Tunisian, Egyptian, Morrocan journalists undergo training on election coverage

Training on election coverage - The UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and The New York Times Knowledge Network are collaborating to train Tunisian, Egyptian, Moroccan, US and French journalists on covering elections in their respective countries.

A statement by UNAOC on Tuesday, stated: 'Ahead of the imminent elections in Tunisia and Egypt, UNAOC is working with The New York Times Knowledge Network, which offers online adult and continuing education opportunities, to provide a six-week online course to Tunisian, Egyptian, Moroccan, French and American journalists and journalism students.'

It said that, 'each of the aforementioned countries is expected to enter major parliamentary or presidential elections in the next 12 months.

'The UNAOC and The New York Times Knowledge Network are collaborating to providea course that will address both practical challenges and ethical considerations involved in reporting on elections.

'Guest lecturers, all of whom are New York Times journalists, will look at the principles and techniques of election coverage practiced by their newspaper,' it noted.

The statement also said that, 'the course, which will be run concurrently in Arabic and English, will engage approximately 100 participants through live sessions, where participants will be able to interact with one another and their instructors and guest lecturers.'

It said that, 'journalists from both large and small independent media are participating, including the popular Nawaat blog in Tunisia, which was created shortly after the revolution.

'Reporters from several French and Arabic newspapers are also taking part in the course, including Le Temps, Le Quotidien, Al-Ahram, Al Masry Al Youm, Daily News Egypt and El Shorouk Daily.