The IPS
editorial team supervises the international
news service and other IPS editorial products,
such as the content of projects and the
columnist service. This guarantees that
all IPS products are coherent with the
agency’s mission.
Coverage realm: The service
does not aim to provide up-to-the minute
coverage of events, as is the style of
traditional news agencies. IPS does provide
timely, in-depth coverage of relevant
events.
Issues: The news service
consists exclusively of materials that
are of global interest. IPS does not cover
all issues, but strives not to miss any
that influence the course of international
events in a significant way.
News Geography: IPS tries
to reach people excluded or marginalised
by the process of globalisation, notably
in countries in Africa, Asia-Pacific and
Latin America. The question of exclusion
is highlighted, explained and investigated
in IPS stories.
Sources:
- Through its news
service, IPS offers stories containing
a variety of sources that provide
all relevant sides of an issue, with
a unique editorial angle: from the
perspective of civil society and of
the South. This editorial viewpoint,
however, does not mean bias or compromising
the quest for truth.
- IPS does not discriminate
against sources, but is committed
to mainstreaming gender perspectives
in its coverage. Likewise, civil society
and 'grassroots' sources are essential
to almost any IPS news story.
Genres: The service
is made up of news stories, analyses,
features, columns by experts and personalities,
and interviews. It increasingly includes
in-depth reports and investigations.
The IPS network of journalists, with
its headquarters in Rome, is anchored
by five editorial desks: Montevideo (Latin
America), London-Berlin (Europe and the
Mediterranean), Bangkok (Asia and the
Pacific), Montreal (North America and
the Caribbean) and Johannesburg (Africa).
IPS has a network of more than 300 journalists
around the world.
IPS correspondents and IPS bureaux:
Stories in the IPS World Service address
one or more of the following themes:
Human Rights
and Democratisation
Environment and
Natural Resources
Population
Health
Education
Labour and Migration
Development
International
Finance and Trade Flows
International
Politics and Conflict Resolution
Culture, Arts
and Entertainment
Science and Technology
Transportation
Media and Communications
Corruption and
Governance
Religion
An important aspect of IPS editorial
policy is to include gender perspective
in its reporting and editing. In 1996
the gender perspective became official
IPS policy. We first published a glossary
of gender terms in 1997. Detailed guidelines
for mainstreaming gender in IPS stories
have been developed (see the latest Gender,
HIV and Rights. A
Training Manual for the Media).
