Tuesday Jan 14, 2025
Tuesday Jan 14, 2025
Tuesday, 10 December 2024 03:27 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and partner the International Research & Exchanges Board (IREX) celebrated the critical role citizen journalists play in amplifying voices often overlooked by mainstream media in a celebration of the thousandth story appearing on the publishing platform CitizensConnect.
The celebration — “CC1000 – Celebration of a Thousand Stories” — on 6 December at ITC Ratnadipa spotlighted the transformative role of citizen journalism in shaping Sri Lanka’s media landscape by bolstering voices, stories and communities usually left out of mainstream media coverage. Such coverage enriches the media environment beyond the traditional definitions of news.
Launched in 2021 under USAID’s Media Empowerment for a Democratic Sri Lanka project, the CitizensConnect publishing platform has empowered ordinary Sri Lankans to share unique stories about their communities. In 2023, USAID’s Promoting Positive Information (PRO-INFO) project continued the success of CitizensConnect, bridging gaps in local reporting and showcasing untold stories from across the island.
Kicking off the celebration, IREX in Sri Lanka Project Director Jean MacKenzie said, “We have been pleased and excited to see the enthusiasm with which Sri Lankans have embraced CitizensConnect. It shows the appetite for positive information – stories that uplift and inspire communities.”
The evening included panel discussions featuring training consultants and citizen journalists, who talked about crafting compelling stories and the role of mobile journalism in amplifying grassroots voices. A special screening of CitizensConnect’s 1000th video, which featured the inspiring journey of a school located in the hill country that transformed the lives of many children in that community, was greeted with resounding appreciation for its efforts to spark meaningful dialogue through mobile storytelling.
“The United States supports the free flow of information as a bedrock principle of democratic values,” said USAID Sri Lanka and Maldives Mission Director Gabriel Grau. “Citizen journalism is one of the best ways to ensure democracy by telling stories important to local communities. By sharing these narratives, we help create a more inclusive and economically empowered society.”
The event was capped by an awards ceremony that recognised and celebrated the efforts of citizen journalists who diligently source, produce and share the stories that have become the heart of the platform. Special awards were presented to recognise the most viewed, most commented, and most shared videos based on CitizensConnect’s Facebook metrics. Additionally, a special award category “Connecting Citizens” honoured the deep impact these videos have had in fostering community engagement, sparking important conversations, and bridging gaps across the island.
The event brought together members of the media community in Sri Lanka, citizen journalists and supporters from the USAID network. CitizensConnect remains dedicated to support a more robust and vibrant media and information ecosystem that contains multiple and diverse voices in Sri Lanka.
