Project Description

MEDAR Training

Media Research Association’s primary mission is to conduct activities that aim to strenghten Turkey’s media in an alternative media orientation. To this aim, MEDAR attributes a significant meaning to organizing training sessions and does not limit herself to academic framework, but also includes experiences of journalists from the field, to develop skills of citizen journalists and allow existing media platforms to improve their adaptation to digital transformation. MEDAR is also the official sponsor of Turkey’s only citizen journalism focused news network, dokzu8NEWS and also serves as the implementor of #dokuz8TRAINING programs.

  • dokuz8NEWS which has been operating since 2014 with support of Media Research Association is a leading platform with its focus on citizen journalism, digital media and training sessions on new media and journalism.
  • As part of #dokuz8TRAINING programs so far there have been 82 sessions in 9 cities such as Istanbul, Ankara, İzmir, Diyarbakır, Adana, Antalya, Samsun, Ordu and Bursa, welcoming almost 2000 participants from 78 provinces of  Turkey.
  • dokuz8TRAINING programs has widened the horizon for hundreds of participants in various aspects, and decorated them with new skill sets in the area of journalism. After these training programs, hundreds of people from across Turkey supply dokuz8NEWS with crucial information especially in critical times such as election periods and assume a much greater role.
  • Aside from basic citizen journalism training sessions, especially since 2017 MEDAR and dokuz8NEWS has expanded the scope of activities to cover data journalism, mobile video journalism, investigative journalism, labour focused journalism, ecology focused journalism, social gender oriented journalism training sessions as well. Currently there are 32 different modules as part of #dokuz8TRAINING program offered by 60 experts in the trainers pool.
  • To this day there have participated almost 300 institutions to dokuz8NEWS’ training programs, representing various unions, civil society organizations, social initiatives etc. Through this aspect, these training sessions have been of vital importance for development of media capacity for civil society organizations.
  • Another significant group of participants is the regional media with over local journalists from various regions in Turkey, as part of dokuz8NEWS. Through a meeting held in Ankara in December 2018, Regional Media Coordination was initiated with a focus on March 31, 2019 municipal elections to offer citizens local developments from the source and this network has been growing since its establishment.
  • Through dokuz8NEWS and MEDAR’s activities in the field of training and research, dokuz8 Media Academy and Citizens’ Media Centers Network are being established, upgrading the activities of the institution to a new level. dokuz8 Media Academy is being established in Istanbul and will serve as a hub for the rest of activities under the title of Citizens’ Media Centers in Istanbul, Samsun, Bursa, İzmir, Adana, Kars.

You may follow the latest developments on dokuz8TRAINING programs on: