Media 'must reform to ensure quality journalism'

[Lite Beer]

Media 'must reform to ensure quality journalism'
THE SUNDAY NATION

BANGKOK: -- THE MASS media must reform to ensure quality journalism and the upholding of professional ethics amidst greater business pressure, the proliferation of new media and the growth of digital television stations, a symposium organised by the Thai Broadcast Journalists Association was told yesterday.

Thepchai Yong, TBJA president and Nation Multimedia Group editor-in-chief, said media professionals should come up with clear and concrete ethical guidelines in the face of growing public pressure for quality journalism as expressed through social media.

"If Thai newspapers or television [stations] announce ethics mechanisms and accept complaints lodge by the public today and allow |outsiders to have a role in scrutinising it, this would lead to credibility," he said.

"However, no such mechanism exists today while there are people who are trying to push for media regulation laws and the media must think whether this is acceptable or not." Thepchai cited a recent example in which many media outlets reported that the identity of the Erawan Shrine bomber was known but that was not the case, and no one seems to know how the media outlets got the same news.

Euajit Virojtrairat, director of the Media Monitor project, said the influence of the state over the media was still prevalent and as such achieving media reform was difficult.

She cited radio as an example of that fact due to virtually all stations renting airtime from the state.

She added that media organisations should seek to explain the context of conflicts in society instead of dramatising conflicting parties.

Vasant Paileeklee, former vice chair of the National Reform Council's committee on media and IT reform, said fierce competition and profit making meant the media today did not really care what impact their news had on society.

He urged media organisations not to put too much stress on making profits at the cost of society. He warned that without real reform, the public would continue to be fed sensationalised news.

Vasant added that in the past a rookie reporter would be trained in-house for three months before being allowed to report in the field.

Today, Vasant said, many reporters wanted to become TV news celebrities and it was up to universities to impart mass communications students the right DNA.

Pirongrong Ramasoota, assistant professor of the Communication Arts Faculty at Chulalongkorn University, admitted there were problems in training mass communication students, as many wanted to simply become famous instead of being a professional journalist.

This, Pirongrong said, was due to the relatively low wages for reporters and the high cost of becoming a successful journalist.

Many of her students, she said, detested the bureaucratic system in many news organisations.

Sumet Somkanae, chairman of Central Media Union of Thailand, said the explosion of digital televisions meant there was a shortage of qualified professionals, leading to substandard reporting and the stress for speed over credibility.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/Media-must-reform-to-ensure-quality-journalism-30269625.html

-- The Nation 2015-09-27

[Somtamnication]

No reform with the men in green in power. Just sayin'

Well, not the reform YOU want, Mr. Nation guy with the long journalistic association thingy.

[Reigntax]

No, the media can privide quality reporting when the government starts providing quality results. Until then the media will just have to continue reporting the same old stuff ups, corrupion, incompetence, government mishandlings and military rhetoric.

[jerojero]

Ethics in the media. Has to start with Government and a free Press.

[tomross46]

All media has an owner, and the owner has an agenda. The bottom line is the more important, than the truth, if the media has high ratings then it has a higher profit. Many will tell the audience " We give you the information you need to know", weather it is true or not has no meaning.

[worgeordie]

Some real investigative journalists would be welcome,

there would be a lot of work for them,but I suspect it

would be a very dangerous job.

regards Worgeordie

[62strat]

The reforming of the media is underway....North Korean Model: news that suits 'The One' !!!

Edited September 27, 2015 by 62strat

[Thailand]

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/Zuckerberg-Gates-make-bid-for-universal-Internet-a-30269631.html

[Oziex1]

Get Rupert to help he knows a thing or two about quality journalism.

Any natural Thai girls qualify for page 3.

[Toknarok]

Meanwhile the Junta is contemplating erecting a "Firewall' which could well restrict access to any media, whether it be reformed or not.

[dageurreotype]

All media has an owner, and the owner has an agenda. The bottom line is the more important, than the truth, if the media has high ratings then it has a higher profit. Many will tell the audience " We give you the information you need to know", weather it is true or not has no meaning.

Rupert Murdoch?

[jaywalker]

The news will be far less entertaining if they do that.

I got a good chuckle out of the recent "Slave Fish" headline.

[bamnutsak]

Yes, it's the media's "fault". Welcome to upside-down world.

[Chang_paarp]

Need to change the libel laws to allow for quality journalism to develop, then ethics need to imbue into the society.

