The Global Network Initiative (GNI) is pleased to announce that the civil society organization Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) has become a GNI member.
GFMD is an international network of around 200 members working across 70 countries to provide an international platform for journalism support and media development practitioners to interact with donors, governments, opinion leaders, and the wider public in order to advocate for media development as a primary pillar for social, economic, and political progress.
“GNI’s mission complements much of the advocacy and policy work we are conducting within the Internet governance ecosystem. This includes a call for broader inclusion of news media and journalism in Internet governance, and highlighting how the underlying mechanisms of the digital economy enable the manipulation of online spaces and the proliferation of disinformation and misinformation. Effectively combating these threats requires commitments from all stakeholders to ensure that high-quality journalism and independent news media organizations are sustainable, which is also why engaging with the GNI network is critical for us,” said Mira Milosevic, Executive Director of GFMD.
In July 2018, GFMD was formally granted special consultative status by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). This allows GFMD and its member organizations to more easily participate in UN processes and apply for and receive project funding at the local, regional, and global levels from UN agencies. GFMD has successfully advocated for the inclusion of access to information in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and developed a series of strong initiatives at international and national levels.
“GFMD’s experience in multistakeholder spaces, including the United for News Coalition and the Journalism Trust Initiative, coupled with their media expertise, will be instrumental to GNI’s efforts to protect freedom of expression and privacy rights,” said GNI Executive Director Judith Lichtenberg.