Thursday, March 15, 2007
Media Ethics and Credibility
This is the speech made by Charles Fletcher in Kiev at the launch of Business Ukraine, the country's first English-language weekly business magazine, on March 15 2007
It’s great to be back in Kiev – a city I’ve had the privilege to visit and work in over the past ten years.
My first connection with Ukraine came through managing a series of media development projects with the BBC World Service, then Caledonia Media.
That first programme was a series of workshops in various parts of the country; and on occasion, brought young Ukrainian journalists to London to get a feel for the media in the UK.
They were all great to work with. Their questions, their challenging questions! Their opinions and views all kept me busy as we’d leave formal classes behind, then sit and talk into the small hours of the morning about life, the universe and how we’d change the world.
Our world has changed over those years. You’ve had a revolution and a shift to democracy.
In my country, Scotland, we’ve had devolution - and after 300 years, we have our own Parliament again.
It’s an exciting time to be in Scotland.
And it’s an exciting time to be in Ukraine.
The changes and developments over these past ten years – and the past three in particular – have the potential to showcase Ukraine as the place to be to invest and develop.
But in any strong, accountable democracy, there must be an independent, responsible media.
To encourage growth and freedom, there has to be a media that is itself free – and worthy of the trust of the people.
That trust has to be earned through hard work; and retained through even harder understanding of the ethics of reporting and broadcasting.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to tell the truth.
As owners, we have a responsibility to encourage that.
As politicians, we have a responsibility to defend it.
The key to real success in the media is if you can show your audience you are trustworthy and credible.
Do that and they’ll respond warmly to you. They’ll come to rely on you; and yes, they’ll challenge you.
But that will be with a new perspective, one that is built on trust.
Surely, from a straightforward business point of view, it’s more attractive to advertisers to buy space on a trusted magazine; or air-time on a trusted radio or television station.
Telling the truth produces benefits all round: for the reader, listener and viewer; the advertiser; and the company itself.
I’m just back from working on a major project in Nepal where journalists have shown themselves to be amongst the bravest of the brave.
Their country is in a very volatile position, politically, economically and culturally.
Yet journalists across Nepal took the time to analyse and evaluate a code of ethics they believe will eventually produce a stronger, more responsible media.
It will take time – but they have established the principles they are aiming for and are enthusiastic to bring about change.
The democratic credibility of a nation can be reflected in its media. In fact, the democratic credibility of a nation can be reported in its media.
So why do we see such a lack of credibility in some of our media across Central and Eastern Europe?
In Hungary – they blame the politicians.
In Romania – they blame the owners.
In Britain it’s much easier to answer this and in fact any other question – we blame the weather for everything.
The lack of credibility is endemic where journalists and their newspapers or magazines or stations are simply not trusted by the people.
Journalists often tell me they are not free to report as they would like.
I would like them to be free to report responsibly. I would like to see a media that is responsible, free, fair, impartial and honest.
But we all know these words mean nothing if you’re a journalist that is too scared to report the truth … fearing some harm to you or your family … or that you might lose your job.
A few moments ago, Yulia Tymoshenko said that: “Violence, threats and intimidation against journalists should not be tolerated and every case should be prosecuted with the full vigour of the law.”
Absolutely.
Your comments supporting a free media are welcomed. And you have also made it very clear … that if media doesn’t start to clean up its act, then government will step in to do it for them. I hope the industry takes the hint.
If we aspire to live in a democracy, our journalism must be responsible and free. Journalists must be allowed to question and probe and hold politicians and officials accountable for their actions.
And if we are in such a democracy, politicians will have to respect and encourage such an industry.
Government departments in Ukraine are now forbidden from instructing the media how to do its job. That is good, but it needs to be strengthened; and owners need to follow the same line.
A strong, credible and reliable media is part of our social responsibility in helping to develop a healthy democracy.
Perhaps this is the moment to seize the initiative to take a lead in Europe.
This could be the opportunity to establish a set of principles; a new standard of media ethics; and to hold them up as the best industry guidelines across Europe.
When I first started working in Ukraine, I said there would be no overnight change; but change there would be. Over time … and we can see it now. There is more to be done.
Of course, getting there doesn’t come easily: we have to prove our credentials. We need to be able to show that we are being accurate and fair and honest; and admit it when we get it wrong.
It is possible to change our output; but we first need to change our outlook and be clear and convinced – and then convince others – that we can develop a fair, honest, responsible media.
Once we accept that, we need to build credibility through our practices.
It’s an ethos at the core of Business Ukraine.
A new style, a new concept; good for the media; and good for democracy.
charles.fletcher@caledoniamedia.com
© Caledonia Media 2007
This is the speech made by Charles Fletcher in Kiev at the launch of Business Ukraine, the country's first English-language weekly business magazine, on March 15 2007
It’s great to be back in Kiev – a city I’ve had the privilege to visit and work in over the past ten years.
My first connection with Ukraine came through managing a series of media development projects with the BBC World Service, then Caledonia Media.
That first programme was a series of workshops in various parts of the country; and on occasion, brought young Ukrainian journalists to London to get a feel for the media in the UK.
They were all great to work with. Their questions, their challenging questions! Their opinions and views all kept me busy as we’d leave formal classes behind, then sit and talk into the small hours of the morning about life, the universe and how we’d change the world.
Our world has changed over those years. You’ve had a revolution and a shift to democracy.
In my country, Scotland, we’ve had devolution - and after 300 years, we have our own Parliament again.
