“We are not stenographers”
Journalists have to speak truth to power in bangladesh
In June 2019, Julian Sher worked with the FOJO Media Institute in Sweden and MRDI in Bangladesh to train investigative journalists at Channel 24. This is one of his reports.
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What is the role of journalists? To whom do we owe loyalty?
Training with a variety of journalists in Bangladesh in June, we discussed and debated the challenges for the media, especially in countries where reporters often face threats and intimidation.
“Journalism is surely not for increasing conflict, or for tarnishing the image of the country,” Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said in September 2018 when her government brought in the controversial Digital Security Act. Media owners, journalists and international human rights groups have expressed concern over the new law because of its sweeping and vague provisions criminalizing certain types of speech.
“The kind of journalism which will take the country forward and develop confidence among the people is the one which should be practised, not the one which seeks to mislead people and create conflict,” the Prime Minister said.
The Bangladesh PM was not saying anything different than what many political leaders around the world declare. Politicians of all stripes regularly criticize journalists for being too negative, disruptive and overall troublesome. Think of President Donald Trump’s famous words declaring some media “the enemy of the people.”
I discussed the Prime Minister’s words with diplomatic correspondents who cover foreign affairs in Dhaka and with investigative journalists from Channel 24’s “Searchlight” program.
Everyone agreed journalists should never “mislead people.” Nor should we “increase conflict” by, for example, whipping up ethnic hatreds or prejudices.
But then we dug deeper into the issue: Who decides what is “misleading?” In Canada where I work, journalists have exposed corruption and scandal that politicians or businesspeople often denounce as “misleading.” Journalists in Bangladesh have gotten into trouble for exposing wrongdoing as well. Clearly what is “misleading” for one politician may in fact be the uncomfortable truth unearthed by careful and responsible journalists.
Next, we looked at “tarnishing the image of the country.” Bangladeshi journalists were naturally sensitive to the negative portrayal of their country abroad, if the Western media focused only on stories such as exploitation in the garment industry, the Rohingya crisis or corruption.
But I challenged them: Despite what the politicians say, does exposing “bad news” really tarnish a country’s image or is it in fact the opposite: that a country’s image is improved when it is known for fearless reporting and truth-telling?
I went further. Journalists, I argued, are a different breed of citizens. We may live in a country but while we are carrying out our profession, it is not “our country” or “our Prime Minister.” We owe a loyalty only to the truth and to the people who watch, read and listen to our stories.
Journalists in countries like Russia or Saudi Arabia have been killed for telling the truths that made many powerful people in their country uncomfortable. It is the killings and repression that “tarnished” the image of the country, not the truth-telling.
In our training sessions we looked at a lot of news reporting that was “press release” news – essentially just repeating official statements. “We are not stenographers,” we agreed, just reporting the words of the politicians uncritically.
Of course, I stressed, every journalist must weigh the risks. There may be personal dangers that make a story too difficult to complete. Your media owner for a variety of reasons may not let you pursue a story and you have to decide how much you are willing to risk your job. We live in the real world and we have to make difficult choices.
Still, we concluded that all good journalists, not just investigative reporters, need to be inspired by some basic principles:
To fearlessly seek all the facts and truth, with no bias and no political agenda
To speak truth to power, to hold the powerful to account
To give a voice to the voiceless
These words can be empty, trite slogans – or lofty goals for which we strive, despite the obstacles and risks. It’s up to us every day to choose.