While tourists relaxed on the pristine sands of one of Tunisia's many beach resorts, I met with journalists, academics and policy-makers in Tunisia's capital to discuss the findings of Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Media Action's .

The research surveyed 1000 people across Tunisia to find out how they use media and their views on governance in Tunisia. It highlighted the important role that media has in holding government to account in Tunisia and contrasted this finding with low levels of trust in what the media report.

Political turmoil

The launch of the research was timely.  It came at the end of a week of protests and increasing violence marking the second anniversary of Tunisia's post-revolution elections.  Furthermore, it came on the day the prime minister made a written pledge to step down in a last-ditch effort to persuade the opposition to take part in negotiations to set a date for new national elections and to appoint an electoral commission.

 

Meanwhile, the staff in my hotel refused to acknowledge that any significant political action had taken place and reassured me that Tunisia is a stable and safe country.Β 

The Tunisian economy relies on tourism. In 2012, tourism accounted for 6.5% of Tunisia's gross domestic product and employed around one in five people directly or indirectly.

Yet in Tunis, one journalist told me that she hadn't slept in three days because she was so concerned about the current situation.

Make-or-break moment

Tunisia is at a turning point, and the media plays a pivotal role in whatever happens next – over half of the Tunisians in our survey rated media more highly than any other institution as a way to hold leaders to account, with over two thirds saying that if there was a way to question government officials, they would.

But the overwhelming majority – 93% – also told us they do not contact the media about issues that matter to them because, as nearly a third of them thought, it “will not make a difference”. Finding a way to change this perception is vital if the media is going to represent Tunisians and I hope that the research that I was able to share last week can help with that process.

As Patrick Merienne, First Secretary for Development at the British Embassy in Tunis, explained, "There is progress in the media compared to pre revolution Tunisia... But it is not perfect.  This research can underscore the path that could be followed to reform state media in Tunisia for the future."

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In the days after the ousting of President Ben Ali in 2011, journalists in Tunisia were both hopeful and fearful about the prospect of new freedoms of expression. As the pressure group Reporters Without Borders asked at the time, "We are free but for how long?"

Now, over two years after the Tunisian uprising, the hope and fear remain.

On one hand, Tunisian media is now relatively free from restrictions. But on the other hand, the media sector is marked by disorder – with dozens of television channels, radio stations and newspapers now established whose sources of funding are unknown – and threats to freedom of expression. 

 

Reforms remain unimplemented

A few days before the October 2011 elections, two legislative decrees on media freedom were passed after strong civil society pressure. Decree 115 forbids restrictions on the flow of information and protects journalists’ sources while decree 116 provides for the creation of an independent regulatory authority.

But the ruling party Ennahda have failed to implement both decrees. And recently a group of deputies from CPR, President Moncef Marzouki's party, made a second attempt to submit a legislative project containing 13 articles restricting the freedoms protected by decree 115. One of these articles, for example, would heavily restrict the right to criticise the government and increase the risk of journalists facing imprisonment.

What's more, a number of journalists have also spoken out publicly about hidden, 'soft' censorship. In April, for example, journalists at the very popular radio station Shems FM complained that an article about Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki’s trips to Germany and Doha had been removed by the station's Director General.

New coalition

The reaction to such attempts at censorship has been swift and loud. The former chair of the National Commission toReform Information and Communication, Kamel Laabidi, sounded the alarm, declaring that the proposed new legislation would result in a more restrictive press code than that in the time of Ben Ali.

And only a week ago, a new coalition was formed, including the National Union of Tunisian Journalists (SNJT) and the Tunisian League for Human Rights, to safeguard freedom of expression in Tunisia. They complained about "the gravity of the repeated attempts to obstruct the reform of media in meeting professional, ethical and international standards."

The coalition have also called for a stop to the current policy that sees the government directly appoint the heads of public media institutions – a practice that decree 116, if implemented, would bring to a close.

