New Narratives Executive Director Prue Clarke will present on a panel discussing business models in African media at the Commonwealth Sierra Leone Media and Development conference in Freetown January 25-27th, 2012. Prue will discuss New Narratives’ innovative approach to media business model building and the work of Columbia University students on the topic, supervised by her and Columbia professor Anya Stiglitz.

The Commonwealth Secretariat and the Government of Sierra Leone are jointly hosting a Forum on the theme “Media and Development in Post-Conflict Reconstruction”.

From the organizers:

The aim of this event is to create a platform for Media, Government, Political Parties, Civil Society Organisations and other stakeholders to discuss emerging issues in a globalising world and the role, obligations and responsibilities of Media, Government, and Political Parties as agents of national development.  It will also explore parameters for good governance and the linkages with media practice.    We intend to capture these discussions in an accessible and concise publication aimed at Policy Makers, Political Leaders, Media, Civil Society and other stakeholders.

The Seminar will cover the following key areas:

• Human and economic development as benchmarks of growth and poverty reduction
• Media and Government
  • Consolidating democracy and good governance
  • Globalisation, global political economy and business environment for media
  • Media  Professionalism and  capacity building
  • Media leadership and accountability
    • New media as engines for development
    • Social cohesion and peace building