The new Minister of Education Jerome Fitzgerald said he will soon be calling journalists to explain "what we expect of the media”. Should government have a say in how the media approaches news?
Those words imply so much! I suppose part of the expectation is more government-friendly reporting, less criticism, and no challenging queries while we all pretend that those in power are God's gift to us, imbued with all wisdom, knowledge and understanding, full of pure intentions and incapable of making mistakes. I suggest that if the Government has any expectations of the media those expectations should be kept to themselves. In any event, I thought the Bahamas Information Service and ZNS (alas!) were their mouthpieces, both organizations being well trained in spinning stories to the (most times) unearned benefit of those in power. For a "democracy" those democratically elected in this country seemed to have missed a fundamental point about how democracies work. My last word to those in power is: " Put on your long-legged pants. The days of short pants over!"
We expect the media to deliver UNBIASED news which seems to be nearly impossible, each news source seems to have an obvious party which they support. The government should have little to no say on how the news should be approached. Many things can happen once government controls the media. They can change certain details to their liking, they can withhold information vital for the public to know, they can spread propaganda against an opposing party, they can spread lies about a dire situation just to appeal to the public when we have a right to know, and it can go on and on. Journalism is about seeking the truth behind closed curtains, bringing it to the public to see and let them decide how they want to interpret it. It doesn't work the other way around a Journalist is supposed to just report not decipher the information for you and feed you their views and give off the notion that it's fact. These days it seems journalism is starting to hide under a very dark veil of deception and corruption, which is very ironic in the information era we live in today. MY Blog: http://tis242.blogspot.com/
I guess that the new Minister of Education has great <a href="http://www.the-happy-manager.com/improv…">speaking skills</a> because many important people follow him and believe in his strategies. I hope that he will change in good the education system and the relationships between mass-media and the school representatives.
Comments
mynameis says...
Those words imply so much! I suppose part of the expectation is more government-friendly reporting, less criticism, and no challenging queries while we all pretend that those in power are God's gift to us, imbued with all wisdom, knowledge and understanding, full of pure intentions and incapable of making mistakes. I suggest that if the Government has any expectations of the media those expectations should be kept to themselves. In any event, I thought the Bahamas Information Service and ZNS (alas!) were their mouthpieces, both organizations being well trained in spinning stories to the (most times) unearned benefit of those in power. For a "democracy" those democratically elected in this country seemed to have missed a fundamental point about how democracies work. My last word to those in power is: " Put on your long-legged pants. The days of short pants over!"
Posted 21 June 2012, 11:54 a.m. Suggest removal
lilbigga says...
SHOULD HAVE A SAY FOR WHAT? TO SUGAR COAT EVERY THING WHAT THE BLIND MAN COULD SEE ISNT RIGHT
ENOUGH CROOKEDNESS IS GOING ON IN THIS COUNTRY
Posted 27 June 2012, 4:26 p.m. Suggest removal
jasoncooper456 says...
We expect the media to deliver UNBIASED news which seems to be nearly impossible, each news source seems to have an obvious party which they support. The government should have little to no say on how the news should be approached. Many things can happen once government controls the media. They can change certain details to their liking, they can withhold information vital for the public to know, they can spread propaganda against an opposing party, they can spread lies about a dire situation just to appeal to the public when we have a right to know, and it can go on and on. Journalism is about seeking the truth behind closed curtains, bringing it to the public to see and let them decide how they want to interpret it. It doesn't work the other way around a Journalist is supposed to just report not decipher the information for you and feed you their views and give off the notion that it's fact. These days it seems journalism is starting to hide under a very dark veil of deception and corruption, which is very ironic in the information era we live in today.
MY Blog: http://tis242.blogspot.com/
Posted 29 June 2012, 1:53 a.m. Suggest removal
negruvoda says...
I guess that the new Minister of Education has great <a href="http://www.the-happy-manager.com/improv…">speaking skills</a> because many important people follow him and believe in his strategies. I hope that he will change in good the education system and the relationships between mass-media and the school representatives.
Posted 28 January 2013, 8:53 a.m. Suggest removal
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