By MILENA STOŠIĆ (milena.stosic@wavemagazine.net)
from Ohrid, MACEDONIA

Wonderful city of Ohrid, largest cultural and tourist centre in Macedonia, nested on the shores of UNESCO protected Ohrid lake, gathered at the beginning of July about 40 journalists and experts from 18 different countries. These young people had opportunity to participate in new media training on european reporting called “Integrating Europe Online”, with idea to discuss about EU enlargement, EU structure and functioning and to report on EU-related subject. Event was project of well known FEJS Macedonia / Mladiinfo and supported by Youth in Action program. And WAVE magazine was also there.

From the very begining participants were reminded of EU history and development, structure and institutions, as prerequisit for a journalist to write about current EU issues, having in mind how the machine works. The well known example of how curved bananas will be banned by legislation, shows how this kind of trainings are needed in media making, and it is one that couple of trainers mentioned as example of bad practice. But training was of use to young journalists living outside EU, such as Luzia Tschirky from Switzerland.

- An inside view on European institutions but even more on the main thought behind it was very useful. How many times the Union may called to be dead or at least damaged it is still alive today and the training in Ohrid has given young journalists the chance to get about what the European Union is all about – she said for WAVE magazine.

Enthusiasm in coverage of candidate countries

EU enlargement was also one of the topics in focus, so the discussion with Robert Liddell, representative of Delegation of EU in Macedonia raised some interesting questions. Asked about closing the gates of EU for future members, Liddell honestly answered that today answer would be that there is no limit to EU enlargement, but also stated that you can never tell what will happen tomorrow:

- We see Balkans as a part of Europe. But it is their call if they are going to join, it is up to them, it is their choice. Yes, you can prepare for membership, adopt standards etc.

One of the things he also stressed is that active participation of citizens is of importance, so for journalist maybe even more.

- People should be asking questions about what is going on around them. They must start with awareness and asking goverment what are they doing. You must understand in order to participate.

And apparently Ex-yugoslavian country Macedonia understands as well concept of participation in community such as EU. As Draganco Apostolovski, representative of this country’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs reminded, Macedonia was already a part of Yugoslavia, refering to idea of multinational community and strong economicaly developed federation, so it has certain “experience”.

Representative of another candidate country – Montenegro, was also there. In opinion of Milica Zugic, this training was very important from that point of view.

- We got deeper into functioning of the Union and also heard different but objective stories, positive and negative things. Speakers and trainers were very good and coming from different bodies connected to EU, so we could hear different opinions. Also was useful to find out where is Macedonia in the process of EU integrations and that experts are very positive about euro integrations of Montenegro.

Ilona Nuksevica, representative of FEJS Latvia also notices thatenthusiasm mostly emerged in coverage in candidate countries, such as Macedonia, comparing to negative or uninterested EU reporting in UK or other “old members”. Apart from that she finds this training very interesting and inspiring to work in international team and compare different approaches to EU reporting.

- Although the EU topics we discussed were mostly not very “exciting” or of relevant importance for everybody, the experienced, active and enthusiastic team members from all of the Europe (and not only) gave me a lot of new information, impressions and skills – she explained for our magazine.

But, although EU topics are not always very exciting, as Ilona mentioned, basics about EU and decision making process are “must know” for journalist who reports on such topics.

- There is a huge gap between what is EU producing and what is interesting for the public. Journalists are forced to pick up some details from legislations and make it interesting. But as Kennedy said once, we are trying to do something that is hard and not easy – Valentin Nestovski, public information officer at EU information centre in Skopje stressed on this training.


People, Skopsko beer and Yugo-nostalgy

And maybe the most interesting part of this event was practical part of it, where international teams, facilitated by a trainer made together reports on various EU topics.

- It was really great pleasure to participate in this event and I am really glad that it took place on the Balkans, where I’ve never been before. The region and its people made my main impressions - Belarusian Siarhei Kuzniatsouconcludes.

