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Protect and support your journalists

On World Press Freedom Day, Pulse Ghana senior journalist Stacey Knott looks at the role of her profession and why it needs to be protected in the face of eroding independence.

 

For me, the ideas behind this day are incredibly important, they are the difference between life and death for many reporters like me.

World Press Freedom Day was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in December 1993, it is about acknowledging the fact that freedom of information is fundamental to human rights.

As the UN states, today is about celebrating the fundamental principles of press freedom; assessing the state of press freedom throughout the world; defending the media from attacks on their independence; and paying tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the line of duty.

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One of the things that really sticks out for me, is the attacks on our independence, be that physical, or more subtle - denying access to government information, or politicians preferring to speak to journalists who personally support them.

Either way it erodes the way we work.

A large part of journalism is reporting on the activities of government and questioning their decisions, and with that comes the base belief that I fear is eroding – we should never be indebted to politicians, only to the truth.

In saying that, it is outdated to believe journalists are objective - we come with our own belief systems, be they political or social.

The key is acknowledging those biases and keeping them in check when reporting, to consider alternative opinions and views, and report them, even if you don't agree with them.

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While we may personally not be objective, our way of reporting has to be.

As a piece by the American Press Institute states, objectivity is about journalists developing a consistent method of testing information – a transparent approach to evidence – so that personal and cultural biases would not undermine the accuracy of their work.

It's about facts, and verifying those facts, and being disciplined in this line of duty to question the information given to you, and who it may be benefiting.

We are tasked with being accountable to who we report on, and who we report to – our audiences.

I love what I do deeply, and obsessively. Journalism has taken me around the world, from a prison in Louisiana to police stations in Ghana, from battling with misleading MPs in New Zealand to camping out in London with protesters.

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I've been in a small Air Force plane doing loops in the air above my hometown of Nelson, I've reported on horrific murder trials and gone into the deep, dark realm of mental health care in New Zealand.

Done well, this profession is incredibly tough. It's stressful, generally poorly paid, and can be very dangerous. Look at what Ghana's Anas  Aremeyaw Anas goes through for his work.

But through my years reporting, I've seen some shocking betrayals of these ethics of journalism through the globe.

From UK tabloid's hate mongering, to clear, political bias and unbalanced reporting in Ghana's mainstream media.

This kind of reporting leads itself to our audiences distrusting us and thinking we distort the truth for our own gains.

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That's true for some, but don't tarnish us all with the same brush.

It's a universal truth that no journalist is perfect, but at our best we will learn something new everyday on the job, we will affect real change, bring awareness to issues, get justice for those who need it and even change laws.

But, we need the tools and support to be able to do our jobs well.

In Ghana, Reporters Without Borders note the situation for journalists here has has worsened since 2014.In the 2016 ranking of the World Press Freedom Index, Ghana is at 26 out of the 180 countries.

Ghana dropped four places, from 22 in 2015.

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In 2014, the Media Foundation For West Africa registered nine physical attacks on journalists, as well as several arrests and raids on newspapers. These attacks take advantage of a climate of impunity and flawed media legislation. Articles in the criminal code penalizing “false news” are sometimes abused in order to harass journalists.

Since I arrived in Ghana late last year, I quickly noted the debate around Ghana's Right to Information Bill, which is currently at the consideration stage in Parliament, over a decade since it was laid before the legislative body in 2002 to be passed into a law.

These bills are common in democratic countries through the world. They are meant to facilitate access to information and documents by individuals and groups from public agencies, and should include the right to observe or study any written document.

It's the kind of law journalists need to do their job properly. It is meant to open up government decisions to the public.

In my home country New Zealand we have the Official Information Act, which anyone can use to request information from the government. I've used it many, many times, from getting police statistics to copies of government contracts.

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The act was established to increase the availability of official information to the people of New Zealand in the name of democracy, and promoting the accountability of MPs and officials.

However, not all requests are answered, and within the past year, the Prime Minister admitted he endorsed the misuse of the act when he admitted the Government sometimes delayed releasing official information right up to the deadline.

This is something I experienced time and again, and often once the 20 working days that the respondent is meant to reply with the information is up, often they would say they need to extend the deadline, then send a further message saying they can not respond.

So, if and when Ghana does pass the bill, I am expecting there to be a whole sleuth of issues in actually getting the information we need.

In the meantime please support your journalists and support good journalism.

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Tell media houses what you want and don't want, and feel free to reach out to journalists, we are always on the hunt for a story!

Most importantly, speak up for their rights like they (well the good ones) fight for yours.

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Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:

Email: eyewitness@pulse.com.gh

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