There is a high demand for quality media in Africa but in many places network infrastructure cannot keep up. A positive aspect of this technological disparity is that it promotes the development of alternative services, which provide access to media by getting around network deficiencies. Launched in January 2012, Tuluntulu (which means stream in Zulu) opens the floodgates to a reservoir of uninterrupted television streams on mobile devices– even in locations with low-bandwidth networks.

Now DW’s flagship English channel will be included Tuluntulu catalogue. This new partnership will bring world-class programming and information to a hard-to-reach audience. With partners on board like DW, no one has to miss out on quality content because of technological deficiencies.

Tuluntulu works by using Adaptive Real-time Internet Streaming Technology (ARTIST), which allows content to stream at low data consumption levels. The service was developed specifically as a platform for the technology. The company claims that ARTIST technology can provide unbroken streaming video at the low broadband speed of 30kbps adding that no other service can provide video under 100 kbps. With its wide-selection of networks, Tuluntulu is truly a breakthrough for mobile media in Africa. The service is free to download right now for iOS or Android devices.

This is only the beginning of developing these technologies and DW is an integtral part of what makes them so important in providing information to those who need it in a place they couldn’t find it before.

An important part of DW’s mission is sharing its 60 years of journalistic and media experience with the world. DW has organized a number of events at the 2014 Global Media Forum in cooperation with organizations and partners which represent the high level of expertise at Germany’s international broadcaster.

Complementing the focus of this year’s conference is a panel organized by the DW Akademie that explores the state of participatory and community-based media in developing countries. The session titled, The power of the neighborhood: How local media organize participation and how DW Akademie supports this, showcases three projects that foster grassroots journalism from partner organizations that span the globe – Welad Elbalad Media Services from Egypt, Open Development Cambodia and Plataforma de Periodismo from Colombia.

With a focus on the watchdog role of journalism is a session titled Whistleblowers, activists, journalists: Is advocacy journalism the journalism of the digital age? The panel includes an editor from Zeit Online and a professor of entrepreneurship and media literacy from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. The emphasis is on how digital media allows journalists to shed their neutrality and take an active stance on social issues.

Those interested in the EU and public participation should look at a session titled, Turning disinterest into engagement through innovative media formats.  Hosted by DW in cooperation with the Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations (ifa), the discussion explores innovations in social media and journalism that are combining to increase citizen engagement in social issues, particularly with the context of EU policy and elections.

At the intersection of social media and human rights is a talk hosted by DW titled, Revolution postponed. The Arab Spring and Africa The discussion brings together African social media experts and journalists to analyze the state of social movements all over Africa, whether it is the Arab Spring in the north to political protests everywhere from Angola to Zimbabwe. The panel will explore if the movements have lost momentum and what the future may look like.

 

 

From the expanse of the African wilderness to the streets of Brazil, the training programs from DW Akademie provide journalists with the tools they need to produce stories that make a difference and have a positive effect on their communities.

A new series of workshops is set to begin this summer in cooperation with the Kavango-Zambesi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA), located in southern Africa. This conservation area is the largest in the world and stretches across five countries. Journalists from Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe have been invited to participate in the 16-month project.

The workshop will be focused on helping to increase awareness through the media of the need to protect the region. Journalists will be trained primarily in bio-diversity and how to better promote protection of species through their journalistic craft. Other issues that will be covered are ecological research, land development, tourism, resource conservation and conflict-sensitive reporting.

In a testament to the effectiveness of DW’s traininig programs, four radio journalists who took part in a DW workshop were recently awarded a Microfone de Prata (Silver Microphone), one of Brazil’s most prestigious journalism prizes. Journalists Gecylene Sales and Eanes Silva, who took part in a 2013 DW Akademie workshop on investigative reporting in Boa Vista, produced the award-winning report on forced prostitution in Amazonian countries. The journalistic production required them to use skills they learned with DW Akademie like doing effective research, conducting sensitive interviews and protecting sources.

Also winning a Silver Microphone were workshop participants Aroldo Bruce and Alcinio Limo, who produced a report on the struggle of indigenous Amazonian tribes with preserving their cultural identities. The competition for the prize was intense and the fact that two groups of workshop participants were chosen separately,  is something the DW Akademie can truly be proud of.

The proven success of DW Akademie’s training in Latin America and the new partnership with KAZA are just a few ways with which DW is working to improve the world through better journalism.

America

DW has a new, powerful programming partner in the United States: Univision. The most important Spanish-language media company in the USA will be including online content from DW in the future. Univision.com has more than 7 million visitors per month and is the most popular Spanish website. In addition, Univision Noticias is also the leading Spanish-language news feed, with 100,000 “regular” users and 200,000 mobile users daily. This new cooperation highlights DW’s importance among the Hispanic decision makers in the USA.

In Latin America, Multivision in Cuba has expanded its existing partnership with DW to include a total of eight DW programs.

 

Asia

China Education Television (CETV) will be including a selection of content from the DW Transtel catalog in its lineup for 2014. The station is responsible for supplying Chinese citizens with educational programming. CETV has selected a range of DW programming including everything from science, technology and the environment to arts and culture. The programming will be shown on television as well as two different online platforms.

 

Africa

DW and DW Akademie recently concluded a successful training course for journlists in Abuja, Nigeria. Select radio partners including Bauchi Radio Corporation, Freedom Radio, Radio Gotel, Royal FM and Voice of Nigeria were provided a course on “Gender sensitive reporting”.

 

Mobile

DW has relaunched its website for mobile users to provide users with more photo, video and audio content. In addition, the interactivity of the mobile platform has been expanded to include social media as well as automatic language recognition.

 

 

For a half-century DW has delivered quality news and information to Hausa speaking audiences in West Africa. To celebrate the occasion, a delegation of directors and editors from DW traveled to Niamey, Niger and Abuja, Nigeria to meet with local leaders and media representatives. Highlights of the events included keynote speeches and discussions centered on the role of international media in Africa and what can be done to assist with human rights and conflict resolution.  DW has been praised for providing a voice of freedom in times of political struggle as well as providing an example for the local media to follow. “We can’t always trust our own media,” said a representative from Dallol FM, a local radio station.

As one of the few international broadcasters with Hausa content tailored for local populations, DW plays a unique role in helping people improve their lives by providing them with a world-class news service alongside programming that advocates learning. A new part of this mission is Crossroads Generation, the latest series from the successful educational radio program, Learning by Ear. The new series was presented at both locations and received much acclaim. “With its educational programming and informative broadcasting, DW makes an essential contribution to education in Niger,” said Brigi Rafini, Prime Minsiter of Niger at the meeting in Niamey.

DW will also be seeking to expand its services for African audiences that comprise more than half of DW’s total global audience of 100 million.  “Deutsche Welle has been a large part of the media landscape in Africa for decades where we are seen as a reliable source of information” said DW Director General, Peter Limbourg, “Africa is a successful market for DW with excellent prospects.”