Legal Leaks Project Launch: Journalism and the Right to Information
Strategy Workshop 18th and 19th of February 2009, Berlin


Wednesday, February 17th

Arrival in the Hotel Berlin Berlin
Hotel Berlin, Berlin
Lützowplatz 17
10785 Berlin, Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 30 2605-0
Website: www.hotel-berlin-berlin.com


Thursday,  February 18th

11 am
Registration
Konrad Adenauer Stiftung
Tiergartenstraße 35
10785 Berlin

11.15 am
Official Welcome and Opening Addresses
Hans Maria Heyn, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung
Helen Darbishire, Access Info Europe
Christian Mihr, n-ost - Network for Reporting on Eastern Europe

11.45 am
Round of introductions of the participants – each person should prepare a short—and interesting!—presentation of their work which should last only 3 minutes!

1.00 pm
Lunch

2.00 pm
Session 1: Journalists and Access to Information Laws I – success stories – the aim is to exchange and analyse positive examples of how the access to information/freedom of information laws have been used by journalists. National and transnational examples. Moderator: Helen Darbishire, Access Info Europe
Projection extracts Access to Information Programme video (15 mins)
Case study: Alexander Kashumov, Access to Information Programme, Bulgaria (30 mins)
Brainstorming: Identify issue (5 mins)
Strategy (10 mins)
Feedback (10 mins)
Discussion (35 mins)

3.45 pm
Coffee Break

4.30 pm– 6.45 pm
Session 2: Journalists and Access to Information Laws II – challenges and obstacles – the aim of the session is to discuss the problems which journalists may face when considering using access to information laws, the disincentives (including lack of support from editors, and potential damage to relations with public authorities), the need for legal support to file appeals, etc. This is a key session as it addresses the needs which the legal leaks project is designed to address.
Moderator: Helen Darbishire, Access Info
Case study: Leila Bikacic, Centre for Investigative Reporting (15 mins); Sandor Orban, South East Network for Professionalization of the Media (15 mins)
Brainstorming: Identify issue (10 mins)
Strategy (10 mins)
Feedback (10 mins)
Discussion (30 mins)

7 pm
Dinner at the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung


Friday, February 19th

9.30 am – 11 am
Session 3: Data Security Issues – the aim here is to identify the types of data security issues faced by journalists and to map out the technical and strategic solutions that exist, as well as to identify the best methodology for including these solutions into projects designed to support journalists.
Moderating: Christian Mihr, n-ost
Projection extracts Tactical Tech Info Activism video (15 mins)
Case study: Marek Tuszynski, Tactical Tech (30 mins)
Brainstorming: Identify issue (5 mins)
Strategy (10 mins)
Feedback (10 mins)
Discussion (20 mins)

11 am – 11.30 am
Coffee break

11.30 am – 1 pm
Session 4: Computer Assisted Reporting – the aim here is to assess how CAR can be used by journalists at all levels, to identify some current issues with access to government data in electronic format (including but not exclusively databases), to touch upon issues related reuse of public sector data, and to consider the link between access to information requests filed nationally/transnationally and CAR.
Moderator: Andreas Bock, n-ost
Case study: Helena Bengtsson, Sweden (30 mins)
Discussant: Yaroslava Sennikova, Center for International Media Ethics (15 mins)
Brainstorming: Identify issue (5 mins)
Strategy (10 mins)
Feedback (10 mins)
Discussion (20 mins)

1 pm – 2 pm
Lunch

2 pm – 3.30 pm
Session 5: Networking Strategy, including discussion on how to build national or transnational networks to support filing of access to information requests and legal support, as well as building collaborative research projects by journalists from a number of countries.
Moderator: Lydia Medland, Access Info
Case study: Gordana Igric, Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (15 mins); Manfred Redelfs, Netzwerk Recherche (15 mins)
Discussants: Markus Beckedahl, newthinking/netzpolitik.org
Brainstorming: Identify issue (5 mins)
Strategy (10 mins)
Feedback (10 mins)
Discussion (20 mins)

3.30 pm – 4 pm
Coffee break

16 pm – 17.30 pm
Session 6: Project implementation and Fundraising strategy: this session will consider how to develop the “Legal Leaks project” and to ensure its complementarity with other projects, the role of the different project partners, how to structure the management of the project implementation and the fundraising strategy in which all partners will be involved.
Moderator: Christian Mihr, n-ost, Helen Darbishire, Access Info
Events in 2010: Oliver Vujovic, South East Europe Media Organisation; all participants
Brainstorming: Identify activity opportunities (5 mins)
Strategy (10 mins)
Feedback (10 mins)
Discussion (30 mins)

5.30 pm – 6 pm
Coffee break

6 pm – 7 pm
Session 7: Conclusions and Next Steps: this session will aim to pull together the strands of all the discussions during the two days of the workshop and to map out the action plan for the next steps for the project.
Moderators: Christian Mihr, n-ost; Helen Darbishire, Access Info

7 pm
Close

8 pm
Dinner