Media Integrity

It’s time for a media rant.

Once a journalist many years ago, I have viewed the degrading standards of the media over the decades with much distaste. More and more our news centres are becoming "American-ised" - that is, flimsy, opinionated and superficial. 

With the advent  of 24 hour news networks, the need to speculate, anticipate and add commentary has become common place, and more and more often we are subjected to opinions and sound-bites, rather than fact-reporting and intelligent, in-depth looks at world and local affairs.

Then there's the copy/paste mentality of online news. Online news media - in the rush to get their stories out - often merely quote other news sources, who have invariably quoted other news sources, and no one actually takes the time to verify the facts for themselves.

This is particularly disturbing for online media, as once something incorrect is published online, it is there forever, searchable out of its context at a time beyond its currency. The historical facts forever distorted.

And that’s not to mention the poor editing standards.

Then there is the increasing power media tends to have in politics, leaning one way or another, and unleashing opinions and sensationalistic views and cherry-picked arguments disguised as news to an easily-lead readership. The Australian and The Gold Coast Bulletin are good examples of this.

Then there are the sensationalistic headlines that often have nothing to do with the true content of the story they announce.

And that’s just in Australia - not even touching on the recent Murdoch News International scandal! But who amongst us was surprised that journalism would stoop that low? For many years now I have turned to Murdoch’s American Fox News network to get my comedy fix.

Yes, I find Fox News hilarious! Especially that over-bearing and bullying O’Reilly, who can not let an opposing opinion see light. Fair and Balanced is the Fox News catch-cry. LOL. And they say it with a straight face, while single-handedly trying to get the Republicans back into power. Or at least destroy the Democrats. Amazing!

Yes, standards of journalism are slipping more and more all the time. Maybe it’s not the pollies we have to keep honest any more, it’s the media! Read with caution, I say!

I tend to stick only to the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), but even they have been a little disappointing at times since the advent of 24 hour news channels. Thank goodness for Media Watch. We need more outlets prepared to name and shame those media outlets that continually and deliberately resort to poor quality - and biased – news and current affairs reporting.

And if you haven’t found it, try watching the APAC channel sometime (Australian Public Affairs Channel). It can be illuminating to hear a full interview with a politician, and then compare it to a station-edited version. A sentence taken out of context can make a big difference to the meaning.

So keep your opinions to yourself, journalists. Just report the facts, and let your audience form their own opinions. You are in a privileged role with public responsibilities and you should be accountable.

Remember the journo Code of Ethics? Yes, there is one, and the first code states; Report and interpret honestly, striving for accuracy, fairness and disclosure of all essential facts.  Do not suppress relevant available facts, or give distorting emphasis.  Do your utmost to give a fair opportunity for reply.

There are eleven more points in the code, all asking for honesty, fairness, independence and respect for the rights of others. It’s time we all expected more from our media, and it’s time we let them know!

Media watch

APAC

Bloody Boat People

The issue of refugees and ‘boat people’ is a hot topic in Australia at the moment. Mostly around politics. 

Soft policies on border protection ensure the number of ‘illegal boat-people’ to our shore increases (right Tony?). Off-shore mandatory detention is not working (Right Bob?). The so-called ‘Malaysia solution’ was voted down in parliament by the Greens and the Liberals, both for different reasons. The debate rages on about what to do to STOP ALL THESE BOATS coming to our shores.

Bloody queue-jumpers! Terrorists! Come to our shores to take our jobs, get handouts from the government, and live it up on our tax payer dollars! Right? Well, that’s what Today Tonight says!
 
So here are some points that might give you a different perspective;  

• In 2008, 42 million people were forcibly displaced from their homes worldwide. 
• Australia receives just 0.57% of all asylum claims worldwide. 
• Approximately 2000 boat people sought asylum in Australia in 2009. This compares to 50,000 people that over-stay their visas each year.  
• Despite a recent increase, Australia still has far fewer asylum seekers now than in 2001 (more than 5500 by boat) or in 2002 (about 3000). 
• Australia comes in 32nd out of 71 countries resettling refugees – slightly behind Kazakhstan, Guinea, and Djibouti. 
• Developing countries host 80% of the world’s refugees.  
• From 2007 to 2008 asylum seeker numbers rose by 
• 122% in Italy  
• 121% in Norway 
• 89% in the Netherlands 
• 70% in Turkey 
• 53% in Switzerland 
• 30% in Canada 
• 20% in France 
• 19% in Australia

I am so bloody sick of hearing Liberal and Labor (and Today Tonight) use these poor souls as a political (ratings) football, trying to score points off the electorate (viewers) with this highly emotive topic. 
 
One thing they all seem to be forgetting in the whole debate is that we are talking about HUMAN BEINGS. And for the most part, we are talking about human beings that have already been highly traumatised, that are fleeing abhorrent conditions, that are using all their resources and risking their lives, and those of their families, in the hopes they can live a life where they are not terrorised daily. ANY WHERE. ANY WAY.
 
Then if they make it here, we put them in prison, sometimes for many years – women and children - and we separate families, and we traumatise them some more - mentally abuse them - all in the name of border security (keeping the electorate happy). 
 
Just last week a young Sri Lankan man in Sydney's Villawood detention centre committed suicide by taking poison, after been locked up for over two years. This was despite having been recognised as a genuine refugee for some time. A number of unsuccessful approaches had been made to the Department of Immigration for him to be released into community detention, and his application for permission to attend a Hindu festival had just been rejected. 
 
We know that people who remain in immigration detention for long periods become mentally ill; six refugees have committed suicide in detention centres since September last year. How many more deaths are we going to allow before our political leaders stop spouting about offshore processing and deterrence of boat people, and turn their minds to putting an end to this mindset?
 
People who come by boat are not ‘illegals’. Under international and Australian law an asylum seeker has legal status. By ratifying the Refugee Convention of 1954, Australia gave any person with a well founded fear of persecution the right to request protection in Australia – regardless of whether or not their legal travel documents are in order. 
 
As well, customary international law prohibits all countries from sending asylum seekers back into danger – known under the legal term “refoulement” – regardless of whether that country has signed the Refugee Convention.
 
And as for terrorists arriving on the boats, there is no evidence for this. All asylum seekers are subject to rigorous security checks while they are held in detention. Anyone who has been charged with terror related activities was either born in Australia, or arrived on a plane with a valid visa.
 
So Australia, let’s drop the red-neck act, man-up, and start treating these people like humans who are in need of some help. Let’s change our attitudes, show our altruism, start pulling our weight on the international stage and do our fair share. 
 
After all, two thousand persecuted people arriving in leaky boat each year is not a threat to our security. These are the same people that we donated millions to during international disasters such as the Boxing Day tsunami, famines and earthquakes, and that we support through NGOs like The Red Cross and World Vision every day.
 
If this hasn’t convinced you, then ask yourself: “What would I do if I couldn’t feed my family, if my wife was under threat of rape each day, if my husband was under threat of murder, if my children could be dragged off at will, never to be seen again? What would I do to protect them? Would I flee any way I could?”
 
Check out www.boat-people.org for more info. Even better – call or email your local Federal MP and tell them what you think.