Don�t abuse power of persuasion, PHK tells media
Staff Writer | Thursday June 19, 2014 16:47
“As popular faith in democratic politics will be compromised by dishonest governance, the credibility of any free media will likewise suffer if it casts aside professional values such as truthfulness and ethics, accuracy, balance and fairness, while indulging in sensationalism and malicious insult,” he told media editors yesterday when opening a CEDA Business Reporting workshop.
Citing examples of unethical reporting, the Vice President noted an “incoherence between headlines and the substantive story,” as well as the existence of unfair innuendo in some reportage. “Some people avoid interviews to avoid being quoted out of context,” he said.
“Rebuttals and corrections (should) be given some semblance of prominence and reader-friendly font.” The VP said the media played a critical role in the economy, being responsible for creating demand through marketing of goods and services. “In the end, a country that cannot effectively communicate its own interests is, in this era or epoch of information age, an endangered country (or an) endangered species,” he said.