It has been suggested that the standard of journalism in
It has also been suggested that journalism schools were not producing the quality graduates needed by the media industry in PNG.
I beg to differ.
If it is true that the standard of journalism in PNG has dropped, then it is not the young journalists who should be blamed, but rather the people responsible for providing editorial management and direction in the various news organisations.
These are the people who decide on what events or news get covered and what events do not get covered; they decide on what goes where in newspapers, on TV news and radio news; they determine what the nation should read about, hear about or watch on TV and what should be discarded daily.
They decide what gets prominence and what does not.
They and their chief executives who hold the cheque books determine whether young journalists receive further training at the cost of their own news organisations or wait for freebies from donor agencies and overseas information services.
These are the people who decide how far inland newspapers can be delivered, where TV and radio transmitters should be installed to give wider access to the public.
It is my view that the quality of editorial direction and management in the newsroom has a lot to do with the quality and standard of journalism in PNG.
It has a lot to do with whether journalists, both young and seasoned, uphold the so-called journalism code of ethics.
The quality of journalism in PNG is shaped by them, not necessarily by young journalists who only follow instructions to cover various news events.
It is time for the spot light to be flashed on those who should really be held accountable and answerable to the public for the daily dose of news that we read, hear and see in our media daily; not the young journalists fresh out of journalism school or trying to understand how to cover this complex nation called PNG.
As we celebrate another Media Freedom Week, media organisations should focus their attention on ensuring that many more Papua New Guineans in the rural and far remote areas of PNG have access to the media.
Our media today only reach a very small percentage of Papua New Guineans, especially those in the urban and peri-urban areas.
The rest in the rural and rural remote parts of the country remain completely isolated.
To me, reaching these people remains the single greatest challenge facing the PNG media industry today.
Having spent 10 months out of the media industry, it has become obvious to me that some sections of our industry risk becoming irrelevant to the society they purport to serve.
The public receive very little real value in their media and in a country where there is a glaring absence of government information service; the people are at a loss as to who they should turn to for relevant information.
The people’s hunger for information on how to improve their way of life and or raise their standard of living remain unfulfilled.
Yours,
Oseah Philemon, OBE
Voco Point
Lae
No comments:
Post a Comment