On National Press Day, media stakeholders of Nagaland reflect on challenges of print journalism in the face of increasing use of social media platforms
Our Correspondent
Kohima | November 16
In an era of digital age and social media, maintaining credibility and accountability in news has become a major challenge. These journalistic challenges was discussed and deliberated among Naga journalists on the National Press Day, November 16 which was commemorated in Kohima at the IPR Citadel.
Jointly organised by the Kohima Press Club, Dimapur Press Club, Mokokchung Press Club and Directorate of Information and Public Relations, the day was observed on the theme ‘Journalism Ethics and Challenges in Digital era’.
The panelists for the discussion were Dr. Moalemba Jamir (Editor, The Morung Express), Tongpang L. Jamir (Project Coordinator, NSLSA), Michael Yhome (OC Cyber Cell, PHQ) and Yanpvuo Kikon (Founder, The Naga Blog) with Dr. Hovithal Sothu (Deputy Director (Training) ATI) as the Moderator.
With the exponential advancement of technology, Dr. Moalemba viewed that the challenges in journalism has increased drastically. More specifically, the increasing use of social medium platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram has become popular in the context of Nagaland where Whatsapp is becoming a more sought after medium of generating information.
He pointed out that the attention span of users is becoming shorter and the social responsibility and advocacy journalism is also shrinking. And while the Fourth Estate is supposed to be a watchdog of the society, unfortunately it is becoming increasingly a 'lapdog.'
“In the era of a new phenomenon called fake news, it is the moral duty of the journalists to be proactive, to bust myths and to verify news to the readers. In such a scenario, the journalists are confronted with one important question that is whether journalists are building trust and credibility? And how do we respond to such challenge?” viewed Dr. Moalemba.
He asserted that the first duty of the journalist is to communicate news in an objective, representative, balanced and ethical manner within the social-cultural milieu.
Journalism without political, commercial influence
Tongpang L. Jamir meanwhile highlighted legal issues and aspects relating to journalism. When media attempts to be the guardian of the society, the ethical challenges of the guardian comes more strongly, viewed Jamir. While journalism should maintain the highest ethics, the legal expert pointed out that the challenges faced today by journalists are: how to ensure the independence of journalism without political or commercial interference and influence, finding balance in generating profit and ensuring the freedom of press.
Every user in digital era a reporter
Highlighting some of the negative implications of the digital age and social media, Michael Yhome critiqued that every user in the digital era has become a reporter. “While everyone is entitled to their opinions and views, it is important for journalism to produce news and not views. Social media today can influence opinion and manufacture dissent,” said Yhome. Sharing incidences and experiences on the growing cyber crimes in the State, Yhome also advocated the need for a Nagaland Social Media Regulation Act to curb cyber crimes, counter fake news and abuse of social media.
Verifying authenticity
Yanpvuo Kikon shared experiences of starting and managing social media networks/groups where he pointed out that one challenge in social mediums is the growing obsession of posting news first without verifying the authenticity. Regulations need to be placed definitely, viewed Kikon who pointed out that unlike other civilisations and countries where users are responsible, the social set up of Nagas is different and many of the youth are yet to understand the consequences.
Independent, fair and bold media essential: Gov
Greeting the press fraternity of Nagaland on the occasion of the National Press Day 2018, Nagaland Governor PB Acharya said media, both print and electronic, plays a major role in shaping the society and has become a bridge between the government and the citizens. “Be it television, newspapers, website or radio, the consistent coverage by media on each and every issue of the society creates bigger impacts, making it one of the most important professions of these days,” the Governor stated in a press statement. Dwelling on this year’s theme, the Governor acknowledged that social media is a powerful tool to disseminate news because of its ability to reach huge number of people in many parts of the globe. However, he said there should be a mechanism to check the spread of fake news which can be a threat to democracy. The Governor also reminded the press fraternity that independent, fair and bold media is essential for strengthening the democracy. Further he felt that there should be a mechanism for maintaining the standard of newspaper reporting and thereby ensuring that all the guidelines are adhered to by the reporters. There should be a constant review of the quality of reporting and improvement in the guidelines, the Governor stated.
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