JOURNALISM ETHICS AND ATTACK ON JOURNALISTS: BLAME GJA, GIBA, GMC . Journalism is an important profession. It can be seen as a skill, a talent, even a passion in a way; a passion to tell the truth, to inform, to reach others, to communicate news using any means necessary. So why is this passion, this profession so fiercely attacked, challenged and perceived as controversial? Many journalists have risked their futures, have been beaten, harassed, imprisoned and too many have even made the ultimate sacrifice – of their lives – in the pursuit of telling a story, exposing the truth and acknowledging the right to be heard.Along with threats directed to freedom of speech and freedom of the media in general, today the freedom to be and to call yourself a journalist and to perform your job freely is also threatened why? Threats against one journalist can have the devastating effect of silencing many others. Colleagues of the victims may go on working but fear the danger of reporting and writing about what the public know. Many of them will start to exercise self-censorship. Although the challenges and dangers that journalists face in many countries may differ from region to region, one sad fact holds true everywhere: freedom to express is being questioned and challenged from many sides. Some of these challenges are blatant, others concealed; some of them follow traditional methods to silence free speech and critical voices, some use new technologies to suppress and restrict the free flow of information and media pluralism; and far too many result in physical harassment and deadly violence against journalists.The right of journalists to carry out their work under safe conditions, without fear of being harassed, attacked, beaten or killed is a topic of paramount importance for freedom of the press and freedom of expression. The media play an enormously important role in the protection of human rights. They expose human rights violations and offer an arena for different voices to be heard in public discourse. Not without reason, media have been called the Fourth Estate – an essential addition to the powers of the executive, the legislature and the judiciary and its no mistake by the drafters of 1992 constitution devoted a whole chapter on freedom of speech and expression .However, the power of the media can also be misused to the extent that the very functioning of democracy is threatened. Some media outlets have been turned into propaganda megaphones for those who have have the resources or owners of the media houses. Others have been used to incite xenophobic hatred and violence against minorities and other vulnerable groups of people.It also happens that media unnecessarily and unfairly abuse the privacy and integrity of ordinary people through sheer carelessness and sensationalism and thereby cause considerable damage to them - for no good purpose at all.As the phone hacking scandal in the United Kingdom showed, competitive pressures may encourage a culture of illegal and unethical activity in the newsroom. It is obvious that freedom of expression – though an absolutely basic human right – is not without limits . ATTACKS In fact, just this year alone, hundreds of threats and attacks have been directed at the journalistic community. For instance; -6th March 2014, Military personnel escorting the president during the independent celebration have to slapped a reporter of Ghanaian times newspaper for refusing to shift from where he stood as the President approaches him while greetings traditional authority. After watching CCTV footage of the scene, I have been asking myself if journalists in Ghana thinks they are above the law or more powerful than anything? - On April 11: Ebenezer Kwame Abaka, Western Regional Correspondent of TV3 was heckled by a military man and his camera seized at an event he was invited to. The journalist had gone to cover the passing out parade of some recruits of the Ghana Air Force at the Air Force Base in the Western Regional Capital, Takoradi. -On July 8: Benjamin Tetteh, an Eastern regional correspondent of Joy FM and Daniel Nyorngmor, a reporter with GBC Radio were attacked by friends of the disappeared hiplife musician popularly called “Castro”. The journalists had gone to the Peace Holiday Resort to report on the musician who is feared dead after going missing for days. They were thrown out of the facility. Tetteh’s mobile phone was seized when he attempted to file a report to his radio station. The individuals deleted pictures he had taken before giving it back to him. Other journalists from GTV, UTV, Peace FM, Daily Graphic and the Daily Guide were also barred from entering the resort. why? Castros disappearance have no single eye witness to tell exactly what happened to the two individuals but listening to media houses gives impression initially that the lady felt off the Jet ski and Castro tried to recues her and got drawn with him. - On August 8: a relative of Eric Amoateng, a former Member of Parliament for Nkoranza North smashed the iPad of a Daily Graphic newspaper reporter. The reporter Nana Konadu Agyemang, who is one of the Court Correspondents of the newspaper, was in the process of taking a photograph of Amoateng, who recently arrived in Ghana after serving a 10 year jail term in the United States over narcotic related charges. - On September 5: Daniel Kenu of the Daily Graphic newspaper was brutally assaulted by former footballer, Baffour Gyan and his accomplices. The attack followed what the assailants considered a provocative question at a pre-match conference during Ghana’s game against Uganda. - On September 6: a driver with Multi TV Felix Akunor was arrested while on official duty with his colleagues. The crew had gone to report on the plight of the people of Mensah Guinea (a suburb of Accra) whose residential structures had been demolished