Something rather unprecedented happened recently: the Press Corps of the United States of America addressed an open letter to the president elect of their country just before he took oath of office. The letter was a reaction to the various interactions that Donald Trump had with the media – interactions where the media was called names; ridiculed, attempted to be intimidated and dismissed individually and/or collectively. Kyle Pope, editor and publisher of the Columbia Journalism Review addressed an open letter to Donald Trump on behalf of the journalistic community. In that letter are some salutary lessons for Indian journalists:
The letter clarified that it would be the media and not the government that would decide how best to serve the readers, listeners and viewers. The president would not be setting the rules, said the letter. Our journalists would do well to remember that it is not beholden to government agencies and vested interests; they don’t have to toe the official line; in fact it is vital that they do not do so.
The letter was a reaction to the instances that marred Trump’s first press conference in 6 months, where he was abusive about certain publications, rude to representatives of others, threatened some with legal consequences and refused to answer questions of yet others. Holding leaders accountable to the people and holding them and their actions up to scrutiny is the job of the press; why do so many Indian journalists fail to do this!
The letter made it clear that there are no “versions” of the truth and that the truth was not open to doctoring any way that the president chose to slant it. All assertions by Trump or others on his team would be held up to rigorous scrutiny. Indian journalists would do well by not being swayed by planted news, paid troll armies and other shadowy elements online.
While clarifying that the president would not be allowed to fudge facts or evade the truth, the letter also specified an ethical standard for the press and the media itself. Referring to the sort of lies that pass for news, particularly on social media, the letter spoke of this being a wakeup call for the media and the job ahead; the job of having to regain lost trust. Setting a rigorous ethical, moral and professional standard for themselves is something else that members of the Indian media could do.
The letter also clarified that Trump’s attempts to divide and rule – where he hurled abuse at some publications while praising others would not work. The letter pledged to cooperate and help others in the community when possible; so if the president decided to unfairly eject or shout down one reporter, the media would present a united front. Never has this been more important than now, when in India, the battle for TRPs, fractious public spats between well known journalists and the attempt to show other channels as being mendacious or less worthy has become depressingly routine in the media. Read the open letter here
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