This tendency to privilege Western thought, practice, and values obscures from view other journalism practices and renders Western models of journalism desirable, replicable, and transplantable to any part of the world. However, while international awareness is crucial to the study of journalism, in practice this often means an Anglo-American curriculum based around Western principles of journalism education and training that are deeply rooted in Western values and traditions. Internationalization of the curriculum points to the interdependent and interconnected (globalized) world in which higher education operates. The chapter draws from interviews that I conducted with journalists in Maluku, plus knowledge obtained through my role as a researcher for the Institute for Press and Development Studies (Lembaga Studi Pers dan Pembangunan, or LSPP), which is one of several non-government organizations (NGOs) which has promoted peace journalism in Maluku archipelago. Finally, this chapter attempts to project what is needed to continue supporting peace journalism initiatives as conflict potentials continue to lurk. This chapter highlights the importance of institutional building to ensure sustainability of peace in the area. This chapter describes how peace journalism, among many other initiatives, was used to build peace in the spice islands of Maluku after a series of bloody conflicts between Christians and Muslim commenced in 1999.
It was as if we were reporting a sport event, where both parties tried to keep the scores - on how many people murdered or injured, houses burned down, religious facilities destroyed. It also sketches the challenges for media education designed to contest images of the region beyond ‘coups, conflicts and contraband’. This article critiques coverage in the region and some of the problems in an age of globalisation and preoccupation with security. While the media in some countries is refreshingly outspoken and courageous, in others it has a trend towards self-censorship. Pressures and dilemmas for the news media continue to gain momentum in the South Pacific, often from a cultural as well as socio-political dimension. Simplistic notions and prejudices about the region pose challenges for journalists attempting to report with depth, context and analytical skill. The Melanesian sub-region of the South Pacific, in particular, has been branded by some political analysts as an ‘arc of instability’ because of upheavals such as coups (Fiji), ethnic conflict (Solomon Islands), paramilitary revolts (Vanuatu), and secessionist rebellion and civil war (Bougainville-Papua New Guinea and the Southern Highlands).
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