This opportunity of working together, networking and especially cultural exchange is obviously also one of the most important aspects that young media makers gained from this training, as you can read in Carmen Kong‘s article in Europe & Me magazine, too.

- Sipping from a bottle of Skopsko, the regional beer from the Macedonian capital Skopje, two Macedonian and Slovenian journalists fascinated me with their Croatian-Serbian conversation. When asked more about their common history and culture under the Yugoslavian era, they disclosed the nostalgy for communism that existed in their countries about – she wrote in her observation.

And this Yugo-nostalgy was revealed once more during farewell party when participants from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia sang together famous song of ex-yu rock band “Igra rock’n'roll cela Jugoslavija” (Whole Yugoslavia dance rock’n'roll). Maybe they will be again under same umbrella of EU in future and until then (and then) we will follow news about in media.

Photos by Sebastian Olenyi (creative commons licence cc by nc) & Tamara Trajkovski

(Published: 10.07.2011. at Wave magazine)

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Comparing to Turkey Holland is boring. And it is small. In Holland there is no discrimination, no human rights violation and Turkey is in that perspective much more developing. Holland is more like old population, everything is settled, it is sort of developed. In Turkey, population is young, economy is growing, democratisation process going on, there are so much issues going on, which is very important. I felt I have to go where real topics are

By MILENA STOŠIĆ
from Niš, SERBIA

Frederike Geerdink is a Dutch who lives and work as a journalist in Turkey for several years now. She origins from Utreht, a place 30 km from Amsterdam, and she grew up in Eastern Holland, close to German border. Even before she went to journalism school, she used to say that she will be correspondent from Russia. Today, she is settled in Istanbul without thinking to move again or get back to West.

In Istanbul, right in the center of main city district – Taksim square, she speaks for WAVE magazine about her decision to move to East, about journalism, women position in Turkey and her life as a woman from the west in a country which is often perceived as conservative and controversial.

- First, I wanted to be a freelancer abroad, but I didn’t know how to do it. There was an evening course for people who already work in journalism in Holland, and there we made a list of criterias that one country needs for journalist to be potentially successful as freelancer. And one of the things is also that living standard should be lower than in Holland, so you don’t need lot of money for living. And I loved Scotland very much but that was immediately out of the picture because it has same price level as Holland – explains Frederike her decision to move to Turkey.

- Also because country needs a conflict you can write about. And there is a huge Turkish community in Holland, there are many Dutch people going to Turkey for holidays, there was a big potential interest in Turkey in many different groups. After 8 years of freelancing and 8 years of having an office job I knew people from practically every magazine in Holland, so I thought if there are so many angles you can write about Turkey from, then I can write for all these magazines too, where I already write about health.

How does it feel being a woman from West in Istanbul?

- Great! Yes, really, comparing to Turkey Holland is boring. And it is small. I felt I have to go where real topics are. In Holland there is no discrimination, no human rights violation and Turkey is in that perspective much more developing. Holland is more like old population, everything is settled, it is sort of developed. In Turkey, population is young, economy is growing, democratisation process going on, Kurdish, Armenian issue, there are so much issues going on, which is very important.

Are your expectations fullfilled?

- Six years ago, when I became enthusiastic about Turkey, I decided to go and take a look for the first time and to see if I can make a story and sell it, and – I did. And then two months later, I went again and repeated the same. And I was going every couple months for 2-3 weeks as freelancer (for two years) and every time I was able to make a story and sell it. That brought me confidence to move there.

Women issues are one of your main fields of interest?

- It’s good that you call it “women issues” because usually people say “women rights”, but that’s only a part. Exp. Head scarfs – it’s really discriminating. But I also write about happiness in women’s life. They tell me what makes them happy in life, and what they expected from life. I read somewhere that only 50 per cent of Turkish female population call themselves happy, which is a low percentage.

