Christian Chesnot, a journalist at France Inter and former hostage in Iraq (2004), will be the “Grand Witness” of the event.
The Science Po Middle East hub, located in Menton, is associated with the MMM.
Over two days, media professionals will debate the conditions of practicing their profession in one or several Mediterranean contexts through specific themes: the subjects covered, the angles chosen, the audiences targeted; the place of women journalists and Mediterranean women in the media; the revolution of new technologies; the training of young journalists, etc.
Discussions will initially take place in workshops, followed by a major debate open to the public, which will allow for a thorough assessment of the situation. “At a time when the Union for the Mediterranean is striving to create new dynamics, we must share our viewpoints and, in our field, the media, work to break down barriers in our Mediterranean. We do not know if this is possible,” explains Dominique Antoni, the President of the Club de la Presse Méditerranée 06, “but it is certainly necessary.”
Jean-Claude Guibal, the deputy-mayor of Menton, who is also the rapporteur for the parliamentary information mission on the construction of a Mediterranean Union, has shown strong support for this event, seeing it as a desire by Mediterraneans for confrontation, in the impatience for the other, in the waiting for the other… seeking in adversity or conflict the share of truth each carries within themselves.
The event will notably feature the awarding of two prizes: one to a photojournalist from the Fedephoto association, who, through their work in the Mediterranean countries, has found the “right perspective,” and the Menton Medias Méditerranée Prize, awarded to a journalist recognized for their professional commitment to a multicultural, tolerant, and determined Mediterranean for a shared destiny.
A website https://www.menton-medias-mediterranee.com has been online since Monday, September 29, 2008. It will allow for daily updates on the implementation of the project and serve as a registration point for participation in the event.
