ANNUAL
SAFETY
COORDINATION
MEETING 2024
LONDON, 22-23 October​​
PROGRAM: DAY 2 ​​
Major supporters:
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Supporters:
WEDNESDAY 23 OCTOBER
EVENTS @ NO. 6
6 Alie Street
London E1 8QT
By invitation
PROGRAM DAY 2
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8.30am
REGISTRATION
Light breakfast buffet on arrival
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9am
WELCOME
Elisabet Cantenys, Executive Director, ACOS Alliance
Includes a brief recap of day one, plus outline and objectives of the day ahead.
9.25 to 10.30am
Plenary
REPORTING BACK | LOOKING FORWARD
Editors, journalists and NGOs share new initiatives, innovations, research and opportunities for collaboration in a series of short presentations and lightning talks.
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​​Speakers:
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Tamara Bralo, Radio Free Asia
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Manizja Aziz, Free Press Unlimited / Journalists in Distress Network
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Naipanoi Lepapa, Freelance Investigative Journalist
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Joel Simon, Journalism Protection Initiative at CUNY
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Catherine Muema, ACOS Alliance
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Haruna Mohammed Salisu, WikkiTimes / Forbidden Stories
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Katerina Sergatskova, 2402 Foundation / Daily Humanity
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Alejandra Arita, Contracorriente
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​​10.30 to 10.45am
COFFEE BREAK
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10.45 to 12.00pm
Plenary
2024: ELECTIONS, CONFLICT & CLIMATE
What have we learned about journalist safety?
As we approach the end of a violent and volatile year, this interactive session explores the safety takeaways of 2024. It focusses on these three big topics to ask: what have we learned that can help strengthen the safety of journalists and inform the work of ACOS Alliance signatories and partners? Participants are encouraged to bring case studies and share their research, observations and lessons learned.
Moderators:
Elections: Urszula Kifer, Pismo Magazyn
Conflict: Finbarr O’Reilly, Freelance Photographer, ACOS board member
Climate: Catherine Muema, ACOS Alliance
Reporters:
Elections: Johanna Pismo, Reference
Conflict: Lauren Walsh, Gallatin Photojournalism Intensive, NYU
Climate: Jake Charles Rees, The Centre for Investigative Journalism
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12.00 to 1.00pm
Plenary
CONFESSIONS FROM A RISK ASSESSMENT
Moderated by
Gina Chua, Executive Editor, Semafor
Risk assessments are essential to good safety practice, so why do many journalists and editors still view them as a boring tick box exercise rather than a dynamic tool that enables good journalism? This playful plenary explores the reputation of the risk assessment and seeks to unlock the views of those who do, don’t, and reluctantly use them. Can risk assessments ever be cool? We ask participants to come with their confessions, struggles and achievements.
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1.00 to 2.00pm
NETWORKING LUNCH
2.00 to 3.10pm
BREAKOUT SESSIONS
Please choose one of the following. Each session will report back to the plenary.
a) How can AI help journalist safety?
Moderated by
Harlo Holmes, Chief Information Security Officer & Director, Digital Security,
Freedom of the Press Foundation
As journalism grapples with the existential impact of AI, this session explores the ways in which AI technologies can be used to improve the safety of journalists, and hears from those who are already using or developing AI-based safety tools. Does AI have the potential to revolutionize journalist safety? What are the pitfalls and barriers for AI-based safety initiatives? And how can ACOS signatories and partners work together to help their success?
Speakers:
Catalina Cortés, Committee to Protect Journalists
Michelle Ferrier, Trollbusters
Gina Chua, Semafor
Reporter: Abigail LP, Freedom of the Press Foundation
or
b) Media in Exile: Reporting Safely
Moderated by
Jonathan Bock, Executive Director, Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP)
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This working session examines how exiled media outlets can enhance the safety of their journalists, who are reporting from exile and in-country, and looks at the safety initiatives that are being implemented by media and press freedom NGOs. What are the biggest challenges and needs? How can we formulate more pre-emptive approaches to the safety of journalists reporting for media in exile.
Reporter: Rachael Kay, Executive Director, IFEX
​​3.10 to 3:30pm
COFFEE BREAK
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3.30 to 4.30pm
Plenary
MONEY AND SAFETY
Moderated by
Marc Perkins, Editor, Investigations, Europe & Asia, BBC World Service,
ACOS board member
What role does funding play in the safety of journalists? How does it shape safety provision? And how are NGOs, news organizations and freelancers investing in safety? Every year at the ACOS meeting, money, or the lack of it, is raised as a key issue affecting safety - for journalists, news organizations and NGOs alike. This session dives into the topic, with the aim of building a shared understanding of common issues and formulating new approaches to a perennial concern.​
4.30 to 5.00pm
Plenary
WRAP UP
Moderated by
Elisabet Cantenys, Executive Director, ACOS Alliance
Emma Thomasson, Journalist, Trainer & Consultant
This final plenary gathers key learnings, issues and action points from the meeting to help build consensus around key takeaways and potential recommendations.