Online Talk-Show Presenter (m/f/d)

Assignment Location: Beirut, Lebanon

Employment Type: Long-term consultancy, subject to external funding

Assignment Period: March–31 December 2022

Duration: March to December 2022 (up to 24 episodes)

Deadline: 14 March 2022, 11:59 PM local time (Beirut, Lebanon)

How to apply: Please send the required documents (CV, portfolio, and video samples of your work) as referred to in Annexes to info.lebanon@democracy-reporting.org, cc’inge.haddad@democracy-reporting.org by 14 March 2022, 11:59 PM local time 

DRI is looking for an experienced anchor person to prepare and present Season 2 of Nafas Jdeed, an online political talk-show that promotes citizen-centred engagement on democratic discourse and political reform in Lebanon.

Background

1. About DRI

Democracy Reporting International (DRI) is a non-partisan, independent, not-for-profit organisation registered in Berlin. It has been established in Lebanon since 2016. DRI promotes political participation of citizens, accountability of state bodies and the development of democratic institutions worldwide. Democratic discourse is the basis of our mission and vision. In our work, we facilitate discussion and exchange about democratic government and the need for a continuous discourse adhering to democratic rules.

In the framework of its project entitled “Nafas Jdeed Season 2: Expanding the media discourse around elections in Lebanon”, DRI is working to expand the democratic space for a civil society-led debate on system change in Lebanon. We aim to launch the second season of Nafas Jdeed, which is an online political talk-show that introduces new faces to the media landscape and amplifies civil society voices, with the support of Young Media Makers based in Lebanon. The talk-show will discuss political change in Lebanon and the way it can be achieved through the coordinated effort of local stakeholders.  

2. The Talk-Show

Nafas Jdeed is an online political talk-show structured around thematic queries that cut across the various project outputs and activities. Tentative thematic queries include the following:

1. How to re-shape the Lebanese political system based on a new social contract, secular citizenship, through the voices of youth?
2. How to change the electoral system for a fair representation of Lebanese society?
3. How can the electoral system ensure the empowerment of youth, women, and marginalised groups?
4. How can a value-centric political model rebuild a dignified Lebanon?
   The scope may include the identification of values (e.g., meritocracy, inclusion, sustainability, stewardship, accountability, social justice, transparency) and the alignment of target audience on rethinking the political culture of Lebanon.
5. How to establish the Rule of Law, Accountability, Ethical and Responsible good governance practices?
6. How to boost the role of civil society, particularly youth and women, in effecting political change?
7. What is the role of civil society, and how can they shape the political system?

Each episode hosts 1–2 guests who will engage in a talk with the presenter and 2 Young Media Makers about the above-mentioned thematic areas.

Your Tasks

The presenter is a member of the Nafas Jdeed team and acts as the face of the show. Nafas Jdeed is produced and owned by DRI. The episodes will be recorded rather than live-streamed.

We have planned for up to 24 episodes of up to 35 minutes each to be produced between March and December 2022.

Under the overall supervision of DRI’s Country Representative, you will work closely with the Programme Manager and the Communications Unit to prepare the content of each episode and present the talk-show (up to 24 episodes).

Under the supervision of and in close coordination with DRI, you will

• Present all the talk-show episodes;
• During the inception phase (4 weeks into the project), co-develop and agree on a collaborative workflow between DRI, the presenter, and the production company;
• Prepare and participate in the production of two launching promos for Nafas Jdeed Season 2;
• Control, in agreement with the production team, the filming time onset, which must not exceed 75 minutes of camera rolling;
• Prepare and participate in the production of the promo of each episode;
• Monitor news sources and remain up-to-date in regard to social, political, and economic developments;
• Advise DRI on the selection, prioritisation, and formulation of the topic of each episode;
• Advise DRI on the identification and selection of talk-show guests;
• Conduct a meeting or pre-interview with the talk-show guests and brief the guests about the episode concept and rundown prior to shooting;
• Conduct background research and prepare the introduction/opening and questions of each episode, with input from the Young Media Makers;
• Where needed, prepare the script with input from the Young Media Makers who will participate in each episode and in the dialogue with the talk-show guests, and ensure that each episode includes segments of questions raised by the Young Media Makers to the guest speaker;
• Review the visual content prepared by the production company, including vox-pops, video infographics etc., before and after each episode;
• Advise on additional visual content creation, such as reports, vox pops, infographics, slideshows, etc.;
• Liaise with the production company crew and the talk-show guests as per the workflow approved by DRI;
• Supervise content editing of each episode during the post-production phase before posting online; the production company may advise on content editing while DRI retains the ultimate decision-making power;
• Advise the production company on technical editorial decisions; the final decisions are taken by the production team and DRI;
• Monitor the online engagement of the talk-show and engage with the audience of the talk-show on social media;

• Hold regular check-ins, at least every two months, with DRI to assess progress, take stock of lessons learnt, and ensure that content objectives are continuously met to the highest standard;
• Prepare his/her wardrobe for each episode in a way that is compatible with the talk-show identity (DRI will not be responsible for styling expenses);
• Ensure that DRI guidelines, mission, values, and visibility are adhered to throughout the talk-show.

Your Skills & Experience

• A university degree in media studies, journalism, , communications, or relevant field;
• Experience in online talk-shows, podcast creation, media content creation, production processes, or similar experience directly related to vlogging content;
• Having at least 1 social media platform (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and/or YouTube) demonstrating creative skills to engage a young social media audience through catchy content (vlogs, reels, stories, posts);Experience in developing a new way of approaching, different from the traditional political talk shows or the mainstream debate program hosting;
• Deep understanding of democratisation, human rights, political reform, and civic engagement, political topics;
• Strong editorial judgment, esp. in video editing supervision;
• Engaging on-stage persona and presence;
• Outstanding professional public speaking and presenting skills in Arabic;
• Working proficiency in English;