It’s an exciting time to be in Scotland.
And it’s an exciting time to be in Ukraine.
The changes and developments over these past ten years – and the past three in particular – have the potential to showcase Ukraine as the place to be to invest and develop.
But in any strong, accountable democracy, there must be an independent, responsible media.
To encourage growth and freedom, there has to be a media that is itself free – and worthy of the trust of the people.
That trust has to be earned through hard work; and retained through even harder understanding of the ethics of reporting and broadcasting.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to tell the truth.
As owners, we have a responsibility to encourage that.
As politicians, we have a responsibility to defend it.
The key to real success in the media is if you can show your audience you are trustworthy and credible.
Do that and they’ll respond warmly to you. They’ll come to rely on you; and yes, they’ll challenge you.
But that will be with a new perspective, one that is built on trust.
Surely, from a straightforward business point of view, it’s more attractive to advertisers to buy space on a trusted magazine; or air-time on a trusted radio or television station.
Telling the truth produces benefits all round: for the reader, listener and viewer; the advertiser; and the company itself.
I’m just back from working on a major project in Nepal where journalists have shown themselves to be amongst the bravest of the brave.
Their country is in a very volatile position, politically, economically and culturally.
Yet journalists across Nepal took the time to analyse and evaluate a code of ethics they believe will eventually produce a stronger, more responsible media.
It will take time – but they have established the principles they are aiming for and are enthusiastic to bring about change.
The democratic credibility of a nation can be reflected in its media. In fact, the democratic credibility of a nation can be reported in its media.
So why do we see such a lack of credibility in some of our media across Central and Eastern Europe?
In Hungary – they blame the politicians.
In Romania – they blame the owners.
In Britain it’s much easier to answer this and in fact any other question – we blame the weather for everything.
The lack of credibility is endemic where journalists and their newspapers or magazines or stations are simply not trusted by the people.
Journalists often tell me they are not free to report as they would like.
I would like them to be free to report responsibly. I would like to see a media that is responsible, free, fair, impartial and honest.
But we all know these words mean nothing if you’re a journalist that is too scared to report the truth … fearing some harm to you or your family … or that you might lose your job.
A few moments ago, Yulia Tymoshenko said that: “Violence, threats and intimidation against journalists should not be tolerated and every case should be prosecuted with the full vigour of the law.”
Absolutely.
Your comments supporting a free media are welcomed. And you have also made it very clear … that if media doesn’t start to clean up its act, then government will step in to do it for them. I hope the industry takes the hint.
If we aspire to live in a democracy, our journalism must be responsible and free. Journalists must be allowed to question and probe and hold politicians and officials accountable for their actions.
And if we are in such a democracy, politicians will have to respect and encourage such an industry.
Government departments in Ukraine are now forbidden from instructing the media how to do its job. That is good, but it needs to be strengthened; and owners need to follow the same line.
A strong, credible and reliable media is part of our social responsibility in helping to develop a healthy democracy.
Perhaps this is the moment to seize the initiative to take a lead in Europe.
This could be the opportunity to establish a set of principles; a new standard of media ethics; and to hold them up as the best industry guidelines across Europe.
When I first started working in Ukraine, I said there would be no overnight change; but change there would be. Over time … and we can see it now. There is more to be done.
Of course, getting there doesn’t come easily: we have to prove our credentials. We need to be able to show that we are being accurate and fair and honest; and admit it when we get it wrong.
It is possible to change our output; but we first need to change our outlook and be clear and convinced – and then convince others – that we can develop a fair, honest, responsible media.
Once we accept that, we need to build credibility through our practices.
It’s an ethos at the core of Business Ukraine.
A new style, a new concept; good for the media; and good for democracy.
charles.fletcher@caledoniamedia.com
© Caledonia Media 2007
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Super High School Goes Ballistic, Finnie is Fantastic!
The eloquent young Scottish broadcaster, Scott Findlater, is through to the finals of a contest to win a radio show - and thousands of pounds of kit for his school!
But he needs your vote to secure his place on Scotland's Talk 107 station in Edinburgh
Voting opens on March 9 - so please go to www.talk107.co.uk/speakout and Vote for Scott Findlater's programme, Liquid News. It's a one-hour news, current affairs and music magazine
Scott says: “Politicians say they listen to us, but in fact they don’t. I am very concerned that at 17 I can get married, have children, get sent to war and kill someone – but I’m not allowed to vote for the man that sends me to war.”
Speaking on Talk 107, the Head Teacher, Robert Birch, said: “There couldn’t be a better place to spend two-thousand pounds on radio equipment, because the High School is about to become the home for Queensferry’s own 24/7 radio station, Jubilee FM.”
The eloquent young Scottish broadcaster, Scott Findlater, is through to the finals of a contest to win a radio show - and thousands of pounds of kit for his school!
But he needs your vote to secure his place on Scotland's Talk 107 station in Edinburgh
Voting opens on March 9 - so please go to www.talk107.co.uk/speakout and Vote for Scott Findlater's programme, Liquid News. It's a one-hour news, current affairs and music magazine
Scott says: “Politicians say they listen to us, but in fact they don’t. I am very concerned that at 17 I can get married, have children, get sent to war and kill someone – but I’m not allowed to vote for the man that sends me to war.”
Speaking on Talk 107, the Head Teacher, Robert Birch, said: “There couldn’t be a better place to spend two-thousand pounds on radio equipment, because the High School is about to become the home for Queensferry’s own 24/7 radio station, Jubilee FM.”
