There were strange emotions among many of the 800+ delegates – from 15 years of age to 70+ - who gathered in Bonn for the DW Global Media Forum in mid-June, for this was the first large-scale, in-person conference that most had attended for two and a half years. Thoughts crossing people’s minds included “what do you do when you say hello to people?” – shake hands, fist pump, elbow bump or hug.
For this correspondent, waking up on the morning of the first day brought slight nerves to the fore as being in a room with so many people was quite frankly a novelty after two years of pandemic-induced isolation.
But that apprehension quickly evaporated as one entered the familiar surroundings of the World Conference Centre on the banks of the Rhein and started to spot familiar faces among the delegates registering.
And so, two days of discussion, debate and networking got underway with an opening keynote by Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa who noted: “If you don’t have facts, you don’t have truth; if you don’t have truth, you don’t have trust.” Ressa's appearance at the DW event has been swiftly followed in the closing moments of the Duterte Presidency in the Philippines by the country's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued an order affirming one more time its decision to revoke the certificates of incorporation of Rappler.
“The company registration and monitoring department is hereby directed to effect the revocation of the certificates of incorporation in the records and system of the Commission,” read part of the order dated June 28 2022. Rappler has said it remains committed to "business as usual."
At the AIB we are looking forward to more in-person events in the second half of 2022 – including our own awards gala and associated events in London on 11 November – we look forward to meeting you there! (AIB newsletter | June 2022)
