Media Ethics Forum generates debate in Colombo, Sri Lanka

The Sri Lankan Press Institute will conclude a three-day conference on Media Ethics in the Age of Globalization in Colombo, Sri Lanka, today.

Prof Shunkantala Rao on the far right with colleagues

In the first session yesterday, Professor Clifford Christians of University of Illinoise and Professor Shukantala Rao of Department of Communication Studies, State University of New York, co-chaired the first session over the topic “Global media ethics and ethics within regional and local context.

The second session, Professor Shakuntala Rao co-chaired and moderate a panel with Dr Vipul Mudgal, Dr Ranga Kalansooriya and Mr U Myint Kyaw, over the topic “Media Ethics in Emerging Democracy”.

At the third second. Mr Javid Yusuf moderate a panel comprised of Mr Kamal Siddiqi, Dr Maneesha S. Wanasinghe-Pasqual and M Eric Cinje over the topic: “The Role of the Media in Conflict Resolution”.

In the final session of the day, Dr Vipul Mudgal of India chaired and moderate the panel discussion over the topic: “Citizen Journalism and Social Media Ethics”. Two trained and practicing journalists, now migrating from print media to the social media platform, presented papers on the benefits, successes and challenges of the citizen journalism and social media.

The first presenter was Duran Angiki of Pasifik Wantoks International, a journalist originally from the Solomon Islands, but now residing in Australia and Mr Nalaka Gunawardene, a print journalist from Colombo, Sri Lanka, now using the social media as a medium of publication and communication.

The panel discussion generated huge interests with educators, communication specialists, media experts, practitioners and representatives of various regional press councils, local government departments, print, television, radio and social media were given opportunities to discuss issues relating to their researches and experiences.

In addition, participants also debated issues relating to the importance of legislating laws to govern media freedom in emerging democracy, journalists and media code of conducts and ethical practices, where a deep divide emerged amongst journalists’ on-one-side and academics and government spin-doctors on the other. 

 

Eric Cinje, CEO of African Media Initiative with me at the Conference, The Kingsburry Hotel

In both camps, government officials, communication specialists and educators advocate the idea of governments playing a role in legislating laws to govern the use of the social media, while journalists argued against and warned that allowing 

governments to legislate laws – on behalf of citizens – is a recipe for disaster as governments are always acted on self-interests.

In the final analysis of the debate, Angiki was given an opportunity to pitch his case. He argued that journalists are often hard done by the public and critics in every given country. But regardless of the critical observation by some sections of the public, journalists are by nature law abiding citizens, whose took pride of their work and role. 

In every country, there are professionals in the fields of education, law and medicine, but no one scrutinize their failures as much as they did to journalists. The reality is - in most cases – teachers and educators, who are also professionals, send their failures to the streets and unemployment queues because they cannot help them to progress in education. Lawyers hide their failures by sending and locking them up in jails and doctors bury their failures in graves and cemeteries. But journalists live another day to face public criticisms and even killed in the line of duty.

In essence, journalists are the bravest of all professionals. They fought over centuries to protect the rights of citizens to freedom of expression. For decades journalists developed a thick-skin attitude and resilient to keep on moving regardless of facing constant abuse, assault, harassment, death threat to their own lives and the lives of their families, all in the name of upholding the fundamental rights of citizens to freedom of expression and human dignity.

As once stated by a Kenyan journalist, in response to constant criticisms of his work that he has heard of many cases and stories of governments and military regimes taking over newspapers, newsrooms and jailing journalists, but he has never heard one story of a news editor or publisher taking over a government. It is to the credit of journalists that we are talking ethics this week.

Today the conference will continue in its last day with topics such as “Are Ethics Possible in a Globalize World, Covering Elections Ethically, The Ethics of Contentious Cartoons and Freedom of Expression and Global Media Ethics: What is in the Future?