MEDIA DEVELOPMENT

Evaluation Report
Executive summary Bolivia
Supporting local media in marginal urban areas:
The “Mediator Journalism” approach and public dialogue
programs in Bolivia

dw-akademie.com

Background

Conclusions of the project evaluation

Bolivia has suffered from a long period of political polarization, asituation made worse by the decision of the current President EvoMorales to opt, anti-constitutionally, for a fourth term. The non-acceptance by the president of the negative result of the referendum
on February 21, 2016 has diminished the political trust of large portions of the Bolivian population.

Relevance: The concept “mediator journalism” is appreciated by allinterviewees as a form of journalism applicable to medium-sized
conflict situations. The concept is very well elaborated and concretized in the documentation of the “public dialogue” approach.This approach is potentially relevant for El Alto, where all the preconditions
for its successful implementation are met: conflict in neighborhoodand municipal spaces, presence of social organizations and presence and use of communication media.

This polarization is reflected in the media. Many media outlets allow
themselves a strong bias based on their political position; facts arecommunicated from a political point of view. While there is freedomof expression in Bolivia, according to analysts it can be described as“controlled and stifled.” The government uses public funds to control the media, for example, by cutting advertising to outlets thatconvey opinions contrary to those of the government.
The project is carried out in El Alto, the second biggest city in thecountry with almost a million inhabitants. El Alto is a “young” city on
two counts: the city was formally founded in 1985, and 77% of El Alto
residents are under 24 years old. The majority of the highly organized population is poor and has Aymara and rural roots. For manyreasons El Alto is characterized by a high level of conflict.
The project is executed by the UNIR Foundation, a Bolivian organization dedicated to “education for peace, research and constructive
management of conflicts”. The project has been running since 2016
with annual funding from BMZ. The initial objective was “to contribute to the exercise of the Right to Information and Communication(DIC) of the population in the cities of El Alto and La Paz, throughthe improvement of the journalistic capacities of radio stations of
popular character and with weak access to processes of training andprofessional qualification”.
UNIR carries out the project with 4 to 6 small radio stations in El Altousing the “Mediator Journalism” approach where the journalist is anactor who assumes social responsibility and promotes constructive
dialogue in situations of conflict. The project has two main lines ofaction: training of radio operators and production and chain transmission of a bi-weekly program of Public Dialogue by the participating radio stations. From the first transmission the radios baptized
the program by the name of “Aruskipawi” (dialogue).
The objective of the evaluation was to find out more about outcomes following the implementation of the project by its various
stakeholders, with the information collected ensuring the continuity
and financial sustainability of the project. The evaluation identified
lessons learned and recommendations for the parties involved (DW
Akademie and UNIR). Fieldwork was conducted between February 5and 15, 2019 by an evaluation team composed of three independentconsultants. In order to respond to the criteria of Relevance, Effectiveness, Efficiency, Impact and Sustainability, the team applied a variety of instruments: these included a study of documents, review ofa sample of the programs produced, interviews with the UNIR teamand with directors and radio operators of the stations involved, as
well as meetings and focus groups with listeners and trained journalists. Finally, German institutions working in La Paz and the two institutions that might be part of the project as of 2019 were interviewed.

For BMZ and DW Akademie, the topics press freedom and public dialogue, as well as the target group of the project (population of El
Alto), are relevant according to their institutional criteria. Due to its
trajectory in conflict and communication, UNIR is a relevant organization to execute this project. The communication team has extensive experience in media research and some experience in management of projects directly linked to the media. Therefore the criterionof Relevance is rated as “comprehensively fulfilled”.
Effectiveness: There is no project start-up document in Spanishthat clarifies the meaning of the project; from the beginning there
was ambiguity about the purpose and integrality of its three components: training, production of radio programs and contribution toconflict resolution. It is an achievement to have established regularcontact with the participating radio stations and a biweekly chaintransmission from different stations with the participation of different social actors. Nine radio stations participated at some point in
the project, though only two from the beginning. The stations aresmall, most with little institutional stability and influence. Two ofthem are not from El Alto. The radio stations that left the project did
so for political reasons, due to institutional instability, or they hadreservations against the management of the project (repetitivenessin the training, inequal treatment between stations).
The indicators of the impact matrix (2018) lack precision but allow to
confirm: 21 public dialogue programs were produced (indicator: 20);
overall, the themes of the programs are rather general and poorly defined; 40% of the issues are “considered a priority for women”(indicator: 20%); men and women participated to the same extent
in the open dialogue programs; there was no participation on thepart of the audience, with the exception of some likes on Facebook;
66% of the public that listened to the programs was satisfied (indicator 50%); a third had observations about lack of information, little
public participation, quality of presenters; the audience considered
the programs easy to understand, credible and respectful of others;
the number of participatory programs from these radio stations had
not increased in comparison to 2016.
In general, the programs ignore basic radio work practices suchas journalistic research, triggers or thematic development. The
programs deal with issues in a superficial, yet conscientious way
regarding the problem, but no specific agreements are sought orachieved in order to resolve the conflicts dealt with. The language issimple and accessible.
Training plays a very important role and is much appreciated by
the participants, both the main trainer and the applied methodology. However, apart from the methodological tables per workshop,

