Ufa hosts international round-table discussion "Mass media's role in regulating migration processes: domestic and foreign experience"

On June 26th. 2008 the Public office of the Chief federal inspector in Bashkortostan Republic hosted the round-table discussion "Mass media's role in regulating migration processes: domestic and foreign experience"

The event was organized by the Public Advisory Council of the Department of the Federal Migration Service of Russia in Bashkortostan and the Regional public organization "The association of refugees and unwilling migrants” under the auspices of the Swiss Office for Cooperation and Development.

The round-table discussion was attended by the Director of the Institute of mass communications and media research of Zurich University, Mr. Heinz Bonfadelli (Switzerland); the Chief of Russian broadcast of «The voice of Dushanbe” radio of the Committee on Television and radio under the Government of Tadzhikistan Republic, the hostess of the TV program "Events. Facts. Commentaries" on the republic's “1st channel”, the editor of the magazine “Migrant” Ms. Irina Umarova (Tadzhikistan, Dushanbe) and the Director of the Information research center “Russian Observer” Mr. Fedor Miroglov (Kazakhstan, Alma-Ata).

Attention of the participants was paid to the following questions:

 Integration of migrants in Russia: a melting-pot or multi-cultural community?
 Can we learn from foreign experience?
 Can mass media have a positive impact on public consciousness?
 How can we overcome journalists’ natural rush for sensations when it comes to ethnic conflicts?
 What do we mean by “human rights journalism”?
 Can we consider such a notion as “efficiency of the printed word” to be out-dated?


In general, the meeting was aimed at discussing possibilities of using international experience when developing mechanisms of mass media’s participation in enhancement of migration processes as well as their application in the republic's migration policy.