The Future of Freelance Journalism
at Hurdalssjøen Hotell, Norway
(Updated 19.05.)
FRIDAY JUNE 1ST
12.00-13.00: Arrival, registration and lunch.
13.00-13.30: Welcome – with Norwegian chairman Jørn Wad.
13.30-14.00: The Future Journalism: Eirik Solheim from NRKbeta. Solheim is the editor of NRK Beta and project leader of NRK’s development section. He will share his thoughts and visions of the future media situation with us. NRKbeta is called «the playground» of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) concerning technology and new media.
14-14.15: Coffee
14.15-16.15: Parallell sessions.
- The Arab Spring: Yasmine Ryan from Al Jazeera English. Ryan is a reporter and multimedia journalist who covered the Tunisian uprising from its early days. At Al Jazeera English, she has a special focus on North Africa and French politics.
- Multimedia workshop with Kyrre Lien: This workshop will be going on through the whole seminar. The number of participants will be limited. They must have some practice and they must possess the necessary software and equipment. On the last day of the seminar, they will present some of their work in plenum. See special information on the workshop on “About the seminar”.
Dinner and social activities.
SATURDAY JUNE 2ND
09.00-12.00: The July 22nd Terrorist Attack: What, how and why?
A panel of journalists, who have covered the events in different ways, will comment on the bomb explosion in Oslo and the Utøya massacre last year. Two of the participants will be:
Kjetil Stormark, experienced, investigative journalist and writer. For his book Da terroren rammet Norge about the July 22 terrorist attack, Stormark has interviewed more than 120 people, among them victims from the government buildings and Utøya, rescue workers, police, politicians and others.
Øyvind Strømmen, awarded Freelance Journalist of the Year 2011 for his research and his book on right-wing extremist groups in Norway.
Nordic Seminar will be held while the trial against the mass killer is still going on.
12.00 – 13.00: Lunch
13.00 – 15.15: Parallell sessions
- The Troublesome Climate Issue: Do you shrink from reporting on greenhouse gas emissions and possible climate changes, due to the high tempered debate and mutual accusations of scientific fraud? Is this topic just too complicated for lay people? Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences has put climate journalism on the curriculum, and they will guide into this complex area.
- The Marketplace for Journalism: What is the framework for doing freelance journalism today and in the future? Which parts of the market are threatened, and what new possibilities are there? In Finland, 350 freelancers will not work for Sanoma Magazines, caused by bad contracts. The Finnish TV and radio reporters also have a rough time. What kind of similarities and differences do we see for the freelance journalists in the various Nordic countries? Heikki Jokinen, freelance journalist, chair of the Finnish press freelancers’ association and former chairman of the Freelance expert group FREG at the European Journalist federation will give an overview of the situation and open for discussion.
- Take A Walk: For those who want to explore the nature surrounding the conference hotel and get some fresh air.
- Multimedia Workshop continues.
15.15-16.00: Fruit and coffee.
16.00-17.00: Photos Without Borders: Anders Ryman, Swedish photographer and writer. His latest project is Rites of Life, which focuses on life cycle rituals around the world. Ryman has pursued post-graduate studies in cultural anthropology, which is reflected in his continued interest in people and cultures. He has been published in a wide range of international magazines, including Animan, GEO and National Geographic Nordic.
Dinner and entertainment.
SUNDAY JUNE 3RD
09.00–10.15: Recruitment Agencies Are Coming: Newspapers and publishing companies may now hire journalists from agencies who specialise on providing media professionals. Does this represent a threat to the freelance journalists, or a new possibilities for underpaid freelancers? Speakers will be:
Thomas Lundkvist, VD for Mediakompetens since this Swedish agency was established in 2005.
Jørn Wad, chairman of Frilansjournalistene.
A representantive from The Norwegian Union of Journalists (NJ).
Jennie Larsson, freelance journalist who for some years worked for a recruitment agency. You may read about her experience in this article in FrilansJournalisten.
10.30-11.15: Freelancing in Kabul: Anders Sømme Hammer, Norwegian freelance journalist, first covered the war in Afghanistan embedded with NATO forces. However, he soon established himself in Kabul, to be able to report more independently and more focused on how the Afghani civilians experience the war. Hammer has been awarded the prestigious Freedom of Expression Prize 2011 from the Norwegian Fritt Ord foundation, and he was chosen Freelancer of the Year 2010 by his colleagues in Norway.
11.20-12: Final: Multimedia Workshop participants present their work.
12.00-1300: Lunch and departure.