OSCE, BBC training improves professionalism of Azerbaijani public broadcaster

Azerbaijan's Public Television and Radio Company (ITV) went on air in 2005, marking the country's first tentative venture into public service broadcasting and also meeting a key condition of its Council of Europe membership.

And while the young station has achieved a great deal so far, according to a recent report by BBC experts, its performance and professionalism will be under the spotlight this autumn due to the presidential election on 15 October.

"The development of an independent public broadcasting service that reflects the full plurality of Azerbaijani society is a key priority," said the Head of the OSCE Office in Baku, Ambassador Jose Luis Herrero, on signing a memorandum of understanding on training for ITV staff with the station's Director General, Ismail Omarov, in October 2007.

"High journalistic standards and an independent editorial policy increase the credibility and the quality of the service that a public television channel should offer to the public," he added.

Comprehensive training

The second part of this comprehensive training assistance project, which started in March 2008 following a three-month pilot phase, will be completed this week. The focus of the training was senior management skills, newsroom management and election reporting.

"The primary objective of this phase was to ensure that the knowledge and experience gained are applied in the workplace, and that managers embrace the changes in the long term, so that ITV emerges as a stronger and more professional public broadcaster," commented Juliane Markard-Narten, Democratization Officer with the Office in Baku.

This project was based on the recommendations of an assessment of ITV's performance by the BBC World Service Trust, which revealed a mixed picture. Although the BBC noted that there were certain shortcomings with regard to editorial leadership and principles, understanding of audience needs and some journalistic skills, it pointed out that ITV had indeed achieved a good deal in a relatively short time: it boasts an excellent infrastructure, is well organized and has predominantly young and enthusiastic staff.

"It produces a good range of professionally-made programmes, which celebrate the diversity of Azerbaijan's culture and seek to educate its population," reads the BBC assessment report.

Embedded experts

To encourage ITV staff and managers to adopt and apply best practices, mentoring was provided by experienced BBC experts embedded in the news and analytical departments. During each session, a mentor worked in the respective department for one week and set a number of objectives. The experts returned for another week the following month to gauge progress, provide feedback, and set further objectives. This method providing continuity and much-needed step-by-step feedback to journalists, editors and managers, as well as building trust.

"The intensive training programmes allowed us to share our professional editorial and technical expertise with colleagues from ITV, which has welcomed BBC involvement in helping to strengthen its public service credentials," commented Eleana Haworth, BBC Project Manager.

The one-week training sessions delivered by BBC experts were complemented by online I-learning modules. By studying via the Internet, staff do not need to take time off work and can use the opportunity to study independently after working hours. The I-learning system was introduced by BBC in several former Soviet countries and has proven to be successful, with regular feedback provided to students via the Internet.

Steady progress

"There has been steady progress in some areas as a result of the training," adds Juliane Markard-Narten. "However, the application of the newly-acquired skills still needs to be visible in the daily programming, especially by providing greater pluralism to the audience on the eve of the upcoming elections.

"With the presidential election scheduled for autumn of 2008, this is a highly opportune moment to ensure that ITV fulfils its potential and responsibilities as a public service broadcaster."