The Media Development Center at Birzeit University finished a course in communication strategy for media professionals. The workshop was led by world-renowned communication coach Munsif Bouhafah, who was born in Tunisia and now lives in America. The session lasted 30 hours and included theoretical and practical information on verbal communication skills for journalists.

The course included the following points:

1. How to be an effective spokesperson for a foundation in press conferences, interviews, and public conversations.

2. The ability to deal with the reputation of the institutions, whether negative or positive, in media coverage of particular events.

3. Cohesion of visual images and spoken material and tone of voice during interviews and public statements.

4. Understand journalism requirements and how to connect your media organization with other media organizations.

The course was held from Oct. 15 to Oct. 18. 12 media professionals attended the conference from different bureaus of the Palestinian Authority throughout the West Bank.

A delegation from the University of Darmstadt in Germany visited the Media Development Center on Saturday, September 15, 2012.  The meeting was hosted by the Media Development Center and the Heinrich Boll Foundation. The director of the Center, Nibal Thawabteh, spoke to the delegation about the state of the media and press in the Palestinian territories and the Center's print and audio-visual media development. Dr. Wedad Barghouti shared a comprehensive history of Birzeit University and its important academic role in Palestine. In particular, he spoke about the Department of Media and its alumni who are considered the best media professionals from Palestinian universities. Birzeit media alumni hold a number of prominent positions in Arab and international television channels.

Dr. Ehab Bseiso, a professor in the Department of Media, and Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Haj Ibrahim, the head of the Political Science Department, both answered questions from the German delegation and their professors, about the political situation in Palestine. Students asked about the the effects of the wall and the occupation on Palestinians and the prospect of an independent Palestinian state.

Birzeit faculty spent over two hours answering the delegation's questions generated from their recent travels in the Palestinian territories.  The delegation received more information to add to their experiences in Nabi Saleh and their observations of the friction caused by the settlements and wall construction.  The delegation concluded that the wall is illegal and is not a solution. They felt that the wall brings division and collision where bridges for coexistence are needed instead.

The Media Development Center just completed a blogging training course in Gaza. The course taught 17 men and women blogging and basics. Each participant received a certificate for completing 30 training hours within 5 days. Jordanian electronic journalism expert, Mohammed Omar, was the instructor for the course. Omar said that the course was a wonderful experience for him. He enjoyed bonding with the people of Gaza, in particular he is grateful for the warm welcome he received from local journalists and bloggers. Omar feels that the blogging and media professional training is important for the people of Gaza.

Birzeit- Sep. 8, 2012- The Media Development Center at Birzeit University (MDC) opened a seminar on media research methods today, launching a research group on Palestinian media—the first of its kind in the country.
The seminar, led by Prof. Melinda Robins, a visiting scholar from Emerson College in Boston, will help Palestinian scholars produce publishable papers on research topics related to the Palestinian media.
Ms. Nebal Thawabteh, the director of MDC, said the center will publish these papers in an experimental edition of a peer-reviewed journal. Thawabteh said the trainees will be the core of a research group under the Media Research and Policy Unit of MDC.
Robins urged the trainees to start their own research projects, highlighting the importance of research in guiding and assessing media development. MDC’s Consultant Abdelrahim Abdallah said MDC will conduct a national research project next year in cooperation with UNESCO to assess the current situation of media development indicators in Palestine.