So, you think that head-scarfing is discriminating?

- I’ve talked to some women that wear head-scarves and they say that they got used to it. Sometimes they can’t say to their fathers and husbands. There are ones who are very, very young and it get on my western nerves a little bit – I mean, you can show yourself, you can show who you are. But I know one Dutch women who really chose to be like that, she said – I know this is how Mohamed’s wives were dressing and they are example for me so I want to look like they were.

It’s not true that it is always imposed by husband or a father, because I also know a student here with a headscarf and I met two other sisters and they still live in their parents house and they are not head scarfed. But, on universities covering up is forbidden and if women want to stick with religion they can wear wigs or big hats. You can not show symbol of political Islam in official state’s institutions.

Are there lots of women who can’t read?

- There are not many jobs in South & East areas. Kurds also have big families and there is not enough money to send all the children to school, so first boys are sent to school because later they should be able to take care of families. Sometimes they don’t want their woman to be educated although there is a law here that all girls have to go to school. Those who stay home are called “house girls”. They stay at home and they don’t work; they help their mothers in taking care of house and younger brothers and sisters – taking them to school, shopping, cleaning, cooking. In the meantime they do hands work and get ready for the marriage. It’s quite a big group here.

What about domestic violence?

- It’s a bigger issue here than in Holland. And it’s more accepted by the women like it’s natural. There are women who thinks that man has sometimes reasons to beat their wives if, e.g. they go to friends without permission.

I’ve done an article with a woman whose husband died five years after they married. He drink himself to death, she even lost two pregnancies because of his violence and she said during the interview – but, I loved him – and I wonder why since she never knew him as a nice man. Her answer was – I belonged with him, my place was with him. So, it wasn’t really love but something like “he is my husband and he will always be, and what can I do”.

Victims don’t confront a lot. And police usually ask – do you really, really want to file a complaint. And many of them who leave their violent husbands go back after some time. It’s really hard to get out of a violent relationship.

And with whom children usually stay?

- Children usually stay with mother. Woman can go back to her parents. It’s hard to say something in general about Turkey in this context. Southeast of Turkey – girls of 14 are forced to marry 50 years old man, and if they want to get away from the marriage only solution is to commit suicide. But you also have places like Istanbul, where women marries three times and divorce four times. There are very huge differences.

Part II in August issue

(Published in WAVE magazine)

Just when Europe goes through one of its biggest crisis – an economical international crack – many people analyze EU future. 33 European journalists met in Istanbul, in May. Their common features? Their youth, their interests, and their compromise with EU issues. In the third edition of the European Young Journalist Award, WAVE magazine analyzes EU enlargement through their works, their winning articles

By MILENA STOŠIĆ, Serbia
and ISABEL BENITEZ, Spain

“What did the EU ever do for me?”, asks Nanna Arnadottir, European Young Journalist Award Winner from Iceland, in her report. And one must really wonder which are pro & contra arguments for (non)supporters of this enlargement idea. Is EU design closer to model of former Yugoslavia or closer to Switzerland? Do we give more than we get? What about national identities? What is to lose and what is to gain?

Still EU is open to embrace more European countries who can fulfill what it takes. It seems that for Turkey takes a lot, more than a decade. For Western Balkans this is a hot question as well, but probably path can be easier because all countries together in this area have almost four times less population than Turkey, which is easier for EU to absorb. And they are mostly Christian, another relevant detail. Impression is that people in these countries are very keen to join EU.

According to few Eurobarometer researches (2009), which conducts surveys in behalf of the European Commission in all member states of the EU, opinions about the presence of foreigners in the surveyed cities were generally positive. In 68 cities, a slim majority of interviewees, at least, agreed that their presence was beneficial. At the same time, job creation and reducing unemployment appeared among the three most significant problems that respondent cities faced in 64 of the 75 surveyed cities in EU, Croatia and Turkey. So, it seems that employment expectation is one of the most transparent things that people from countries with European perspective took for granted.

