about pacific media watch

ABOUT PMW

About Pacific Media Watch

Pacific Media Watch is an Asia-Pacific media digital repository now collected and published by staff and postgraduate students at AUT University’s Pacific Media Centre and contributing journalists.

Launched in Sydney in October 1996, Pacific Media Watch was the Pacific's first regional media website. It has links with the Journalism Programme at the University of the South Pacific, Journalism Studies at the University of PNG (UPNG) and the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism (ACIJ).

Independent and watchful, Pacific Media Watch was founded as an independent, non-profit non-government network by journalists Peter Cronau (based then at the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism, University of Technology, Sydney) and David Robie (based then at Journalism Studies at the University of Papua New Guinea).

After being initially established at the ACIJ, the archive was hosted by the Association of Progressive Communications (APC) in Sydney and the original website can be visited here.

Its genesis was the jailing of two Taimi ‘o Tonga journalists, Kalafi Moala and Filokalafi 'Akau'ola, and a 'whistleblowing' pro-democracy member of Parliament in Tonga, ‘Akilisi Pohiva, for alleged contempt in September 1996. They were later freed by the Supreme Court in Tonga which ruled their imprisonment was unconstitutional.

PMW played an important role in the campaign to free the three men, including organising a petition of more than 100 media signatures from the region.

Late in 2007, Taberannang Korauba, of Kiribati, joined the Pacific Media Centre to prepare PMW files for the new database.

FOUNDING OBJECTIVES

Pacific Media Watch's objectives are to:

• Press for the urgent removal of barriers to press freedom and freedom of expression.
• Protect and support journalists unjustly jailed, assaulted or harassed while performing their
professional duty.
• Encourage debate on media ethics, and press for improved professional standards.
• Monitor regional media ownership and other issues affecting freedom of information.
• Provide a digital information database.
• Support the overwhelming desire of Pacific peoples for a free and independent media.

7 April 2008

LINK

about PMW (PDF)