AMMAN, 2 October 2005 — An international conference on media development kicked off yesterday with the participation of 600 prominent media experts and activists from 104 countries and 180 organizations across the globe.
The three-day meeting, entitled the Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD), is sponsored by the US-based Internews International and seeks to expand the people’s access to information and foster local and independent media around the world, organizers said.
“Your international gathering recognizes the critical role the media plays in development,” Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister Marwan Muasher said in an opening address. “Gone are the days when one country, one culture, one news source could control the information flow. Today we are talking to each other across borders, through a multitude of technologies, at unstoppable speed,” he added.
Also addressing the meeting was president of the Internews Network, David Hoffman, who underscored the importance of the media to economic and political development, but at the same time urged conferees to find ways for “averting political pressures” that might be imposed on the media organs.