there is no training plan, monitoring or evaluation of students. There is confusion about
whether the training is part of the Aruskipawi public dialogue program or whether theprogram is an examination of the training.
There is a huge turnover of participants inthe workshops that forces the trainer to repeat themes, which causes dissatisfaction
and abandonment. The participants observe the need for more requirements anda certification system.
There are serious technical problems thathinder the successful completion of theAruskipawi program. The stations asked
UNIR to do more follow-ups of programs inorder to be able to improve them. The project distributes and promotes the Aruskipawi program on Facebook at a basic level; noother digital networks are used to generateparticipation. The project coordinated withtwo key actors: the Public University of El
Alto (UPEA) and the Trade Union Federationof Workers of the Press of El Alto (FSTPEA);
the project didn’t coordinate with other institutions. In conclusion the criterion of Effectivity is rated as “partially fulfilled”.
Efficiency: The discontinuity of the financial
disbursements from DW Akademie hindered
the operation of the project, seriously interrupting the existant framework and generating insecurity in the UNIR team and in theradio stations. This did not allow for a more
ambitious project implementation. According to DW Akademie the financing system
was changed going into 2019 and will now
facilitate continuous operation. Despite thissetback, much was achieved with few funds:
programs, connecting stations, training ofradiographers, reality checks.
The UNIR project reports include a lot of
information but have little depth. They do
fulfill their purpose: to render accounts andlearn from what has happened in the projectso far. However, no one in the monitoring
chain has followed through, possibly also

due to the frequent change of project supervisors from DW Akademie, which affected
the continuity of project monitoring. The
project did not invest in collecting the information necessary for an advocacy strategy,
such as data from the media environment,
the stations, the Aruskipawi program and its
audiences.
Although the reporting system is effective,
the requirements from DW Akademie require almost manual transcription. It would
be very beneficial if a regional digital system could be designed. Opting to cooperatewith small radio outlets is expensive, since it
generates constant rotation of stations andjournalists, which causes repetition, demotivation and abandonment. Some station
operators and journalists think it advisable
to add large outlets with bigger audiences inorder to have a broader public reach. In conclusion the criterion of Efficiency is rated as“partially fulfilled”.
Impact: Radio stations do not identify much
impact on their environment as a resultof the Aruskipawi program. There is little
awareness amongst the radio directors
about the impact sought by the project. They
strive to “do the program well”. Some stories
of personal change among listeners havebeen identified as result of the program. According to staff, the training for and production of Aruskipawi generated some changes
in the internal logic of the staions, such asawareness of the need to work with a script
and to work in a team. It is necessary to follow-up internally with the stations to makethis important change visible. The criterionof Impact is rated as “partially fulfilled”.
Sustainability: UNIR does not have a budget or other ways of assuring continuity ofthe project if the support of DW Akademie
should disappear. The outlets are motivated
to continue the project, showing some ownership of it. Their motivation comes mainly from training and belonging to a larger

project, the Aruskipawi network. Without
the support of UNIR, they do not have thecapacity to provide continuity. The inclusionof the Center for Radio Production (CEPRA)
and the Foundation for Journalism in theproject portfolio of DW Akademie presents
serious challenges but also good opportunities for productive coordination that could
strengthen the sustainability of the project.
In conclusion the criterion of Sustainability israted as “partially fulfilled”.

DW Akademie

is Deutsche Welle’s center forinternational media development.
As a strategic partner of the Federal
Ministry for Economic Cooperation
and Development (BMZ), DW Akademie
carries out media development projects that strengthen the human rightto freedom of opinion and promote
free access to information.
DW Akademie also works on projects
funded by the German Foreign Oﬃce
and the European Union — in approximately 50 developing and emerging
countries.

Contact

Dr. Jan Lublinski
Head Research and Evaluation
jan.lublinski@dw.com
53113 Bonn
Germany

DWAkademie@dw_akademie
youtube.com/DWAkademie
dw-akademie.com

The objective of the external evaluation is to provide a constructive assessment of the project results. It does not necessarily align with theperspective and planning of DW Akademie. Nevertheless, all ﬁndings were discussed in order to allow lessons learned to be incorporated into thedevelopment of future strategies.