On the 25th anniversary of World Press Freedom Day, observed each year in May, journalists and institutions as well as citizens and citizen groups, spoke out about safety of journalists and other issues. The day is meant to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press and remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression. The Twitterati had some useful and salutary reminders for all of us.
While news gathering and dissemination of information is the principal job of the press, it’s far from the only job of the press. The press is meant to ask tough questions from governments and hold the powerful accountable to the people who have elected them and reposed faith in them.
Watch as the American president speaks about how the press is an important check for the government and how the ‘abrasive quality’ of the press may be unwelcome personally but is vitally necessary.
No matter the idealism of the past, the present shows a reality of despotic regimes that seek to muzzle and intimidate the press. Several nondemocratic and totalitarian leaning regimes currently peddle their propaganda via captive media outlets while independent journalists are prevented from doing their jobs by being sued, threatened, persecuted and even killed.
The World Press Freedom Index 2018 evaluated 180 countries based on parameters such as extent of pluralism, media independence, transparency, quality of the infrastructure etc. Countries such as Norway, Sweden and Netherlands have the highest rankings whereas Turkmenistan, Eritrea, and North Korea fared poorest. India is at a dismal 138 – one spot above Pakistan. This is because of muzzling and barring of the press in some areas, the killing of journalists, their intimidation via frivolous legal suits, hate speech targeting journalists.
It is a fact that journalists are targeted for reporting stories that make those in positions of power and authority uncomfortable, or which expose a corporate or criminal nexus. According to one estimate, 200+ journalists have either been killed or have gone missing under the regime of Russia’s Putin.
In these days of social media where each of us is caught up and wrapped in our own bubbles, it is important to be exposed to different points of view and not to be carried away by the proliferation of fake news. It is important to read different news sources to get a complete picture, because news houses also can be ideologically inclined and may be subject to sponsorship and/or idealogical compulsions.
The number of press conferences American leaders have held may not be relevant, but the importance of top leaders answering media questions is very much relevant.
It is the moral duty of the journalist to not dance to the tunes of the powerful. It is not the job of journalists to be obedient note takers at functions that the government wants publicized. It is the job of the media to ask uncomfortable questions, to critique the functioning of those in power, to report views that run counter to the popular narrative. A government-friendly media is not a nationalist or a patriotic entity; in fact it is the very opposite.
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