Registration Now Open for IPI World Congress in Trinidad and Tobago
Thursday, 03 November 2011
Conference to Explore Press Freedom Developments in the Caribbean and Beyond
VIENNA, 4 Nov. 2011
The International Press Institute (IPI) today announced that Early Bird Registration for its 2012 World Congress in Trinidad and Tobago, to be held in Port of Spain from 23-26 June, is now open.
Titled "Media in a Challenging World: A 360 Degree Perspective," this is the first time that IPI’s annual World Congress will be held in the Caribbean. The event is being organized in cooperation with its strategic partner in the region, the Association of Caribbean MediaWorkers (ACM), which co-chairs a local organizing committee together with the Trinidad & Tobago Publishers & Broadcasters Association (TTPBA).
The three-day congress will examine the many challenges, concerns and opportunities facing the media not only in the Caribbean, but also in the rest of the Americas and around the globe. A lineup of world-class moderators, speakers and panellists will interact with participants in looking at the role of state-owned media, the impact of natural disasters on press freedom, the use of government advertising as a way to reward or punish media outlets, and the presence of colonial-era criminal defamation laws on the statute books in many Caribbean countries.
Further panels will include covering corruption, covering the environment, online media ethics, new business models for the news industry, and how local media can compete with the “big players” in covering breaking news on their own turf.
Speaking about the decision to hold the Congress in Trinidad, IPI executive director Alison Bethel McKenzie said: “We’re delighted to be holding next year’s IPI World Congress in Trinidad and Tobago. This region is often overshadowed by other parts of the world, but there are very real press freedom concerns in the Caribbean, and we hope to draw attention to these issues, both during the World Congress in 2012, and in the coming years. We also hope to increase the amount of attention given to very pressing media freedom issues in neighbouring countries in Latin America.”
Wesley Gibbings, president of the ACM, added: “The Association of Caribbean Media Workers is pleased to be intimately associated with this premier international media event planned for Port of Spain in 2012. The Congress will serve to not only highlight the leading global media issues of our time, but also explore the unique concerns of the Caribbean region in a manner that has not been engaged by many international organisations over the years.”
Kiran Maharaj, president of the Trinidad & Tobago Publishers & Broadcasters Association (TTPBA), said: “The TTPBA looks forward to the IPI World Congress 2012 because it is an opportunity to share our experiences and learn from each other in the interest of the societies we serve.”
The IPI World Congress in Trinidad is the only international media conference in 2012 bringing together editors, media executives and leading journalists from around the world and from all types of media – newspapers, magazines, TV and radio, news agencies and new media. The Congress will feature a roster of prominent speakers from print, broadcast and new media organizations, as well as renowned figures from the fields of politics, business, academia and civil society.
To register, or for more information, contact IPI Team:
Milica Miletic
Conference and Events Coordinator
T: + 43 1 512 90 11 16
E: mmiletic(at)freemedia.at
or
Michael Kudlak
Conference and Events Manager
T: + 43 1 512 90 11 13
E: mkudlak(at)freemedia.at
