M-TAG Quarterly Report October 2015 – December 2015

The program is implemented by IREX in partnership with local organizations Transparency International – Georgia, Ethics Charter, and management consulting group Innova. The program's goal is achieved through a set of coordinated activities in support of three objectives: journalists demonstrate accurate and ethical reporting on public interest issues, regional media outlets demonstrate improved financial viability and transparency, and access to balanced and relevant information is increased in the occupied territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. During the reporting quarter, IREX intensified its work on the four-month-long Media for Georgia's European Agenda (M-GEA) project, funded by the Good Governance Fund, British Embassy Tbilisi. The project aims to strengthen the impact of M-TAG by increasing the capacity of regional journalists to better cover and more accurately report on Georgia's Euro-Atlantic integration agenda. IREX procured equipment for five media outlets involved in the project, developed 13 subgrants to be issued in January 2016, created a talk show format and step-by-step guide for production of a talk show for seven media outlets, and agreed upon topics for talk shows, radio programs, and newspaper articles and production schedules with the 11 media outlets. IREX conducted two sector-specific trainings for journalists from its 15 partner media outlets during the period, one on NATO Integration policy and another on DCFTA. Participants travel and accommodation were funded from M-GEA budget. IREX provided new websites to seven out of nine media partners, built on IREX-developed universal CMS, with attractive design and fully supporting multimedia publishing. Two of the sites allow publishing in three languages, and IREX provided all seven teams with training on web development and maintenance individually. IREX developed and tested Geo Mobile News, a Georgian language news aggregator delivering information from Georgian regional media outlets, including breaking news, analytical articles, photo and video materials, as well as broadcasting TV and radio content. IREX staff and trainers traveled to regions extensively and delivered technical assistance to partner media outlets in areas such as multimedia reporting, infographics, and computer graphic development, as well as traffic management and online sales. Management consultants from Innova visited eight media partners and provided consultancy and coaching, conducted training sessions, and collected and processed data for follow-up visits. IREX delivered equipment purchased from the pool designated for Objective 3 to the three media outlets and trained them in its use and maintenance. Market Intelligence Caucasus/TNS provided 5-month aggregated data reports on radio listenership to its clients in mid-November. IREX's implementing partner Ethics Charter held an all-members meeting on December 20, with 79 members participating, and elected 3 new members to the Council and awarded Ethics Charters prizes in 5 categories, 4 funded by M-TAG and one by UNICEF. The M-TAG Experts Committee held a meeting on December 1, reviewing results of Year 1, presenting plans for Year 2, and discussing challenges faced in the course of program implementation. The committee decided that M-TAG members will reach out to the members of the Experts Committee individually, depending on the need, taking into account the specific expertise each member has. The Monitoring and Evaluation Plan was revised in response to comments from USAID and taking into account experience of PMP implementation during Year 1 and Year 2 workplan. Changes were made in indicators, their definitions, and targets.