Crossing Borders

For countries where freedom to move and travel without visa is still not possible this would be probably first reason, although they seem to miss the fact that EU membership is not condition for this. Secondly, employment is expected. Then – less corruption, rule of law, blossom of economy, safety, accession to EU funds and political stability.

“And Ismaili, the head of IPKO telecommunications, dreams of travelling without visas, as ‘people who can travel don’t need to emigrate’” – (Kosovo 2.0. Verena Ringler, Austria).

There are so many different interpretations of EU Enlargement as citizens in the whole continent. However, there are some images repeated. One of them is the idea of new adhesions like a priority, a political and social need. The process is seen as an opportunity to change what is disgusting and disappointing in the own country. Becoming a communitarian country seems to be a solution for social instability, a guarantee of democracy and a ‘fire exit’ for economical ups and downs.

Austrian winner points out to freedom of movements. She considers it one of the greatest conquests in Europe. When a group of countries decides to open a door to migration and population’s displacements, it also prepares the ground to professional exchanges and transfers of citizens looking for a better life.

And economy is, definitely, present in a huge group of articles. There are even winners – Denmark or Serbia, who stress the financial benefits of being a member state.

Social and economic impacts

“Since the enlargement of the European Union toward the East, almost two million Poles have left their country to try their luck overseas. However, this economic miracle in the form of emigration has come at a price: that of the ‘euro orphans’.” (Poland: Nobody’s children. Prune Antoine, France).

But EU enlargement is also seen from a critic point of view. Eurobarometer shows that at least half or more of the EU respondents consider that enlargement has made the enlarged EU more difficult to manage (66%), contributed to job losses in their country (56%), caused problems because of the divergent cultural traditions of the new Member States (54%) and led to an increased feeling of insecurity (50%) in the European Union as a whole.

In 2004, European Union became a group of 25 countries. In 2007, Hungary and Romania joined it, too. After a long period of negotiations and public debates, they started to sacrifice parts of their national interests to get common goals. People noticed the change, of course. Emigration is useful in those countries which offer lower salaries and quality of life to citizens. Families break up; children stay in while parents look for money abroad and society cracks once people decide to seek Europe as something they want to, instead of like a project they are part of.

Poland suffers from this European illness. Romania does, too. Since it joined Communitarian institutions, Romanians have become the most numerous group of migrants in Italy and Spain. In 2009, the Government of Romania started a campaign asking Romanians to come back home as they were precise to get the country back on its feet.

Euroscepticism and mixture of cultures

When it comes to negative expectations and euroscepticism, most common is one about national identity, losing independence, lower standard, bad impact on agriculture and when it comes to Serbia – recognition of Kosovo’s independence, as often predicted term for EU accession. As Nanna, from Iceland, wrote: “Euromyths are still a problem, fears about the shape of cucumbers and the enlisting of innocent young Icelandic boys into the vast (and currently non-existent) EU army plague conversations, papers and airwaves and as always the fear of losing our national identity plays up to the hostile nature of trepidatious hearts.”

“Some politicians think that the joining could have been a mistake and the enlargement of the Union could have happened later. But beside the politicians there are other opinions. Vladislav tells how Bulgarian folk dances and music unite people from several countries in the heart of common Europe.” (Bulgarian Sedianka in Belgium. Vladislav Velev, Bulgaria).

Enlargement is more than a political union, anyway. It is more than official meetings, international agreements and pan-European laws. It can be thought as a cultural achievement, as a way to become part of the same group of writers, painters or dancers; as a way to share music, lyrics, life and ideas. That’s what many young journalists propose: EU enlargement like a chance to “enlarge” their borders, to enrich their own historical and cultural richness.

