International Dialogues for Thought Leaders in Media

The International Dialogues for Thought Leaders in Media honor pathbreakers who- through leadership, courage or innovation-have created outstanding media work supporting positive social change. In creating this program, Images & Voices of Hope recognizes that groundbreaking media work with strong social impact often is the product of an individual or group guided by a clear, internal moral compass. These leaders often need to push professional boundaries. They must challenge the status quo and often make personal sacrifices in order to realize success.

Our intention with this Thought Leader Dialogue program is to convene a group of thoughtful and courageous media-makers over a number of years for a brief "time out" from their busy lives. Through facilitated dialogues and times for quiet reflection, we hoped to help this group to clarify their personal missions and the strategies they employ. We also believed that gathering in this way might stimulate cross-fertilization to help each individual tackle his or her next challenge.

Media professionals selected for this honor participate in a process of dialogue and deconstruction that is designed to extract lessons learned from their success. Our goal is to capture and disseminate these lessons so that others will be inspired and equipped to take on similar challenges. Participants include leaders from the United States and abroad.

We would like to expand this concept in other areas.  We are looking for partners and invite you to contact Judy Rodgers with any suggestions.

The program is made possible by the The Fetzer Institute, with additional support from the Hunt Alternatives Fund.

In this collection of personal essays, 23 journalists from the International Dialogues of Thought Leaders in Journalism share their thoughts and experiences while defining the values that help guide their work. Listen to and read the entire collection of essays here.

In Summation
In troubling times, the journalist's most-trusted tool for covering a crisis is the question. What happened? How did it get this way? How can it be fixed? But what happens when the journalists themselves are the troubled? Who steps in on their behalf to pose the wise questions and offer a way forward? Download via link below — Questions to Ask About a Career and a Calling: A Report on the International Dialogue for Thought Leaders in Journalism, 2008-2011 by Jon Funabiki.