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The launch event, broadcast live by MediaHub, was attended by representatives of the Independent Journalism Center, Internews Moldova, the contest teams, journalists, and mentors connected to the event online.
Nadine Gogu, Executive Director of the Independent Journalism Center, mentioned at the launch event that the previous editions of the hackathon served as a springboard for good ideas, which helped develop media institutions and promote media education. ‘The keyword of this edition is "audience". I urge you to take advantage of our experts so that at the end of the hackathon we have eight competitive ideas.’
Victoria Gellis, head of the Democratic Development Department, USAID Moldova, made it clear that ‘the success of media institutions depends on their ability to maintain good communication with the public. Today's event will directly contribute to building professional and modern media in the Republic of Moldova. I would like to wish the participating teams success and assure them of USAID's continued support for the development of new media ideas.’
Chris Perkins, head of programs, British Embassy in Chisinau, pointed out that connecting with readers became crucial for the media during the pandemic. ‘A strong media sector is essential for promoting good governance. We hope this event will help you improve your relationship with media consumers and strengthen the institution in which you work.’
Oxana Iutes, deputy director at Internews in Moldova, said that the pandemic demonstrated the need for audience support. ‘First of all, we expect innovation. It's important to create communities, talk to the public and find out what they want from your institutions.’
The eight teams participating in the contest met the mentors and presented their project ideas for better interaction with the public.
Also, during the launch event, five experts prepared presentations on topics such as forms of interaction with media consumers, forming a loyal community of readers, platforms for interacting with the public, how to find out the preferences of an audience, how the media and the public come to share the same ideas, etc.
Subsequently, over a period of two days, the teams will develop their projects, being assisted remotely by mentors. They are Gulim Amirkhanova, multimedia expert, Kazakhstan, Elnara Petrova, director of the NextMedia Marketing Agency in St. Petersburg, Russia, Alex Nedea, investigative reporter, Recorder.ro, Romania, Catalina Albeanu, digital editor at ‘Decat o Revista’, Romania, Vitalie Esanu, IT expert, co-founder of Privesc.eu
At the end of the hackathon, the participants will present the demo version of their products on Sunday evening.
The jury will nominate five winning teams to receive grants of USD 5,000 each. They will have six months to complete their projects. The apps and tools created as part of the hackathon will be provided free of charge for use.
The 7th edition of the ‘Fifth Power’ Media Hackathon is organized by the Independent Journalism Center under ‘Media Enabling Democracy, Inclusion and Accountability in Moldova (MEDIA-M)’ Project, funded by USAID and UK and implemented by Internews in Moldova.