Oh and some editors with balls to take on the amart.

[Beng]

Meanwhile the Junta is contemplating erecting a "Firewall' which could well restrict access to any media, whether it be reformed or not.

Yes, looks like they want to allow only government approved sites in the future. This is another bad joke of the nanny leaders.

Say bye bye to the quality tourists.

[englishoak]

This is so going to end in tears.

One reform................. free the press and free the people to choose their own fate.

[Beng]

Yes, it's the media's "fault". Welcome to upside-down world.

Exactly, rather than following the way things are done in developed countries, they do the opposite. Logic is not existing among the people who run the country.

[seajae]

lets be honest the thai media is simply pathetic in most cases as they will not investigate nor confirm the truth of what they say/print, they simply put out whatever they think will gain them a bigger audience. The so called journalists simply make up their own stories rather then write the truth then we have the red and yellow groups that run their own media that simply tell everyone their version of the story, screw the truth behind it, they simply want to get as many supporters following their lies as possible. What this country needs is a code of ethics that has to be followed by all media groups, no more bullsh*t story lines and un investigated reports, they should be made to print only the truth, no made up or biased crap as well as investigating stories fully before printing them. Maybe then we will see the thai journalists getting some recognition but at the moment they write like school kids, very badly.

[NOC]

'She added that media organisations should seek to explain the context of conflicts in society instead of dramatising conflicting parties'.

The day that I let some twit from a turd-rate rag like the Nation do my thinking for me, is the day the world ends.

[NOC]

Yes, it's the media's "fault". Welcome to upside-down world.

For many, it's a wag-the-dog world. The media is the tail.

Edited September 27, 2015 by NOC

[Bob12345]

Do they realize that better journalists will ask questions instead of swallowing any BS you are trying to serve them?

Now think again if you really want this changed, or will it result in more banana peels flying around or execution of journalists?

[retarius]

What exactly does 'quality journalism' mean? I'm guessing it means journalism which isn;t critical of the Junta

[manhood]

Investigating journalism is the key for high qualified journalists and a free press guranteed by the government: not one of this exccist and not even learned anywhere....

So never ever you will have qualified media news here in Thailand; better get your information abroad as long it's possible and the government not close all the connections to free flow of information: Its on the way!

[sawadee1947]

quality journalism is repeating and following PM's words.....I remember there was something similar in "3rd Reich"

[tuanku]

As long as you can face prosecution for telling the truth about people in high places, it will be hard to report worthwhile news. The English language media don't do too bad with their editorials considering the constraints on them. The hard news is a different matter with very little depth to the stories. A fair amount of what but not much why or how and sometimes important who's are also not part of the story. You could never, ever imagine a Thai news organisation pulling off something like the Associated Press scoop on slavery for instance, although local reporters were almost certainly part of that investigation, Thai owned media would probably not want to go there.

Can you imagine BBC's "Hard talk" on channel 7?

[Wilsonandson]

I don't want the news when I turn on the morning breakfast show on channel 3. I want America's funniest animals instead and America's funniest toddlers. This helps me go to work with peace of mind knowing things are okay in the world.

[ratcatcher]

“If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed.” Mark Twain

[chainarong]

No, the media can privide quality reporting when the government starts providing quality results. Until then the media will just have to continue reporting the same old stuff ups, corrupion, incompetence, government mishandlings and military rhetoric.

Rather harsh there Reigntax but spot on.

[chainarong]

“If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed.” Mark Twain

good quote Mark

[EnglishJohn]

I think some of the lower IQ TVF members are unable to see past the end of their nose.

Why do you relate everything to the Junta ? - who are running a tight ship with the purpose of stopping anyone inciting red-shirts to do what they usually do : go out and murder or intimidate to get what they want.

The Junta will be gone soon. Might be next year or maybe the year after, but have no doubt they will be gone. Then everything will go back how it was.

And after reading the English Thai press during the last protests whilst also following it on social media, I have to say that the media here is an utter disgrace. The corruption and cronyism clearly extends through their ranks as much as it does with the politicians.

Those that dared to report some truth which a certain group didn't like usually got grenades on their gateposts or ping-pong bombs in their lobby. Or a firebomb on the front drive. And a tomato police farce which never arrested anybody.

If they want respect, they have to start earning it. Maybe if the grenades can be stopped by other reforms, they might dare to actually start doing some investigative journalism. That would put the cat among the dirty pigeons.