Reporting on Ukraine’s Polio Campaign
BBG conducted five workshops for journalists and held a media conference on polio in Ukraine. Sessions were held in Kyiv, Cherkasy, Odessa and Svyatohirsk (Donetsk region) from January-July 2016. BBG journalists worked with experts from WHO, UNICEF, Ukraine Ministry of Health and Rotary-Ukraine to train participants on reporting effectively on polio and other health issues. Journalists examined the media’s role in covering polio, ethical health reporting, new media tools and social networks for health crisis communication and verification of information. More then 70 journalists participated in training activities that were funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. After the training, 96 percent of participants said their knowledge of polio was “good” or “very good,” up from 10 percent at the start of the conference. Training participants produced more than 80 reports on polio for national and local radio and television broadcasts. Video reports and other materials were posted on the Rotary-Ukraine site #StopPolio.
