World Association for Christian Communication Global News

The disastrous outcome of the US presidential election – for global peace, and within the USA for women’s rights, immigration, the environment, gun laws and LGBTQ+ rights – is also disastrous for press freedom. Misinformation and disinformation will become even more overt and officially sanctioned....

WACC has urged ACT Alliance members to give greater attention to communicative justice as a key dimension of sustainable development and humanitarian response, highlighting in particular the need for more inclusive and democratic media ecosystems. A member of the global coalition of 152 faith-based organizations...

When it comes to generative artificial intelligence, I am a sceptic. Is it just another Big Tech tool for collecting our personal data? Will it just magnify misinformation in a volatile political climate? Will it perpetuate racist, sexist and cultural stereotypes? Will it seem “smarter”...

WACC partners from Latin America are set to demonstrate the essential place of local voices exercising communication rights for climate justice as the United Nations Biodiversity Conference  – COP 16 opens today in Cali, Colombia. Every two years the UN event gathers governments and other...

In 2001, Jack G. Shaheen published Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People. In an analysis of over 900 films with Arab and Muslim characters from 1896 to 2000, he showed how moviemakers represented Arabs as heartless, uncivilized, religious fanatics akin to the worst...

Some 25 of WACC’s grassroots partners in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East will explore the communication rights implications of the newly adopted United Nations Global Digital Compact and develop a joint plan of action for advocacy when they meet on 22–25 October in Kathmandu,...

“Meet the Coordinators,” a new blog series launching today on WACC’s Who Makes The News website gives a look at the people, organizations, and contexts behind the data as the Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP) moves towards its 7th edition. The GMMP, the largest and...

In one part of the world, in Nairobi, Kenya, street vendors are doing booming business with “art” generated by artificial intelligence whose pricing matches or is even higher than real art. What constitutes “art” may be in the eyes of the beholder, but it seems...

“Summit of the Future” sounds a bit like an Avengers movie. It is in fact a much-anticipated (and much-hyped) United Nations event on 22–23 September that aims to address the critical issues that are increasingly transforming lives – issues such as climate change, digital governance,...

WACC and the World Council of Churches (WCC) have launched a key resource to address tech-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) and are inviting individuals and groups to become part of a global movement taking action for gender justice online. “Taking Action Against Tech-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence,” a...

WACC and the World Council of Churches (WCC) are combining networks and expertise to create an equal online space for all. Join the two global organizations on 12 September for the launch of a toolkit and social media monitoring initiative to stop tech-facilitated gender-based violence....

WACC has received with sadness the announcement of the closing of ALC News, the pioneering ecumenical communication agency for Latin America and the Caribbean based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. After 30 years of service to the ecumenical community, this innovative, full-service communication agency that published...

The climate emergency is a challenge of such magnitude that we tend to forget that solutions are often found at the local level and in unexpected places. Such is the case of Radio Stereo Ideal 98.9 FM, a community radio station based in Tena, in...

Constructive journalism has an important role to play both within and without conflict situations, editor Philip Lee says in the 3/2024 issue of Media Development, WACC’s quarterly journal. Such communication can help those outside a conflict situation to better understand what is happening and increase...

How to regulate social media platforms effectively has become the quest of liberal and illiberal governments alike. The one to eradicate hate speech, and the other to control rebellious populations. The UN defines hate speech as “any kind of communication in speech, writing or behaviour,...

Media Development 2024-3 Communication in Conflict Situations Exploring the notion that constructive journalism can engender greater understanding by those on the outside of the situation, as well as greater trust by those on the inside. With the aim of reducing tensions, paving the way for...

Peter Prove The first casualty of war is truth. This familiar adage has been attributed to many authors, from Chinese military strategist and philosopher Sun Tzu (c.544BC – c.496) and ancient Greek tragedian Aeschylus (c.525 BC – c.456 BC) to US Senator Hiram Warren Johnson...

Deutsche Welle Rousbeh Legatis is a peace and conflict researcher, former UN correspondent and international consultant on the role of journalists as actors in conflict transformation processes. In a 2019 interview with #mediadev, he discussed how the media can participate in peacebuilding. What role does...

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) The media shape how the public perceives the risks posed by hazards; these perceptions in turn influence the set of strategies for the mitigation of future vulnerabilities in the form of taxes, opportunity costs, lifestyle changes, and...

Helen McElhinney Recently, the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development hosted a conference on the risks and opportunities of AI on humanitarian action. I kicked off my presentation on disinformation by asking the senior policy makers gathered a few questions about basic social media literacy: Can...