The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has urged journalists and media practitioners across the country take a second look at the power they wield, and the responsibility they owe society, with a view to ensuring that they do not sacrifice integrity and the future of our societies for today’s headline or breaking news.
According to President Akufo-Addo, media owners in-particular must invest continuously in building the capacity of their staff.
“The media has immeasurable power to build up the confidence and values of our society and its institutions, and, therefore, ought to be assisted in being on top of its game at all times,” he added.
President Akufo-Addo made this known on Friday, 3rd August, 2018, when he spoke at the 12th congregation ceremony of the Ghana Institute of Journalism.
Stressing the importance of the media to the political, social and economic architecture of the country, the President noted that, like many other good things, the work of the media has its own associated risks and inherent challenges, especially in this age of social media.
With the first challenge being the risk of deliberate misinformation campaigns by some elements in the democratic space, President Akufo-Addo indicated that this is a major threat to the integrity of the news world.
“It is not something to be left only to regulators to deal with. It is something that the whole world of media practitioners, including you members of the graduating class, must resolutely confront, and assist the society to identify and eliminate,” he said.
The need for training, critical engagement by society with the media, self-regulation, and insistence on media ethics and journalistic standards by media houses, practitioners and their organizations, he added, is the way of addressing the current shortcomings and ills of the media landscape.
The second risk, President Akufo-Addo, indicated is that of inadvertent misinformation, that is sometimes published by mainstream media.
“This happens when there is a little twist of facts often to get the best headline, or a publication of the unverified claim in the haste to be first in breaking the news,” he said.
President Akufo-Addo continued, “The worrying trend is that, in many cases, even after the public has been misinformed, and the true facts are later made known, mainstream media often chickens out of an honest open acknowledgement that ‘we were wrong’. The choice is often to sweep it under the carpet, and move on to the next big story.”
The President encouraged media owners, in particular, to invest continuously in building the capacity of their staff, as the media has immeasurable power to build up the confidence and values of society and its institutions.
He reiterated Government’s commitment towards empowering the citizen, media and civil society, and assured that the Right to Information Bill, which is in Parliament, will be passed.
President Akufo-Addo assured GIJ of Government’s commitment towards the development of the infrastructural capacity of the institution, a move, he said, would help in providing space for the increased student population who, in the next couple of years, will be seeking admission to this institution, as a result of the Free Senior High School policy.
“An initial, modest amount of GH¢5 million has been allocated to GIJ in the 2018 budget, and the least I can do is to make sure that GETFund releases this money to you as soon as possible to help complete the first of many lecture hall complexes and offices here,” he said.
To members of the graduating class, President Akufo-Addo urged them to “be the generation of Ghanaian media practitioners that refuses to be either victim or pawn, and accepts to travel down the path of genuine popular enlightenment, which represents the strongest guarantee of our national independence and sovereignty. Freedom of expression, encompassing media freedom, is a critical element of that journey, which you must help guard jealously at all times.”
Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana
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Nana tell that to the unco.u.th captain smart who is always in a haste to run people down with his unfounded ***barred word*** of allegations. I bet him to try and go after Kennedy Agyapong and the whole world will know who his paymasters are. He’s so Shady and can’t be trusted
the energy minister we were told bribed his way to the office he occupies, what do ghanaians expect from him? he has to recoup his money spend just like the president selling family properties to win power as told by former gfa president anas # 12 video. if you grow corn you harvest corn you dont harvest crocodile because the word begins with the letter C. ghanaians should judge for themselves l want to know which party / administration is more corrupt is it npp or ndc. lets see and hear more positives instead of negatives because we are tired of excuses
attention , the whole ghana must give nana addo 60 percent to make ghana like malasia, see, nana has given free education, train from accra to bolga, train all over ghana, job is coming for all the youths of ghana, all parents will be happy , all university students will have free education.nana will make all schools free in ghana by 2020, from nursery to university, from gh p note, all ghana people must give mahama and n,d,c 10% come 2020 for them to stay in opposition for 100 years and suffer and see what is suffering
Wonders they say shall never end. Today Nana Akofu AAddo then opposition leader now president is advising Journalists not to brake fake news. This man is the worse offender of what he is advising journalists not to do because he can't stand the heat. My brothers and sisters in the journalism industry,please kindly do your job according to the rules set up by your profession. You are not serving any individual but rather we the public.More fire.
I saw a video and i was disgruntled. Nana addo's body guard uppercutting a sympathizer who wields no gun to the floor. Nana addo was eating with this same people before he gained power, today he has instructed his bodyguard to push away his supporter. Wonders may never end.
This man is fast establishing himas the African Donald Trump. Only one and half years in office you are beginning to indirectly accusing journalists of fake news. Ghana is for all Ghanaians and journalists will do their work devoid of favoritism. If you think all journalists will behave like kweku baako and sing your praises you are joking.
IF YOU RULED WELL, NO ONE WILL COMPLAIN. YOU ARE MESSING UP. YOU ARE NOT FULFILLING PROMISES. DONT ANNOY GHANAIANS. WE ARE NOT STUPPPPID
YOU DID ONLY ONE PRESS CONFERENCE AND COULD NOT ANSWER QUESTIONS. YOU ARE NOW CRYING ABOUT UNVERIFIED NEWS. MASSA. IF YOU CANNOT TAKE THE FIRE WHY DID YOU GO FOR THE JOB? DONT ANNOY ME TODAY KORAAAAA. YOU THIS SHORT OLD MAN
WHEN IT WAS AGAINST YOUR RIVALS, U WERE HAPPY. NOW THAT IT IS AGAINST U, U ARE CRYING. U HAVENT SEEN ANYTHING YET. MR SHOWBOY PREZ
Nana Addo must know that he is on the Highest Seat of the Land and cannot treat it anyhow. On what grounds did he invite that Pr0sti2ute called Wendy Shay to the Jubilee House? As what? That is what you get when you surround yourself with Curupt F0O0O0LS with No Brains like Asenso and Samuel Jinapo. There must be some dignity attached to the Seat.