From time to time, Europe has been defined by mixtures, by “lendings”. Its history is the story of thousands of communities moving, running, sharing territories, fighting for lands; is a tale of arguments and pacific dialogues, of a similar past and an undefined future. In Belgium, there are music bands composed of Russians, Poles and Bulgarians. In Spain there are Greeks dancing flamenco, while Serbia receives Spanish guitar exhibitions. They make Europe a place where it is possible to understand each other, where dialogue is feasible, and even advisable.

Between fears from both sides (EU and non-EU) based in reality or in lack of informations and prejudices, people tend to forget or not to notice small things that makes comfortable life and things that EU provides for its citizens. As stated in My Home, My Iceland, My Europe: “Apart from guaranteeing four weeks paid holiday and the protection of part time work, the free movement of goods, free movement of people, the research grants, the Erasmus program, the rigid and prosperous wildlife protection programs, the commitment to environment, the removal of cell phone roaming charges, the extension and guarantee of parental leave – What has the EU ever done for us?”.

EYJA 2010 young journalists reports gives fresh new look to this question and it is up to readers to reevaluate picture of pessimistic or ideal Europe and EU. But, seeing group of young Europeans together in Istanbul, smiling, talking, walking together, sharing experiences, metaphorically reminds to one micro EU with possibility that one day our big picture can be like that.

European Young Journalist Award is a prize the European Commission’s Directorate General for Enlargement gives every year to best articles and journalistic works in our continent. Each national jury choose a winner. But this round includes a novelty: a European jury has voted for three special winners – they won a cultural trip to a European destination – and three special commended.

In the category of Most Original Report, European jury selected Bulgarian Sedianka in Belgium, from Bulgaria, written by Vladislav Velev. It pointed out that the article was a “clear example of how people-to-people contacts can flourish irrespective of wider political considerations”.

The Best Research Prize went to France: Poland: Nobody’s children. Prune Antoine’s text was considered a good example of traditional journalistic research, because of the different sources it employs and how it puts a face to simple facts.

The third prize, Best Journalistic Style, was for Verena Ringler, from Austria. Kosovo 2.0 holds reader’s attention until the end and analyzes European enlargement from an unusual perspective; from Eastern youth’s experience.

Finally, the three special higher commended remembered Danica Tuntevska, from Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kristof Clerix, from Belgium, and Radovan Potočár, Slovakia.

Published in Wave magazine, June 2010

“Music. It is basically one of the most popular ways of communication. Far away from your senses’ simple desire to enjoy, it was made to express, tell, and even to represent a society.

Depending on the place, it serves different goals. In colonial times in Africa, it was considered a dangerous tool against European power. In this place, music was definitely (and it is actually) related to dance. Slaves used it to express themselves, but dancing, jumping and singing were usually forbidden: soldiers were afraid of them, they thought slaves were training to rebel.

Nevertheless, music can let us know what we are made of, what we think, how we feel…

Sometimes ­­(we can say “always”) it is the only way to communicate, when words aren’t enough, high walls stop our steps and we cannot understand what we considered “strange and disturbing habits”.

From East to West, from West to East, of Europe, music is able to overcome time and space looking for someone to listen to it. And he or she always appears. Do you know where these melodies come from?”

http://www.emartv.com/talleresradio10/MUSIC_BRIDGE.mp3

(Isabel & Slavomira)

La cultura dell’interrogarsi

di Antonella Andriuolo

Istanbul è una città giovane. Le strade di Taksim, i vicoli di Moda, i viali di Kadıköy sono sempre pieni di ragazzi. Venire qui è interrogarsi sul proprio futuro, su quello che sarà il domani, sul concetto di identità e multiculturalità. Sono solo dei ponti a dividere il continente asiatico da quello europeo, ponti attraversati ogni giorno da centinaia di persone. Volti e sguardi che si incrociano mentre si beve una spremuta in uno dei tanti chioschi, mentre si compra qualche oggetto al Gran Bazar o mentre si ammira la Torre di Galata. L’occhio di un giornalista, però, non dovrebbe soffermarsi solo su questi aspetti. Un occhio critico e allenato dovrebbe guardare oltre, magari soffermandosi sulla voce della città. Sì, sulla voce. Cosa dice Istanbul? O, meglio, cosa ci dice Istanbul? Ogni città parla, e questa lo fa in modo particolare. Istanbul ci induce, per esempio, a ri-valutare il nostro concetto di integrazione.

