Ethical and free media crucial

Namibia’s seven-point drop from 17th to 24th place and it’s exit from the top 20 in the annual global press freedom rankings is worrying and should spur journalists, government and other stakeholders on to do better.

However, local media experts this week said that while Namibia’s latest annual Reporters without Borders world press freedom index score has plucked it out of the top 20 rankings for the first time in a number of years, the country’s continued top ranking in Africa, as well as globally, should not be ignored.

“We do remain number one in Africa, and internationally, remain ahead of countries such as France (39), United Kingdom (40), and the United States of America (43),” Robin Tyson, media studies lecturer at the University of Namibia (Unam), said.

Editors' Forum of Namibia (EFN) chairperson, Joseph Ailonga said that while the drop of seven points is “worrying, as it speaks to the protection of journalists in Africa” the total absence of any African country in the top 20 is “also worrying”.

Ailonga added that Namibia’s lower score furthermore signals “that our continued back and forth between government and the media is not reflecting well in terms of media freedom indicators” globally.

The seven-point drop “signifies that Namibia needs to up its game again,” Wanja Njuguna, a senior media lecturer at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (Nust) told Namibian Sun.

She added that nevertheless it is important to note that overall “Namibia remains a well-regarded nation in terms of press freedom and in the six years I have worked in this country, I have not had a reason to doubt that journalists in Namibia have much more freedom and little government interference compared to so many other countries on the continent to do their stuff, including online journalism, which many developing nations have curtailed in various ways.”

She said that while there have been “incidents of concern” on media freedom in the country, Namibian journalists should be cognisant of the freedom they do have, compared to countless other countries.

“I would wish to see that journalists ensure anything they report on is credible and can stand in a court of law. I am not yet at a level where I should be worried about that mark, though a seven-point drop is significant, because I know it can be worked on.”

Earlier on

In 2015 and 2016, Namibia scored a top 20 spot with a 17th place ranking over two consecutive years in the annual Reporters without Borders press freedom index.

Namibia, while not in the top 20 category this year, outranked a number of countries on the #Zambia (114), Mozambique (93), India (136), Spain (29) and Italy (52).

North Korea reached the bottom ranking while Scandinavian countries took the top spots, with Norway in first place, Sweden in second, Finland in third and Denmark in fourth place.

The Reporter’s without Borders scorecard on Namibia, titled ‘Relative calm’, noted that Namibia’s constitution guarantees free speech and protects journalists, but journalists are often the target of government threats.

The scorecard found that “critical journalists find a refuge on the internet, where they are not subject to control, but self-censorship is common in the state-owned media.”

The scorecard stated that “public order and security legislation is often used to restrict freedom of information. Journalists are often the targets of attacks by political parties. This was the case during the 2014 elections, when both ruling party officials and members of the opposition attacked NBC journalists.”

Some issues of concern, listed by Tyson, include “derogatory remarks about the media” or against individual journalists made by high-level government officials on public platforms.

He noted that officials demanding that the media should focus solely on positive developments or heed government instructions that the role of media is to “built the country” does not reflect the true and necessary role of the media.

“I don't believe the media should be 'sunshine journalists', but should be objective and balanced in reporting the positive and negative developments in the country.”

He highlighted the absence of the access to information legislation, a law that has long been touted by government as a priority, despite the slow pace at which it is being finalised.

He added that government must ensure that all media are treated equally and fairly, including in the provision to information and timely notification of events or press conferences.

“Preference should not be given to those media houses seen to be favourable to the government. A standardised mailing list, for example, for all ministries and the prime minister and president’s office, constantly kept up to date, would assist in ensuring fair coverage of these events, along with a clear understanding of the deadlines faced by journalists.”

Fake news

EFN’s Ailonga and other media experts noted that the role of an ethical and trustworthy media remains critical, notably with the increasing trend of influential figures increasingly making allegations of misrepresentation of the facts by and in the media, a strategy that has cast the spotlight on media ethics and responsibility.

“The media is the voice of the voiceless and it assists governments in executing developmental programmes within the constitutional boundaries.”

He added that media must report based on strict ethical guidelines, which ensures that the medium can be trusted in a world in which misinformation thrives.

“People need information they can trust and only an ethical and credible media industry can help the audience receive credible information,” he said.

Njuguna, also a former journalist, said the watchdog role of the media is crucial in keeping the public informed on a wide range of issues, but that the media must responsibly shoulder their portion of the burden of ensuring that the news is accurate and factual.

“The critical thing is that journalists must use this freedom responsibly. Do not publish unless you have proof, do not use journalism to settle scores. Do not misquote people.”

She said that journalists must take responsibility for accurately portraying a balanced view, ensure that they provide right of reply and to be gender sensitive, providing women and men with equal voices, as well as the youth.

She pointed out that one of the concerns, and pressures facing the media, is the impact of social media and the increasing spread of unverified information on these platforms.

“This is the age of social media and it is very easy to be caught up in the buzz,” she cautioned.

She said journalists must remain vigilant in ensuring that they continue to adhere to media ethics, basing their decisions to use information and other material found on social media, including photos, responsibly and sensitively.

JANA-MARI SMITH