by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly a day earlier. Reporter, Joojo Cobbinah and cameraman, Festus Solomon, who were not spotted to be arrested immediately, were later invited and detained by the police before they were later granted bail. Subsequently on September 9, Cobbinah, Solomon and Akunor were charged with offensive conduct. - The year has also witnessed two highly punitive damages awarded against two private newspapers, The Informer and the Daily Guide. The papers were fined GH¢ 300,000 (about US$120,000 at the time) and GH₵250,000 (about US$ 98,360) respectively. - The latest is the beating of Adom Fm presenter Efua Pokua aka Vim lady by NHIS officials. An eye witness says(on Peace Fm) the NHIA officials never attacked the afua pokuaa .She rather attacked a client for asking her to shut up and the two felt into a gutter injuring her at the process. Looking at the broad scope of attacks on journalists in the country, it becomes very clear that journalism is loosing the respect accorded it especially the manner at which presenters throw all caution to the wind and say whatever that comes into their minds. Im not surprised at all about the increasing attacks on journalists because MEDIA FOUNDATION FOR WEST AFRICA(MFWA) has for sometimes now raising the red flag about the falling standard of journalism ethic standard in country and they diligently followed it with recommendations and surprisingly those who have been silent over the recommendations are the ones that all of sudden got their respective voices after the news of another journalist falling victim to public anger and attack. coincidentally, Adom fm has been cited in many reports of use of indecent expression especially during news bulletins and unverified claims and allegations, one Side presentation of issues especially during political discussions programmes The Executives of GJA, GMC, GIJ AND GIBA should bow down their heads in shame instead of trying to point accusing figures at others. What have GJA, GMC and GIBA with regards to the series of recommendations by MFWA ? What steps the owners of these media houses taken to redeem the confidence and Trust of the public ? The fact that security personnels in one way or another have a reason to attack or maltreated media personnel shows that its not providing bodyguards or security measures for the journalists will solve or completely change anything significant about the way people treat or perceive about same media houses and owners about the unethical reportages and practices which GJA AND Media Commission have not taken a single step to reverse the trends of poor standard of journalism. Freedom of speech is not freedom to say whatever you want without condemnation; it’s the freedom to express beliefs and ideas without unwarranted, its not freedom to insult people and its not freedom defame the reputation of good people. Its no deniable fact that media today serves as the most used medium to express vulgar and most indecent languages in Accra. Ironically , Christian Council, National peace council and GBA association were all silent on these issues until it started raising ugly heads. How can you say you are responsible association and serious people if consistently, independent monitoring reports cites your members of violation of DECENCY, ACCURACY, FAIRNESS AND BALANCE to have been most violated most this year? . The new media landscape and the changes for Journalism today journalism is in the midst of crisis. The traditional media, particularly newspapers, suffer not just from the effects of the global economic crisis but also the impact of structural and market changes which have reduced the profitability of media enterprises. In response to these changing fortunes, severe cuts have been imposed in editorial departments that have weakened the quality of journalism. Indeed, many media employers have sacrificed reporting standards in pursuit of commercial objectives, overriding ethical values with journalism that is populist, sensational and biased. The overall conclusion is that safety of the media is a precondition for free media and good governance. Without safe working conditions, journalists cannot write freely. To defend the very important human rights of free media and free expression, authorities and organisations on all levels need to combine their efforts When freedom of speech comes into conflict with other rights, such as the individual right to privacy, there is no easy way to make judgments, either in the courtroom or the newsroom, without giving one priority over the other.In order to be able to make judgments that are morally and legally defensible, journalists must be competent, well trained, informed and, above all, able to operate freely in conditions which encourage them to act ethically. However, none of this is easily achieved in the pressurised and turbulent world in which the media work. One of the strongest reasons for the high rates of intimidation and attack against the media has remained the substandard ethics of journalists’ reporting. -The weak implementation of a journalists’ code of conduct is one of the key reasons behind the attacks, along with impunity and political protection of the culprits. -The attacks on press are mostly not because the news is written,but more for how the news has been written. -Conscientious reporting that considers the public might protect journalists from harm - If journalists and media adhere by the ethics and become responsible towards society, it is possible that the attacks on media would be much less. WE ALL NEED A SAFER WORLD , HELP STOP THE ATTACK ON THE NEXT JOURNALIST . BE YOUR BROTHERS KEEPER!!! Long live free speech Long live free media Long live GHANA credit: MFWA BY: JACK DZOKOTO
Posted on: Tue, 16 Sep 2014 22:57:31 +0000
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