(AUSTIN, TX - October 8, 2019) — The Texas International Education Consortium (TIEC) announced it will bring a group of professional journalists from, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan as part of the Central Asian Journalist-in-Residence Program, a month-long exchange program funded by the U.S. Department of State and implemented by TIEC and Meridian International Center in Washington, DC. The ten journalists will experience professional journalism in the U.S. firsthand through residencies at media outlets in Austin and San Antonio and university mentorships.
Select Central Texas media organizations will each host one to two members of the group of ten journalists for individual residency programs. TIEC is proud to partner with host media outlets in Central Texas including KUT, KSAT, KXAN, Rivard Report and the Texas Tribune for the Fall 2019 CAJIR cohort's month-long residency programs.
The program opens in Austin on Oct. 14-15, with local media experts and professional journalists from around the area welcoming, orienting and preparing the group for their training inside Texas media organizations. TIEC will feature experts from The University of Texas at Austin’s Moody College of Communication and LBJ School for Public Affairs, KUT radio, the Texas Standard, the Texas Politics Project and the Texas Tribune, among others. On Friday, Oct. 18, the international journalists will visit Texas State University and participate in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication’s annual Mass Communication Week event. The professional journalists will meet with faculty and students.
“We are excited to bring the U.S. State Department’s Central Asian Journalist-in-Residency program to Texas for the first time,” said Robin J. Lerner, J.D., TIEC’s president and CEO. “This very select group are each highly qualified journalists with distinct track records in their home countries. This program offers them the opportunity to experience the world of professional journalism and the business of media in the United States while sharing their specific world views and experiences with their hosts. Because TIEC represents the public universities of Texas, we have added the additional connection to two impressive Texas university journalism programs. We expect the relationships forged on this program to be deep and lasting.”
“During these journalist exchanges, we always see international participants gain better understanding of the U.S. and their host communities while developing their professional acumen and networks with fellow American journalists and media professionals,” said Ambassador Stuart Holliday, President & CEO of Meridian International Center. “We are pleased to help build new relationships and ties between the journalism programs of Texas universities and media organizations and their Central Asian counterparts.”
The Journalists-in-Residence will explore the structure and operations of American media outlets and strengthen their understanding of disinformation and source verification through residencies. This initiative aims to develop a cross-regional network of Central Asian independent journalists and media organizations. Each Journalist-in-Residence participates as part of a small cohort of 10 each season, collaborating during their time in the United States and upon their return to Central Asia, and continue to engage with a broader network of regional journalists. The first cohort will arrive in Texas this fall, followed by a second cohort in the spring of 2020.
Each Central Asian journalist was selected through a competitive application process. Participants include freelance journalists and journalists affiliated with major outlets, with interests in digital media, print journalism and broadcasting.
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The Texas International Education Consortium (TIEC) is an alliance of 31 public universities in Texas that facilitates and fosters international education programs and partnerships by, with and for its university members. Since 1985, TIEC has helped to connect Texas education with the world. From facilitating long term institutional partnerships to identifying new and innovative short and long-term professional and educational hosting opportunities, TIEC is an invaluable resource to Texas higher education. TIEC also hosts a highly respected training institute based in its headquarters in Austin that hosts study abroad programs, professional training programs for teachers around the globe, intensive English and university pathways programs for international students, university to university matchmaking programs between TIEC members and international counterparts.
For more information, visit TIEC.org. For examples of our programs, visit the TIEC Gazette.
Meridian is a non-partisan, non-profit diplomatic center founded 60 years ago and headquartered in Washington, D.C. We strengthen engagement between the United States and the world by partnering with governments, businesses and the diplomatic community on programs that:
Connect people through culture.
The impact and outcome of these programs result in a more secure and prosperous shared future for the United States and all nations.
For more information, visit meridian.org. For ongoing news, visit Meridian’s newsroom.