La prima volta pensai che, qui, la vita è più dura che altrove. Quando si ha una pre-visione, intesa come un’immagine dettata dal pre-giudizio, il rischio che si corre è questo. Ma a nessuno si nega una seconda possibilità e Istanbul non la nega: le prime impressioni possono essere sbagliate. Una serata trascorsa in un pub, al centro della pista giovani come noi. Noi chi? Sempre gli stessi, quelli che, con una certa ingenuità, si erano lasciati trasportare dall’idea pre-costituita che avevano della società turca. Istanbul è una città confusa. Donne con il velo, donne senza, modi di vita differenti ma mai in contrasto. Libertà e tradizione. Perché il caos di Istanbul è la sua forza. Un’energia propulsiva che sembra irradiarsi anche dalle canne dei pescatori schierati sul ponte, una delle scene più tipiche che questa megalopoli riserva ai suoi visitatori.

15 milioni di abitanti non sono pochi ma i mezzi per muoversi sono tanti: il traghetto, che accorcia le distanze fra le due sponde, gli autobus, i filobus, i taxi e i Dolmuş, taxi collettivi dalle fermate prestabilite, economici e convenienti. È per questo che Istanbul è una città organizzata. Lo è anche quando si va nelle università, che ospitano campus moderni e sconfinati. Il canto del muezzin risuona anche qui. Navigando sul Bosforo, all’ora del tramonto, i minareti disegnano geometrie perfette che fanno incontrare cielo e terra. Insieme a fuoco e aria, sono proprio i quattro elementi a fare da filo conduttore nel programma degli eventi messo in agenda per “Istanbul Capitale Europea della Cultura 2010”.

Istanbul è una città colta. Oltre alla sua antichissima storia, può contare su un valore aggiunto: la cultura dell’accoglienza. Non sei straniero ad Istanbul, l’ospitalità è radicata nella gente e nelle cose. Abbiamo parlato con tante persone in questi giorni, alcune delle quali si sono trasferite qui ormai da anni. Il Prof. Scito, di origine italiana, insegna all’Università di Marmara; con lui abbiamo discusso sul mondo dei media e della comunicazione. Ma non solo: abbiamo anche viaggiato insieme e questo è stato, forse, uno dei modi più diretti per immergersi nella città. Viaggiare, partire, tornare.

Qual è dunque il messaggio che Istanbul trasmette? Quale la voce? Con un pizzico di prudenza, potremmo dire che la voce di Istanbul è una voce diversa, che non pretende di dare risposte ma che pone, al contrario, delle domande. La sua confusione, il suo disordine diventano allora il luogo ideale per ri-considerarla, per vederla sotto una nuova luce. La luce dell’interrogativo e l’immenso valore che questo ha ma che, spesso, nel quotidiano, si perde. Dire sì o no, mai forse. Vedere bianco o nero, mai le sfumature. Mettere un punto fermo invece che un punto interrogativo. Sempre. È qui, dunque, che Istanbul sembra lanciare un messaggio che somiglia più a un invito: sicuri di avere le idee chiare? Di voler mettere un punto fermo? Di conoscere il valore della domanda, della cultura dell’interrogarsi?

Talvolta lasciare una sospensione può essere davvero utile. Permette ai nostri pensieri di vagare, andare lontano, vicino, volare, migrare e attraversare ponti.

Non solo per andare avanti ma anche, quando serve, per poter tornare indietro.

