Freedom of the press is important because the media are supposed to protect society from abuses of power - wherever they come from. So, when journalists are accused of ‘selling’ their power to the highest bidder, as in a recent case in Greece, it highlights some serious media issues.
The facts
Three powerful media personalities; Acropolis newspaper publisher Panayiotis Mavrikos; Panagiotis Moussas and Christos Fragou, face charges of blackmail after Amalia Katzou, a manager at Greece’s water utility, complained they tried to extort money from her in exchange for favourable coverage.
Failure to pay the money would have meant that the journalists would have painted her in a negative light during a politically-sensitive period in Greece.
After the initial complaint was made, other victims came forward, including political figures who complained they had to pay 1000 Euros for an interview during the election period.
MP Vassilis Leventis commented that there were political figures behind the whole story, and that the journalists who had been caught were the little fish. The authorities should go after the big fish, he said.
The journalists were colluding with communist ruling party SYRIZA, according to the allegations.
The ethics
The ethical consequences of journalists who take money for favourable coverage are very negative for the public trust and protection. How do we trust influential journalists who can be so easily bought? Whose personal financial interest in the story are not disclosed and transparent?
One of the reasons that CyprusNewsReport.com is not controlled by any third-party large business interests or political parties is because it’s so easy for them to force the reporters into turning a blind eye to any abuses for which they’re responsible.
Our revenues come from advertisers or bloggers who subscribe to our transparent promotion package and self-publishing platform. Our news is written by experienced journalists who have to present the facts. If they present their opinion, it must be clearly marked as such and not disguised as an unbiased report.
We publish human rights and political abuse of power stories other media outlets are reluctant to because we’re independent.
The reason for this approach is to ensure that our publication is trusted and that it can publish articles and bring into the light and public debate any and all serious public interest issues. We also seek to empower the public by offering them a stronger voice in the media through CNR News Club.
Everything is done transparently, and this is the key to building credibility.
Journalistic ethics
The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) supports a code of ethics for journalists, the top two of which are.
- Journalists must take responsibility for the accuracy of their work and advocacy or opinion must be clearly labelled. You need evidence and a reliable source, preferably two, before you hit the Publish button. In other words, throwing around sensationalist accusations and mud because you’re on some politician’s payroll is the opposite of a responsible journalist. Nobody trusts a liar when it comes to the public good.
- Journalists must never distort facts or context, meaning that they should let the readers make up their own minds and simply present the accurate facts within their accurate context. If a journalist wants to go into politics, they should do so, but it’s a conflict of interest if they actively promote a politician or other entity that benefits them by smearing their opponent or competition.
If these media figures are found guilty - the evidence against them is damning because their phones were tapped as they were threatening people - then they deserve to go to jail for abusing the public’s trust and for abusing their power.
The damage to the media’s credibility can’t be measured, but it can certainly be qualified; the public trusts the media to tell them the truth through substantiated facts and good-quality sources. By betraying the public’s trust, these bad seeds are spreading doubts about every good journalist who does check their facts and provide accurate news.
Photo: protothema.gr
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