Center Partners With Russian Journalists

The James M. Cox Jr. Center for International Mass Communication Training is working with the Russian Union of Journalists to host representatives from 25 to 30 Russian news organizations on improving media management skills in a workshop scheduled for June 8.
The workshop, which will take place in the Samara region of Russia, will utilize the skills of Drs. Lee Becker and Ann Hollifield director of the Cox Center and department head of telecommunications in Grady College, respectively, and two Russian trainers in working with the journalists. The two Russian specialists are Nadezhda Azhgikhina, executive secretary of the RUJ, and Vladimir Kasyutin, secretary of the same organization.
“It’s not only about teaching, it’s a learning experience,” said Tudor Vlad, associate director of the Cox Center, of the programs benefits. Vlad said that the dangers facing Russian journalists provide valuable lessons to any reporter. He cited statistics that show of the 260 journalists killed in Russia last year less than 20 percent have reached courts.
Vlad said that the help that the Cox Center provides will help Russian journalists feel less isolated. He quoted Azhgikhina on her belief that connecting with reporters of other nationalities is crucial to making Russians feel they are a part of the larger world. By pairing this goal of connectivity with the program’s main function of improving management skills the Cox Center hopes that Russia will serve as a launching pad for a successful and financially independent media.