Same vs. Different? Who can Decide?
Do you know which city is the capital of Lithuania? Do you know which is the biggest problem in a Swedish journalist’s life? Have you ever tasted the Latvian bread? Have you ever been in Potsdam? Do you know what happens if more than thirty young journalists meet in one place? Do you think they will be different or similar?
If you ask us why we are here in Potsdam, you will get several, and at the first glance different answers. If you try to understand, then you would realise that there is no real differences. Everybody is here because he or she is curious about the other young journalists; would like to be aware of what the media situation is like in other countries; under what circumstances a Macedonian journalist work, etc.
“To get to know each other we must meet each other.” This could be the thesis sentence of the discussions on intercultural dialogue. And networking can also be seen as one of the main purposes of coming to Potsdam.
“By talking to each other we can get information about each other’s culture,” says Noemi from Hungary. Of course, that is clear to anybody, but after a three-day meeting, and so many private and official talks, this sentence gets deeper meaning. “You know, as a journalist and a student of foreign affairs, I read so much about foreign countries, but to get to meet them is something different. Reading about things can be abstract, but talking directly to each other is something living,” adds Markus from Sweden. During the conversations we got to know so many things about each other and each other’s culture. But as Zsuzsa pointed out: “By listening, you can learn more than if you want to influence other’s opinions about the world.” For a young journalist to say this can seem a little strange at first, but everybody knows, here in Potsdam, the real meaning of this sentence is not staying silent, but that you have to listen to each other first, try to understand other opinions, and then decide whether you agree or not – like them or not. For a dialogue it is necessary to be tolerant as well. In an intercultural dialogue you are required to be open to many aspects: politically, in terms of religion, etc.
Consider this idea by Yegor and Olesia from Ukraine: WC Press Project. Their plan is to create an international magazine in English, and then spread it at universities across Europe. But they won’t just put them anywhere. WC Press is to be taken literally – the magazine will only be found in bathrooms! While in Potsdam, they want to collect topics and recruit volunteers who want to help editing and spreading their magazine. That was one of the main purposes of their participation at the workshop. They won’t need supporters, because they are going to print their magazine themselves. “There were two types of reactions when we presented our projects to the participants of the M100 Workshop. Many guys wanted to apply, while others were curious about whether we are serious or not. It was so funny, because some months ago, I wasn’t even sure about whether it could become a serious project, and whether or not it would even be possible to do it. But now I am almost sure that we will have enough volunteers to work on this project together,” said Olesia from Ukraine. Some might wonder how a project like Olesia’s and Yegor’s connects to intercultural dialogues, the main topic of the workshop, but if you think about toilets having the same function in every culture, you get the picture. If you mention toilets, almost everybody have the same associations, so it can form a basis for an intercultural dialogue and understanding, although, at first, this idea might seem a bit bizarre.
The participants arrived from 12 different countries – all with different backgrounds, cultures and languages. Therefore, nobody expected to get clear, well-defined arguments as a result of the workshop. We agreed, and we disagreed on so many issues. One needs a feeling of homeland, the other does not, and the third has more than only one homeland. Press freedom is an evident value for everybody, but it is still a question<ins datetime="2007-09-02T20:09" cite="mailto:Peter%20A.%20Dahl">,</ins> whether anybody can force the others from other cultures to accept similar values.
However,do not think our discusions did not have concrete results. Everybody will bring something with them home from Potsdam. Let’s see a short list of those things that we can present at home: “I had to realise that some countries weigh some problems much heavier than we do in mine,” reflects Yegor from Ukraine. “Although we used the same language (English), we had to explain the meaning of notions to each other – what one word means in our own country because we do not have the same terminology when speaking about such things as, for instance, press freedom and media systems,” says Zsuzsa from Hungary. “This workshop helped people to be more involved in globalization,” professed Neringa from Lithuania. “I will go home with so much creative energy, which I got here from the others,” Markus from Sweden concludes.
Posted in 2006+07 M100| 03.09.07
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