Peter Erdelyi’s Post

The news stories that dominate the Nigerian media provide invaluable insights into the prevailing conditions in the country. Through a discursive-material analytical framework, our analyst examines how editorial choices are shaped by political, economic, and social contexts, and how they reflect both the immediate material realities and the power dynamics that influence public discourse. The selection of stories in leading newspapers like The Guardian, The Punch, and The Nation reveals much about how media outlets frame the narrative around governance, public policy, and societal challenges. https://lnkd.in/egF2bq5F

The tyrant in a toupee is back, then. Well, sort of – he’s not the full ticket these days is he. Still, he’s clearly dangerous. There are many reasons why his ilk are on the rise, but our broken news media has been a gift to snake oil salesmen. When I started out in journalism nearly 20 years ago, the industry had more resources to keep power in check and call bullshit. But the internet free-for-all has decimated newsrooms, especially regionals and independents; journalism’s ability to demand accountability and uphold democracy is much diminished. Meanwhile, algorithms dreamed up by glass-eyed tech bros have amplified fake news and divisive content. Goodbye nuance. And 24-hour news channels have flooded the airways with speculation, turning ‘news’ into entertainment – a further gift to soundbite populists. The public becomes saturated, stupefied, confused. Attention spans shortened, many demand simple solutions to complex problems. Finland teaches its school children how to navigate this disinformation soup – it’s called news literacy. We should start teaching it everywhere. Democracy depends on it. In the meantime, the disinformation that swirled around the #USelection should be a rallying call to support trusted news sources producing rigorous journalism. They all have biases, of course, which is why Finland teaches kids to read across titles and question the agendas of media owners.  It’s important to be informed, but there’s a case for consuming less content, too – and this from a journalist. Go to the pub, walk in the woods, read a book – it’s better than inanely scrolling through #media feeds, marinating in the mad world of a semi-articulate autocrat. Thoughts? Oh, and speaking of biases, I advocate subscribing to Positive News (where I work) to mentally offset the doom. There’s a newsletter, too: https://lnkd.in/dQJbKx24

    We are honored to train 25 journalists from various media houses on Financial and Business reporting with support from the State Resilience Contract 3 (funded by the European Union).     This training aims to equip journalists with the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively report on business-related topics in The Gambia. It covered a wide range of topics, including but not limited to the overview of the Gambian economy and business sector, understanding key business and financial terms, the role of the Ministry of Trade towards the business sector, among others. Our expert trainers provided valuable insights and tips to enhance reporting skills in this specialized field.      Hon. Baboucarr O. Joof, the Minister of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, in his keynote address, stated; “your reports and stories have the potential to shape public opinion, influence policy decisions, and promote transparency in government. Therefore, it is essential that you have the requisite skills and knowledge to efficiently report on business and financial news in a way that is accurate, balanced, and informative”.     Ms. Lumana Kamashi, Development Cooperation International Aid officer at the EU informed the participants that their interest and support for the event is based on the EU’s appreciation and recognition of the importance of the role of the press in promoting Gambia’s economic development. “We recognise the indispensable role of a free, capable, and vibrant press in facilitating the Gambia’s journey towards economic prosperity,” she said.     “Good journalism is the backbone of an informed society,” says Dr. Dennyse Pasipanodya, consultant at MoTIE, noting that financial journalism, in particular, plays a crucial role in shaping public understanding of economic issues. In today's rapidly evolving global economy, he said, accurate, insightful, and responsible reporting on business and finance is more essential than ever. According to him, citizens rely on the press to break down complex financial concepts, provide clear analysis, and hold businesses and policymakers accountable. This is no small task, and the importance of your work cannot be overstated.

☺️ Quoted in Capital Brief this week 📰 If you don’t know them, Capital Brief are Australia’s newest and absolute best Private Media focusing on all things banking and finance. Why do I love them so? (Besides them quoting me 💁🏼♂️) Put simply, they have excellent values that shine through in their high quality pieces. The first 2, for me, are best: “We break news down, we don’t beat it up: We have no agenda beyond presenting fair and accurate journalism that is relevant to you.” “We’re pro-market and pro-competition but not blindly pro-business: We are unabashed enthusiasts for free market capitalism, but believe that for an economy to function properly business must be rigorously scrutinised by the media.” There’s other values too; who doesn’t love founder-mentality, eco-consciousness and tech curiosity tempered with caution? But it boils down to this… They’re real journalists reporting fairly, professionally, accurately and without bias on important news 🗞️ I ~hate~ paying subscriptions, but I’m happy to support Capital Brief. It costs about the same as 1 coffee per week, which is a bargain 🤩 Especially when you consider the cost of NOT supporting proper media… drowning in a sea of clickbait dross. Grab this liferaft with both hands, say I. 🔗 to this piece on AFSL-for-hire 🤠 models, which includes insights from the excellent Ron V., in the comments 👇🏻