There's no doubt that two years after the Arab Spring, the hopes of journalists in Tunisia remain frustratingly unrealised.

But we're also even more aware today of how crucial our role in not allowing the country to slip back into any form of dictatorship. With continued support from the international community, we will continue to fight to remain free.

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James Deane World Press Freedom Day: Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Media Action’s Director, Policy and Insight teams, reports from the UNESCO event in Tunis.

World Press Freedom Day always heralds feelings of inspiration and desperation. I am writing this from Tunis where a UNESCO conference celebrating – or commemorating – the day is about to wind up. I have been fortunate to attend four international conferences of this kind. In every case you hear extraordinary stories of the courage of individuals working in the public interest and being killed, maimed or ruined.

Tunis - cradle of the Arab Spring - is the obvious and fitting venue for this year's conference. Hearing the infectious passion of some of the leaders of that effort – particularly the rousing opening speech by Tawakkol Karman, Nobel Peace Laureate for 2011, is a privilege.

Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Media Action will be moving offices in June as the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ is leaving Bush House, the building that has been the home of Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service for 80 years. We are moving the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ complex in west London while our Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service colleagues are moving to a new development at Broadcasting House in the centre of London.

On the top of Broadcasting House to more than 30 journalists killed working on behalf of the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ. Every night at 10pm – to coincide with the main domestic evening news – it shines a light almost a kilometre into the sky. It is a real beacon for freedom of expression.

At Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Media Action, a central area of our work focuses on media freedom. In part this is because of our connection to the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ. Media freedom is not just curtailed by the dangers facing our Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ colleagues and those they work with. Sporadically Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ signals are jammed – there are current problems for instance regarding the black out of Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World News in China.

And we know what can happen when the free flow of trusted information is made available to people who have never had it. Here in Tunis there is recognition that it was not media or new technologies that brought about change – the people of Tunisia and elsewhere did that.

We also know that Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ, and other media organisations reporting on the Arab Spring, depended on the torrent of videos, citizen reports and photos flowing from activists in the region.

But the relationship was two way. The increased access via satellite of news channels such as the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ was a key reference point for those activists. A survey by the found that the most common links on 35,000 Arab blogs (after YouTube and Wikipedia) were to al-Jazeera, Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Arabic Television, and al-Arabiya.

And we know the risks faced by others we work with. Some of the most moving stories are those of the less well known journalists killed in the course of raising issues of injustice or abuses of power, especially those working outside the cities or working in vernacular and non-mainstream media. Hearing the story of Uma Singh, a 24-year-old journalist killed in rural Nepal when she tried to investigate who was responsible for the death of her brother and father was particularly distressing.

A belief in media freedom is one thing that drives us as an organisation. But the other is audiences or - as we would put it - people. How do we best understand and measure media freedom? Support to media and media freedom has mostly focused on support to organisations, to institutions and to individuals. Traditional thinking in this area asks: how independent is the media, how sustainable is it, how skilled is it, how professional is it?

But there is less assessment of how trusted media is, how media covers and relates to the issues that concern people the most, how useful is media’s ability to be used as an accountability mechanism in society? These are increasingly the issues that preoccupy us.

Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Media Action works with the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ and with other partners to support media around the world, and to engage people – particularly the most marginalised people – in public debate and provide information for them on issues that affect their lives.

We have always placed a high premium on research as an organisation. Researching and understanding the political, social and economic realities of the countries in which we are working is something we are taking ever more seriously.

So too is our increased focus on understanding the information and communication needs of people we work to reach. A core Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ value states 'Audiences are at the heart of everything we do'. This is reflected in our fundamental focus on research and understanding the information and communication needs of the people our programming is designed to engage and reach. At Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Media Action we employ around 80 people around the world focused on understanding information and communication needs of people and working out how we can best respond to them and how effectively we can meet their needs.

Just as we strive to support the needs of the individual journalist so too do we want to support the needs of the individual audience member, especially the most marginalised and disenfranchised. World Press Freedom Day has again reminded me what a critical role there is to play in addressing both priorities.