Five things to note on World press freedom day
Journalists from all over the world celebrated World Press Freedom Day on May 3, 2023.
At the Safari Park in Nairobi on May 3, 2023, the president of Kenya Editors Guild (KEG) Zubeidah Kananu expressed concerns with the consistent attacks on journalists by the State and non-state actors.
“Allow journalists should be allowed to exercise their constitutional right as they go about their professional work,” she said.
Here are some of the take-home from the event.
1. Fake news – Fake news is false or misleading information presented as news. Fake news often has the aim of damaging the reputation of a person or entity or making money through advertising revenue. As we mark World Press Freedom Day, it should be noted that everyone is now a journalist, but not all news they give is accurate nor do they do it professionally.
2. Digital news – With the fast changing technology, the media industry is not left behind. Mainstream media have embraced digital journalism and are now feeding their audiences with real-time information on various social media platforms.
Twitter, Facebook, Instagram among others are now helping audiences to get news as they happen.
This shows how fast things are transforming.
3. Government harassment – On several occasions, there have been complaints of government agencies harassing journalists as they go about their work. Journalists covering Azimio la Umoja One Kenya anti-government protests over the past few months’ encountered hostility from both police and protesters. In some incidences, journalists were attacked while covering Azimio rallies while vehicles and their equipment were vandalised.
4. Poor payment – Journalists around the world who speak about issues that affecting the community are at times paid peanuts. It is pretentious to expect independent media and unbiased information from reporters when journalists go for months without pay, and others cannot sustain themselves because the pay is too little. There must be equal pay for an equal day’s work.
5. Quality control – Quality control must be in place to help the credibility of the media. Transparency in the news-gathering process is necessary to retain public trust.
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