Media legislation in the digital age focus of OSCE seminar in Turkmenistan
An OSCE-organized seminar on media law reforms in the digital age for representatives of Turkmenistan’s parliament, the Mejlis, the Office of the Ombudsperson, relevant ministries, research and educational institutions, as well as Turkmenistan’s print, online and broadcast media took place in Ashgabat on 23 and 24 May 2019.
The seminar addressed a wide range of topics, including digital environment and the media, the internet and protection of personal data, and trends and challenges in the digital age. International experts elaborated on digital rights and freedoms as well as access to government-held information via the internet.
Opening the seminar, Natalya Drozd, Head of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat, pointed to the continued relevance of the recommendations adopted at the 14th Central Asia Media Conference “From traditional to online media: best practices and perspectives”, held in 2012 in Ashgabat.
“The Declaration adopted by the participants of the conference emphasizes the advantages of the internet and states that national legislation should “facilitate openness and transparency of the internet, including online media”, said Drozd. “The OSCE Centre in Ashgabat stands ready to continue its support to the government of Turkmenistan in reforming its media legislation in compliance with international standards and the development of digital technologies.”
The seminar participants exchanged views on how the digital environment and new technologies affect media regulation. They worked in groups to analyze cases related to the freedom of the internet, access to information and regulation of online media and discussed the transformation of the media in the digital environment and the life of newspapers online and offline. Special attention was paid to the funding of print and online media, including advertisement, sponsorship, crowdsourcing and crowdfunding.
The seminar was followed by a roundtable discussion with senior representatives of the Mejlis, key media and institutions involved in the process of media law reforms. The participants of the roundtable discussion exchanged views on the future direction of modernizing national media legislation and implementing media reforms.