Relaunch of the trusted and popular news and current affairs program Cotton Tree News
“Cotton Tree News” (CTN) has re–‐‑launched its news and current affairs program from the studios of Radio Mount Aureol at Fourah Bay College in Freetown. The program is built around CTN’s flagship news bulletin, a credible and professional source for breaking news in Sierra Leone. The news day starts at 6:30 AM with CTN Today, covering all the issues of concern to Sierra Leoneans, and is followed by CTN Sports at 7:30. At the end of the day, Inside Salone brings together decision makers, experts and civil society in lively and informative debates.
CTN is broadcasting on 107.3 FM in Freetown as part of the Radio Mt. Aureol program, and on community radios throughout the country. The media has a professional staff of 37 who work closely mentoring and collaborating with a team of Mass Communication student interns. Training and capacity building is an important part of CTN’s mandate, and is integral to its partnerships with community radios.
CTN was created in 2007 by partnership between Fourah Bay College and Fondation Hirondelle, a Swiss NGO. The project has been run locally by Fourah Bay College since 2011 and is currently supported by the University of Sierra Leone and Hirondelle USA with a grant from The Ford Foundation. The Ford Foundation grant will address an acute and urgent need for programming on all aspects of violence against women and children. CTN will produce and broadcast a radio campaign that will include informational, fact based messages in Krio and local languages, weekly features and discussion programming as well as journalism training on coverage of sensitive topics.
Journalism that accurately reflects the stories and concerns of women will challenge the tendency of the media to sensationalize or politicize reporting on women, especially gender–‐‑based violence. Interactive programming and reporting at the community level will provide a channel for women to express themselves and engage in community and national dialogue.
Fondation Hirondelle provides credible news to over 30 million listeners across vulnerable regions in Africa, and has been working in West Africa since 1997 when it launched STAR Radio in Liberia. Fondation Hirondelle has unique, on the ground experience providing credible and professional information to communities coming out of conflict and in designing media that are trusted sources of information, platforms for interaction and debate, and responsive to all sectors of the population.
For more information, please contact:
Joshua Nicol +232 523 899/+232 88 820457 James Tamba Lebbie, +232 78 955 922/+232 88 675733 Anne Bennett. Hirondelle USA Executive Director, +232 30 555 533© 2014, https:. All rights reserved.
