Democracy is under pressure and confidence in politicians and civil servants is low. Therefore, a group of former and current public communication and press experts are launching an independent NGO for public communication. Its aim is to strengthen democracy and informed, democratic debate.
‘ProPublica’ is the name of a new, Danish based European NGO for public communication with communication and press experts in public authorities as its target group.
The purpose of the organization is to strengthen democracy and the public debate by improving communication from public authorities to citizens in Europe.
"We love democracy! We act because we can see that it’s under pressure. Confidence in the elected representatives is low. Democratic culture and trust in democracy do not come by themselves, ”says Nanna Sverrild, one of the founders of ProPublica.
In the company Radius' measurements of the population's perception of the credibility of various professional groups, politicians are consistently at the bottom of the list, and the same applies to civil servants.
Everyone should be able to trust information from government, ministers and authorities
One of ProPublica's goals is that everyone in society should have a fair chance of participating in democratic dialogue and public debate, regardless of social and economic status and educational background. And that - whether one agrees politically or not - one must be able to trust the information that comes from government, ministers and authorities.
"As the Danish democracy thinker Hal Koch said, conversation is the essence of democracy. We have to take really good care of it. Communication from governments, ministers and the authorities is an essential part of the public discourse and a prerequisite for the people's trust in democracy. That is why we think the project is important, ”says Thomas Dybro Lundorf, another ProPublica founder.
The organization will consist of a think tank, a network and an academy. ProPublica will be officially founded as a non-profit NGO at an event at the University of Copenhagen early June.
FACTS
This will be ProPublica: Think tank, network and academy
ProPublica will consist of a think tank, a network and an academy aimed at communication and press experts in ministries, agencies, regions and municipalities in Europe.
– The think tank will facilitate debate, knowledge sharing and research on public authorities' communication and its impact on the public debate in collaboration with e.g. research institutions, public authorities and tech companies.
– The network will consist of communication and press experts in authorities in Europe, who, among other things, will share knowledge about new technology and new methods in public communication with which we can strengthen an informed, democratic, public debate - and at the same time save resources and work more efficiently.
– The academy The academy will offer courses and competence development specifically aimed at public communicators and press specialists. In addition, the long-term ambition is to hold annual technology laboratories to develop concepts and methods that can promote an informed, democratic debate for all.
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