Media moderation of public policies and government decisions is essential to ensure good governance! My OPeD piece published in the HT, Chd today

The 3rd of May 2024, was the World Press Freedom Day It is clear that the Press is being attacked mainly in developing countries with certain political tendencies. Another problems is the famous fake news, that misleads the audience. Another matter is that most Press has a certain tendency towards a political group. There are column of Press that are impartial and those are the ones having more trouble due to their independence. Now the Freedom of Press continues to be attacked, press staff have been also killed in some cases, and in developing countries, the field staff are not well paid. The Virtuallity has affected the Press, some are really struggling to continue to exists, since the web is a clear challenge. The Index only qualifies 51 countries as good, the rest have different qualifications below. The world has 195 countries, so you can make the calculation that Free Press is being clearly affected, is no new news. Lets hope that the News will continue to be Free, Impartial and Truthful.

This week I wanted to share some thoughts on a topic I’ve been threatening to discuss for awhile: how to read a newspaper. Most intelligence analysts (particularly in the private sector) consume an enormous amount of media reporting as part of their work, and owe a significant debt to the many hardworking and intrepid journalists working to uncover the news around the world, often at significant personal risk. That being said, there are a number of ways we can be more careful and efficient news consumers, such as the following: 1.) Read beyond the headlines. It’s a well-worn saying that headlines are designed to sell copy - but it’s well-worn because it’s true. Headlines are designed to grab your attention quickly, often with a bold declaration - but they’re not designed to give nuance. Make sure to read the article in full, and you may well find that “floods engulf city” actually refers to low-lying areas immediately adjacent to a river, or that “mass protests shut down highway” mean 200 people closed a roadway for a half hour.  2.) Remember Betteridge’s Law. Coined in honor of British journalist Ian Betteridge, this useful adjunct to the point above states that the answer to any headline phrased as a question is usually no - as the publisher would have phrased it as a declarative statement if the answer were yes. Hypothetical examples include, “Will Israel invade Iran?" or "Will nuclear fusion solve climate change?" 3.) If it bleeds it leads. As we all know, violence (and more generally, negative news) tends to dominate both local and international news, because it’s both attention catching and relatively easy to report on. This often tends to overshadow positive developments such as improving infrastructure, disaster preparedness, anti-corruption efforts, or security environments, so you need to dig deeper in order to give your customers a balanced view of an operating environment. This means finding reliable statistics compiled by governments, IGOs, academic institutions, thinktanks, and respected advocacy groups in order to understand how key metrics are really trending. We'll dig deeper into how to read a newspaper tomorrow, looking at what to expect when a crisis happens, and why you should always be wary of 6 year olds with soccer balls...

How powerful is lobbying in Brussels? Lobbyists hold immense power over EU policy-making, influencing the lives of millions. Big corporations like Amazon and major industry groups spend hundreds of millions of euros yearly to sway EU decisions in their favor. More than 25,000 lobbyists in Brussels, mostly representing corporations, spend an estimated €1.5 billion annually. A report by Corporate Europe Observatory reveals that the banking sector alone outspends NGOs and trade unions in financial debates by 30:1. This leads to excessive industry influence and corporate capture of decision-making. Corporate lobbyists dominate EU Commission advisory groups, with 75% of meetings involving big business reps, rising to 80% in finance and trade policy. The ‘revolving door’ phenomenon, where officials move between public office and lobbying jobs, further exacerbates the issue. Top spenders, focusing heavily on digital policy, include Meta (€8M), Apple (€7M), Bayer, Google, Shell, and Microsoft. Stricter rules are needed to curb this influence. Read more, a story by Henrique Tizzot 🔗

The subscription-based approach prioritises profit over public interest, leading to a fragmentation of information access where only those who can afford it receive reliable news. This creates a vacuum that is often filled by free, but less credible, sources that can easily disseminate false information. The resulting echo chambers reinforce biases and contribute to social division. To counter this, there needs to be a reassessment of how news is funded and distributed, with a focus on ensuring that accurate and unbiased information is accessible to all, regardless of financial means.

Amidst increasing concerns about journalistic independence around the world, Paul Balluff, Jakob-Moritz Eberl, Sarina Joy Oberhänsli, Jana Bernhard-Harrer, Hajo G. Boomgaarden, Andreas Fahr, and Martin Huber in our latest article introduce an innovative method for detecting unusual patterns in media reporting. The authors analyse political news articles from seventeen prominent Austrian news outlets from 2012–2021 to reveal a link between media visibility and media favourability with the potential for media capture. You can read the article here- https://lnkd.in/da5Tk_zM.