Експерт/ка для оцінки проєкту з аудіо подкастингу

Assessment of Audio Podcast Measures in Ukraine as part of the Initiative for Transparency and Freedom of Expression, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)

DW Akademie is calling for bids for the assessment of audio podcast measures in Ukraine. The assessment involves interviews with the project team and analysis of the content produced as a part of the measures. The interviews and the analysis should take place in January to mid-March 2023. The report is to be handed in no later than March 30, 2023. Qualified experts in journalistic podcasting and with Ukrainian (regional and language) expertise are kindly requested to send in their proposals. This assignment will include developing an assessment design, conducting the interviews and analysis, as well as writing an assessment report. Submissions are requested by 13.1.2023.

Position information

Title: Independent expert(s) for the assessment of Audio podcast measures in Ukraine Type of Contract: service contract Start Date: 1.1.2023

Duration of Assignment: The contract will be effective from date of signing for 3 months

Working Days: 30

Introducing DW Akademie

DW Akademie is Germany’s leading organization for international media development. We support the development of free and transparent media, quality journalism, and also offer programs to boost media skills.

Our goal is to ensure every human can express their opinion free from discrimination and oppression and has access to independent sources of information. We view this as an important prerequisite for peace and democracy. If citizens can inform themselves and voice their opinions in public without fear, then they can demand further human rights. They can live their lives, give shape to their society and receive a fair chance for development. Human rights are at the heart of what we do and are the focal point of all our projects (human rights-based approach). Our strategies are aimed at structural and sustainable changes to support and enhance free, independent and plural media landscapes. In order to do this, five fields of action are covered: Media Viability, Media and Information Literacy, Digital Rights, Media and Journalism Education, and Innovation for Dialogue. Each field of action contributes to freedom of expression and access to information. The interplay of these diverse approaches enables sustainable structures to be created that are a prerequisite for freedom of expression and access to information. DW Akademie currently runs media development projects in over 50 countries on four continents around the world.

Background and summary of project

As a part of its Initiative for Transparency and Freedom of Expression, DW Akademie supports innovative formats for dealing with the current multiple crises in the Global South. The biggest disruption in present day Europe has been brought about by the war against Ukraine. An estimated eight million refugees have fled the country while millions are internally displaced. Infrastructure has been damaged, leading to problems with water and power supply, communications and Internet connections. Ukraine’s population face a myriad of challenges in times that some have termed a “permacrisis”.

DW Akademie has supported the development of so-called crisis podcasts in Ukraine to cope and deal with these and other challenges. Media professionals were trained in developing, producing and publishing podcasts based on a standardized PodcasTraining curriculum. Media outlets and media creators were supported with seed funding. The aim was to help established independent media outlets to reach audiences and inform them on topics such as mental health and traumatic stress syndrome, people with disabilities during the war, wartime resilience, displacement and Russian propaganda.

Assessment questions

The assessment should employ interviews and media analytical methods (e.g. content analysis) to find out what the aims of the measures were and whether those aims were met. Specifically, the following questions should guide the assessment:

• What are the specific goals of the measures?
• What are the relevant challenges in the country, that the measures aim to address?
• What type of content was intended to be produced? What criteria for assessing the content can be deduced?
• What additional criteria can be deduced from state of the art podcast training or local specificities of journalism reporting?
• How do the media productions perform according to the above criteria? What are the specific qualities of the formats? What are the specific weaknesses? What specific recommendations can be deduced from the results?
• What are the expected benefits for the audience of the media productions?
• Were standards of care (e.g. do no harm) adhered to, to make sure the media content is beneficial / constructive in nature?

Principles of the Project

The principles underlying this DW Akademie project are laid out by the ICC/ESOMAR Code of Practice (see here).

These principles include, but are not limited to:

• Duty of care: Researchers must ensure that data subjects are not harmed as a direct result of their personal data being used for research
• Children, young people and other vulnerable individuals: Researchers must obtain the consent of the parent or responsible adult when collecting personal data from children or anyone for whom a legal guardian has been appointed
• Data minimization: Researchers must limit the collection and/or processing of personal data to those items that are relevant to the research
• Primary data collection: Researchers must identify themselves promptly and data subjects must be able to verify the identity and bona fides of the researcher without difficulty
• Data protection and privacy: Researchers must ensure that personal data cannot be traced nor an individual’s identity inferred via deductive disclosure
• Transparency: Researchers must provide clients with sufficient technical information about the research to enable them to assess the validity of the results and any conclusions drawn
• Professional responsibility: Researchers must be honest, truthful and objective and ensure that their research is carried out in accordance with appropriate scientific research principles, methods and techniques
• Legal responsibility: Researchers must conform to all applicable international and national laws, and local codes of conduct and professional standards or rules

Services

The list of services that DW Akademie expects from prospective research consultants are as follows:

• Developing an assessment design;
• Developing research instruments (e.g. interview guides, codebooks, questionnaires);
• Quality assurance if coders and/or interviewers are trained;
• Pretesting the instruments;
• Conducting the empirical research;
• Reporting on progress;
• Analyzing the data;
• Authoring the report.

Deliverables

• Inception Report (refined application detailing budget, timeline and design, two weeks after award);
• Instruments for the selected methods such as codebooks, guides and/or questionnaires;
• Data sets with raw data (including transcriptions / translations of media products);
• Final assessment report including an analysis of the results and recommendations.

Application Requirements

a) Applicants’ Profile Applicants should have expertise in the field of podcasts / podcast training and a proven record of conducting research in Ukraine. If both fields of expertise are not found within one applicant, we welcome applicants to hand in a proposal as a team consisting of a podcast and a local expert. Both should have a proficient knowledge of data collection and analysis, as well as excellent analytical skills. At least the local expert should also be conversant in the Ukrainian language.

b) Documents

The following documents should be included in the proposal:

• A cover letter, conveying the motivation and eligibility of the applicants for the assessment;
• A list of projects, documenting relevant experience as detailed above (including contact details of reference persons);
• Proposal for an assessment design including methodology, relevant research questions and a preliminary timetable; and
• A list of expected expenditures, broken down into personnel, material and travel costs, also detailing the number of workdays allocated to the project.

c) General Information

A digital copy of your proposal should arrive by 13.1.2023 and be addressed to: [email protected]. This tender does not imply that a contract will be concluded with the applicants. The study shall be undertaken between January and March 2023. A total of 30 working days are planned for the independent expert(s). The data collection phase is scheduled for February 2023. The final report should be finished by end of March 2023