Paid News & Media Ethics
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: October 15 2011 -

Satyajit Usham from the desk

"The day you write to please everyone, you no longer are in journalism. You are in show business," thus remarked Miller Jr Frank, in his advice to fellow professionals in 'the Fourth Estate', many years before journalism attained its present status in Manipur.

This advice from one of the most well-known media personalities of his time in the west could very well be taken to hearts by the journalist fraternity in Manipur, who are working under the most trying conditions with countless pressures from all quarters.

Like the wavering Hamlet, the young tragic-hero, in Shakespeare's famous play of the same name, it is a known fact that most journalists or media houses in Manipur are always haunted by the dilemma of 'to be or not to be' published some press statements or news contents that could be anything but news worthy but were pressurized to carry them.

Such dilemma, however, should never be an excuse for allowing the credibility of media in Manipur to be put at stake.

For the fledging media in Manipur to remain unsullied and the mediapersons stick true to their professional calling, a deep soul-searching and constant reality check is essential, especially, now that the officials of Agriculture Department have been 'formally' accused of giving money to reporters for coverage of their field visits.

Like the proverbial tip of the iceberg, this could, however, never be the first instance where officials of Agriculture Department or, for that matter, officials of any Government Departments, corporate bodies, Ministers, MLAs as well as aspiring politicians, making similar offers to mediapersons for preferential treatment on cover pages so as to stay in focus in the attention of reading public.

In fact, that the All Manipur Working Journalists' Union (AMWJU) has already taken a firm stand in this regard is a pointer to the not-so-far-spoken ugly face of media in Manipur.

Now that it is out in the open for all to see, every journalists, worth his/her salt, should ponder over umpteen number of times before accepting any offer for covering news in future.

The argument of how little the journalists in Manipur are paid as salary at the end of each month for their hard work, day in and day out; and so, they are susceptible to falling into the trap is nothing more than a lame excuse, if we may be permitted to add.

If fat-pay-packages are what they are looking for while working as journalists in Manipur, then, sorry and goodbye to all of them, because this is definitely not the right place for them.

With the next round of election to the 10th Manipur State Legislative Assembly, scheduled to take place sometime in early part of 2012, fast approaching, journalists in Manipur have every reason to prepare for taking extra caution and entrust upon themselves the responsibility of keeping media free from paid news and present a picture of the reality on which his/her fellowmen and women can act.

Would it be too high a wager on stake to ask for giving precedence to media ethics before any possible paid news and not the other way round like the title of this write-up? Hope not. Period.