The General Secretary of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Aidan White says journalists should never allow their independence to be exploited and manipulated by people who have special interests. He said “we journalists are not the voice box and should never be the voice box for special interests; we are not the voice box for the Ministry of Information; we are not the voice box for the corporate head of large economic conglomerates nor are we the voice box for our political-cultural friends.” Speaking at the launch of Ethical Journalism Initiative (EJI) and the Development of the Media in Ghana on Monday, Mr. White maintained that journalists ought to be at arms length as best as they could. Even though, the situation seemed extremely difficult, he continued “we have to be at arms length with those who have special interests and who need publicity in order to satisfy their own special particular interests,” adding, that is what makes journalism hard and dangerous. The programme was organized by the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and facilitated by the IFJ. The EJI was first launched in Moscow in 2007 at a congress organized by the IFJ. It was aimed at re-enforcing in both the public and journalistic minds that ethical standards were the basic values of journalism. Mr. White said striving to tell the truth, being independent and doing no harm to persons formed the basic initiative of ethical journalism. According to him, the initiative was not some academic theoretical discussions point where people sit around tables to discuss. “It is about humanity and the reality of how people actually are in real line relating to one another.” He indicated that journalists have tremendous responsibility to render services to others and not in “our self interests.” He urged media practitioners to be open, transparent and accountable in the way they worked while disseminating accurate information to the public. Mr White defined journalism as being responsible, telling the truth, being independent, respecting honesty and decency in the line of duty and most of all, having respect for the people. Touching on morale boosting, Mr. White stated “it is not selfish for journalists to ask for adequate rewards for the work that they do because the service they provide is not just a personal service but a service to society, the media organization and therefore they should be recognized.” In a speech read on behalf of the Vice president John Mahama, the Minister of Information, John Tia Akologu pointed out that “we shall not in anyway do anything to suppress the media in the country, Africa and anywhere at all.” He said the respect for law would provide solid platforms on which to build development in the country. Mr. Mahama opined that professional journalism required that journalists venture into issues in an open and transparent manner. He said they should adapt independent and impartial posture without taking to harm anybody while protecting as well as advocating the public interest. “To be a professional journalist therefore calls for attributes and values beyond the acquisition of material wealth. Ethical journalism must promote peace and well being of the people because it is the most powerful tool,” the Vice president said. The President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Ransford Tetteh, also added his voice, noting that activities of the media houses could professionally store values of professionalism and ethical standards. He hoped that the launch of the EJI in the country would add further impetus to the GJA’s activities and other media stakeholders to improve the quality of journalism in the country. Mr. Tetteh continued that though the theme for the GJA Awards night was greeted with so much criticism, he said “we are not ashamed; we admit that there are challenges in our profession and the only way to do so is to reflect, deliberate on the issues and find solutions to them.” Freedom of expression, he added could only come from within and so “if we refuse to abide by our code of ethics particularly to be fair, balanced and accurate in our reportage, then society would rise up against us.” Credit: Nathaniel Y. Yankson Source: http://www.nayank80.blogspot.com/