, which will be held on August 30 and 31, 2024.

7. Any extraordinary situation that is not considered in the call will be resolved by the organizers with a view toward maintaining the integrity of the event and the spirit of work and organization, striving to guarantee the pluralism and diversity of the participating media and independent journalists.

Dynamics

Participation may be on-site or virtual (for which a link will be sent in advance). The dynamic of the conference will involve three formats: on-site or virtual presentations by registered participants, collective discussion sessions, and talks by guest speakers. Thus, during the conference there will be:

- 2 collective dialogues to reflect on journalistic experiences in the hemisphere.

- 1 space for talks by guest speakers.

- 2 simultaneous collective dialogues, where proposals for organization and coordination may be put forward.

- The proposals will be approved by consensus and, if so agreed, a Journalists’ Network Coordinating Committee will be proposed.

The schedules and details of the dynamics will be shared with those whose accreditation has been approved.

Any doubts or problems regarding registration will be resolved via the following e-mail address: informaresliberar@gmail.com

Responsible party for the call and coordinator of the event: Jesús Ramírez Cuevas.

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