Plea for dignified journalism within the context of Freedom of the Press in SIERRA LEONE. Everyone agrees that Freedom of the Press is a significant force necessary in a democratic process in any country and often create a system of checks and balances in the way we perform our various responsibilities either as government officials or ordinary citizens. This important sector of our lives is made possible by our noble journalists who serve as the eyes, ears, and voice of the public because they often have access to more information than the average person. In Sierra Leone because of inadequate access to information, journalism can alter peoples perception about others, and situations that may otherwise genuinely remain unchanged, especially during opinion polls like general elections. We all know the effects of such episode when the wrong people are often elected due to bias and inaccurate news reporting, based purely on self-interested personal views rather than on journalistic point of analysis. We often tend to ignore the lessons of our past and therefore always fall apart in almost every attempt to dignify our rights to move in the right direction for social and economic developments. For this reason, I value the profession of journalism as an entity that can make or destroy the future of a developing country like Sierra Leone. As such, I urge all journalists and freelance writers to please focus our attention on accurate and verifiable news reporting that are essential to the development of our country. Let the contents of our reports be truthful and of necessity to public interest over political or business affiliations. I am quite aware that criticism is also good journalism as indulged in the Freedom of the Press act, but it should be realistic and absolutely needed for public information with ideological recommendations where applicable, for solutions that can positively impact the subject matter. It should not be based on popularity of personal recognition, hatred, ethnicity, race, religion, gender, or disrespectfully comical. If we apply these simple rules, journalism will be more dignified, and our rights to do so will not be restrained or censored against libel, incitement to rebellion, and offensiveness. I know freedom is not free but we can be free to report freely, if we do so within the limits of the existing laws. Your comments are welcome or you may send your confidential remarks to my private box. May God bless you and may God bless the Republic of Sierra Leone.
Posted on: Tue, 12 Nov 2013 11:33:48 +0000