Journalist Tandems – Stories From the Immigration Society
The journalist tandems provide the news landscape with positive stories about migration from a diverse society.
Journalist tandems was a WIR MACHEN DAS project that run from 2017 until the end of 2019. The project was funded by the the Agency For Migration, Refugees & Integration Of The Federal Government of Germany.
What were the journalist tandems?
Writers who leave their country lose their language-base and readership. In this project, journalists from regions of war and conflict zones reestablished their professional status.
Together with German-speaking journalists, they worked in tandems where they debated, researched, wrote and created together. The results of the tandem model included news articles, in-depth features, interviews and videos that all add new facets to the representation of immigration and the related encounters. The resulting articles and videos were published in local German newspapers, various national media outlets, and in our online magazine.
Furthermore, the tandem project made a difference to the participants as they developed friendships, a community of like-minded people and professional connections, and thus built their networks. The project served as an opportunity to lay the groundwork for a sustainable and long-term continuation of their professional lives.
What was the impact of the journalistic tandems?
The articles and videos showed that migration has many faces and that there are many stories still to be told. In the context of migration, stories about success – however it may be defined – are far too rarely told. These journalist tandems showed a myriad of exciting, funny, impressive, and entertaining aspects of migration. Together, they created stories the current public discourse desperately needs.
The journalists originating from regions in crisis were continuing their work in their chosen professional field. In the articles that were created within the framework of this project, they themselves spoke from an expert point of view. Their knowledge and experience enriched the German media landscape. Working together in tandems offered both sides a fruitful and rewarding cooperation as well as a professional exchange.
How did the journalist tandems work together?
The project team helped with connecting the tandem partners, Our editorial team selected the topics for the text and video articles alongside picking the tandems. We took care of proofreading, translation and the publication of the resulting work. These articles, reports, and interviews were published in local, regional, and national newspapers as well as on social media. All articles were also available in our online magazine.
