A seminar for editors sponsored by The Crimes of War Project and The Freedom Forum

AGENDA: DAY TWO

Panel One: Demystifying War: The Role of International Humanitarian Law
Moderator: Elizabeth Neuffer, journalist, Boston Globe, and the author of a forthcoming book about war crimes and the Rwanda and Bosnia war crimes tribunals.
Discussant: Ann Cooper, Executive Director Committee to Protect Journalists

Introduction Elizabeth Neuffer

a) What is in the Law Right Now?
Ken Anderson, Associate Professor, Washington College of Law, American University

b) How Has the Law Changed in the Past Decade?
David J. Scheffer, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues

c) Why Does the United States Avoid Some Key Documents and Institutions?
James A. Burger, Col. JAGC (Ret.), Assoc. Deputy General Counsel, Office of the General Counsel of the Secretary of Defense

d) How Can the Law Serve as a Basis for "Humanitarian Intervention"?
Col. Charles J. Dunlap, Staff Judge Advocate, U.S. Central Command Air Forces/9th U.S. Air Force

Discussion (Panelists and audience)

Panel Two: War Crimes: The Elusive Story/How do You Use the Law?
Moderator/Discussant: Eugene Roberts, University of Maryland, School of Journalism

This panel examined such questions as: Can an understanding of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) improve coverage of armed conflicts by opening up new leads for stories, or by providing new ways to cover old stories? Does knowledge of IHL improve a reporter's understanding of the dynamics of a given conflict?

a) The Major Story that Usually Gets Away
Roy Gutman, International Security Reporter, Newsday President, Crimes of War Project

b) The Silent Guardian: ICRC
Urs Boegli, Head of Media Dvision, ICRC, Geneva Headquarters

c) When Sources Prove to be Liars
Nancy Durham, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

Luncheon Discussions

Special Discussion on Sierra Leone
Olara Otunnu, UN Under-Secretary-General, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict

How Do You Get it in the Paper?
Steve Coll, Managing Editor, The Washington Post

Accountability: Theme for the Decade
Michael Muskal, Deputy Foreign Editor, Newsday
(Transcript not available.)

Panel Three: The Scientific Investigation of War Crimes

This session provided a practical look at how to take evidence and testimony from the field, what kind of questions to ask, and how to use the law to build a story.

Introduction Eric Stover

a) Satellite Remote Sensing and War Crimes
Christopher Simpson, Director, Project on Satellite Imagery and the New Media, School of Communication, American University

b) Making It Count: Journalists, Statistics, and Human Rights
Patrick Ball, Deputy Directory, Science and Human Rights Program, American Association for the Advancement of Science

c) From Rwanda to East Timor: Collecting Physical Evidence of War Crimes
William D. Haglund, Director, International Forensic Program, Physicians for Human Rights

Discussion (Panelists and audience)

Panel Four: The Psychological Impact of Covering War Crimes
Moderator/Discussant: Frank Smyth, Washington Representative, Committee to Protect Journalists

This session examined the issue of how covering war crimes and other traumatic events may affect journalists. It addressed questions such as, What kind of services should be available? What can the field of journalism learn from other "first responders?"

Introduction Frank Smyth

Panelists:
-Chris Cramer, President, CNN International
-Frank M. Ochberg, M.D., founding Board Member of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, consultant to the FBI, U.S. Secret Service, and National Security Council
-Sherry Ricchiardi, Professor, Indiana University, School of Journalism and Writer, American Journalism Review
-Dr. Anthony Feinstein, University of Toronto, Sunnybrook Medical Center

Discussion (Panelists and audience)

Summary and What We Had to Leave Out

Sherry Ricchiardi, Professor, Indiana University, School of Journalism and Writer, American Journalism Review

Closing Remarks

Eugene Roberts, University of Maryland, School of Journalism

Roy Gutman, International Security Reporter, Newsday, President, Crimes of War Project

John Owen, Director, The Freedom Forum, U.K.

Follow-up Session

Thom Shanker, New York Times, Assistant Washington Editor

This was an informal session to evaluate the seminar and to identify what types of additional training are needed and/or available, including for journalism schools.

Transcript not available.

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