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EDITORIAL: For a credible press
According to various global media organizations, 32 press workers have been killed in various nations in the first four months of 2018 alone. Last year, 65 were killed across the world.
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According to various global media organizations, 32 press workers have been killed in various nations in the first four months of 2018 alone. Last year, 65 were killed across the world. (Shutterstock/File)
O
n World Press Freedom Day this year, we join the global media community, particularly colleagues in Afghanistan, in honoring and mourning at least nine journalists who were killed in explosions in Kabul on Monday. A suicide bomber posing as a reporter blew himself up among press workers positioned behind a security cordon following twin attacks, reports said. The Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for the strike, which killed at least 25 people and wounded almost 50 others.
Watchdogs have revealed that the number of journalists killed that day in Afghanistan was equal to that of 2017. And according to various global media organizations, 32 press workers have been killed in various nations in the first four months of 2018 alone. Last year, 65 were killed across the world.
Indonesia has a much safer environment for media workers. Therefore, they carry a larger responsibility to safeguard each other as well as the credibility of their profession in a time when anyone with a computer and internet connection can fabricate and spread false reports.
In Indonesia, similar to other nations claiming to be democracies, ownership is in the hands of a few, thus, ensuring diverse and quality content for the public is a daily challenge despite the laws and regulations in place.
And like they did five years ago, the supposedly objective media will once again face the test of elections. In the previous presidential race, we witnessed verbal wars waged between factions standing against and in favor of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who is running for a second term.
More than a year before the 2019 elections, similar scuffles have already begun.
The need is greater now for the media to comply with its own code of ethics and self-imposed regulations, such as the need for formally trained journalists and accredited media companies. But the need to win by all means necessary is also greater, including by utilizing all available media platforms.
As predicted, following last year’s divisive Jakarta gubernatorial election, sectarian sentiments have shown no signs of abating despite appeals for national unity. The temptation and need to assert solidarity with one’s group — of the same political views, ethnicity or religious identity — through the reckless spreading of “news”, no matter how sensational, is often much greater than the willingness to pause and recheck sources. This continues despite the arrests made of “cyber army” members and sponsors accused of spreading hate speech.
Conventional media should be able to save the day, but instead, media companies have failed to win the trust of the people, who prefer personal “news” feeds from their closed groups. The Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) has not been able to protect the nation’s public frequencies from abuse fostered by political interests.
Creative collaborations among the public, including media watchdogs, citizen journalists and media companies, will be critical to retain whatever credibility remains of the press.
