THE activities of the media have come under scrutiny since the December 7, 2008 general election for very obvious reasons.
The media play a very critical role in setting the agenda.
Reviewing the activities of journalists during the Unilever Ghana Limited/Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) annual soiree in Accra last Friday, the Chief Executive of Unilever, Mr Charles A. Cofie, said, “Given that by the nature of your profession you are entrusted with empowering the citizenry to make informed decisions, it is imperative that you relentlessly pursue fairness and truth in your reportage.”
This advice comes shortly after the elections, particularly the run-off, when certain media houses pitted brother against sister just on account that they belonged to different political persuasions. Indeed, during that time keen observers of the media scene had cause to worry about the blatant abuse of the code of ethics of journalism.
The media have become so powerful in recent times that some commentators conclude that the freedom of press and of expression guaranteed by the Constitution has led to the tyranny of the media.
It is generally agreed that a free press is the tool of public criticism. It holds public officials accountable, opening them up to the judgement of people who can decide whether the government is doing good or whether it has anything to hide.
Article 162 Clause 5 of the Constitution states that “All agencies of the mass media shall, at all times, be free to uphold the principles, provisions and objectives of this Constitution and shall uphold the responsibility and accountability of the government to the people of Ghana.”
Mr Cofie then put the question, “And would it not be a tragedy if you, whom we trust to lead us in the right path, often expect us to do as you say but not as you do?”
The time has come for the media, particularly their professional body, the GJA, to intensify continuing education of its members and those who do not belong to the association to compel them to respect the ethics, values and principles of the profession.
Great men like Thomas Jefferson had so much faith in the media because of their power to change society for the better. That was why, confronted with his preference for government or media, he declared, “The basis of our government being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”
The DAILY GRAPHIC calls on all media practitioners to resolve to respect their code of ethics and other best practices in order to continue to earn the respect of the public to inform them.
A democratic and free society is dependent on the ability of the media to inform. But if we allow public resentment for the media to mount because we have become “Jacks of all trades but masters of none”, interest groups from politics, the business community and the clergy will gang up to curtail media freedoms.
Let us, therefore, demonstrate to the people we serve that we shall exercise the freedom guaranteed in the Constitution with responsibility.
We should bear in mind that no society makes progress in a state of nature. The press will continue to provide a forum for public discourse and public scrutiny of government if journalists respect the cardinal principles of fairness, accuracy and balance in their reportage.
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