Zsuzsa Szabo

“We had a debate in the newsroom on where to put Turkey on our webpage: Middle East or Europe? Finally we put them both places,” said Clea Calcutt, UK winner of the 2010 EYJA. This was one response to the question of how the media represents Turkey to its audience, and how media can shape opinion.

Gunnar Köhne, a German TV journalist, has lived in Istanbul for 15 years. “It’s easier to sell bad news: human rights violations, the lives of women, crime… journalists should try to break down the clichés – that’s hard too, because the point of view of the journalist presents an opinion”, said Gunnar. Media companies have to be able to finance a correspondent’s life abroad; a simple travelling journalist cannot be as serious and in-depth.

Turkey’s image

Clea lives in a neighbourhood in Paris where Turkish Kurds live. Clea’s vision of the Turkish was based on this experience, but when she arrived to Istanbul, she realized that the Kurdish people she had known are more traditional. Istanbul people are vibrant, young, something different.

Slovakian people tend to assume that women have to wear headscarves in Turkey. Slavomira Gasperova, the Slovakian winner of EYJA 2009, told the workshop group that Slovakians consider Turkey to be a very religious Muslim country. Their media always report the scandals.

When mass tourism started for the Finnish, the first destination was Turkey. Many people took their first foreign holiday there – vendors in the bazaars are able to speak Finnish to tourists. “In Finland, Turkish people have kebab shops”, said Tuomas Rimpilainen, the Finnish winner of this year’s award. “Erasmus exchange students speak about Turkey with great enthusiasm, but still, we are afraid of the big population.”

“We used to hate each other,” pointed out Aikaterinis Petros, this year’s Greek winner. Yet according to him, in Greece the general opinion is that if Turkey enters the EU, their problems will be solved; the EU is a problem-solving organization for them.

Gunnar defined three phases in the evolving perceptions of Turks in Germany. Two million Turks came to live and work in Germany. They presented an image of their country to Germans, without Germans knowing Turkey itself. “This image is projected to Turkey. If we experienced crime, it meant that Turkey was a dangerous place.” In the second phase of perceptions, Turkey became a tourist destination – the Turks became the poor who are dependent on tourists’ money. Finally, after the September 11 terrorist attacks, they became associated with Islam too.

Changing perceptions

The task of the journalist is to inform people about the world. If people have a defined opinion about a country due to news which is one-sided, it’s the media’s fault, and the media must take the responsibility for that. The main conclusion of the conversation about media and enlargement was: if the journalist notices mistaken perceptions of something (e.g. Turkey as a country), they should try to inform in a more nuanced way. After researching into readers’ opinions, the journalist can compensate by focusing on different topics as counterweights. For example, by raising topics such as Turkish fashion designers combining traditional customs with modern demands; the story of a female architect building a mosque; or the acceptance of dogs on the street, while dogs in more traditional Islam countries are considered bad. Turkey – like every country – is more diverse than we think.

Images and perceptions tell only part of the story.

Andrés Valdés, Spanish winner.

“Cuando pasas cerca de la casa de un amigo, sueles ir a llamarlo, ¿verdad? Bien, pues, este viaje ha conseguido crear lazos lo suficientemente fuertes como para conseguir que trabajar en Europa sea con los compañeros del colegio para hacer los deberes (después del recreo) ”

Roberto Yanguas, Spanish winner.

“Resulta muy difícil separar los sentimientos de la realidad. Allí es donde comienza el trabajo de los periodistas, pero, sin embargo, sigue siendo complicado. Con un grupo de gente tan enriquecedor y Estambul como telón de fondo, acuden a mi mente emociones y agradecimientos. Como experiencia, estos cinco días serán inolvidables y los lazos creados, unidos de manera inseparable a todas esas vivencias, serán difíciles de romper.

Sin embargo, de Estambul lo que recordaré, verdaderamente, no será el olor a especias, sino todos esos compañeros increíbles, gracias a los que he crecido tanto en tan poco tiempo”