Covering Europe
 European Union begins to raise standards for health reportingThe European Union has embarked on a program with health professionals, health journalists, and academics from seven countries to analyze how health journalists are trained and find ways to improve health reporting. Read more ... ‘Anti-agenda’ influences journalists’ health coverageBy Esther Paniagua
For whom do the media write? It seems a stupid question with an obvious answer. However, I wouldn’t give a categorical answer because, too often, media seem to be more interested in offering information not always in their readers’ best interests.
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 AHCJ launches initiative to help cover European health issues
With substantial and growing health news in the European Union – including proposals for cross-border health care, issues around the movement of health professionals and the drain of qualified staff from the world’s poorest countries to Europe, the United States and Australia – AHCJ is launching an effort to share information on a Europe-wide or country-by-country basis, and offer advice and discuss matters of mutual interest. This effort includes a series of web pages devoted to European issues and resources, as well as an electronic discussion list to allow journalists to share information, ask questions, join a debate, open fresh debates or post requests and queries similar to what happens on AHCJ's main discussion list. John Lister, a veteran health journalist in England and a senior lecturer at Coventry University, is the European web coordinator and is committed to helping raise issues and bring together resources from across Europe to enable us to improve the quality of health and medical journalism and enhance its professional standing. On these pages, you will find some discussion points and background on some emerging issues in Europe, as well as a resource page, identifying useful sources of official and alternative information on a European or country-by-country basis. We look forward to contributions and will consider all that are sent our way. The more of us who contribute, the more valuable it becomes. All of the European-related pages are open to everyone but for access to the rest of AHCJ's great resources, you will need to join the organization. The good news is that AHCJ continues its half-price deal for international members. Please send any information, questions or comments to europe@healthjournalism.org. |
I call that the “anti-agenda.” Sometimes a journalist’s work is influenced too much by media owners and the main economic and political actors in the health area instead of being focused on the readers’ interests. In Spain, this takes the form of press releases from pharmaceutical firms, superficial and empty news, a great deal of free publicity related to the pharmaceutical market and powerful health companies and foundations. 
