ad 1

Thursday, December 16, 2010

arap sang is innocent until proven otherwise

The man in question, Joshua arap Sang, an FM radio Presenter, is said to have used his morning programme to incite people to attack supporters of one of the two main political parties.

But the fact that ICC's Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo singled out a media practitioner is an ominous sign that journalists can and should bear responsibility for their actions, if they go against the spirit of serving the public's interest.

There is no denying the fact that many more journalists remain culpable, guilty of helping to fan the mayhem that characterised Kenya's darkest moments.

It is highly probable that Joshua is just being used to represent the indictment of the entire media in Kenya, with regards to the post poll chaos.

If the KASS FM Presenter gets convicted, nay, even before his case passes through ICC's Pre-trial chamber and summons are issued, journalists should take heed and see it as a major wake up call.

You just don't use your privileged position and ability to influence a mass audience, to propagate ulterior motives, contrary to acceptable media ethics.

And more importantly perhaps, there is no hiding behind or in front of the microphone, camera or keyboard and claiming it is a journalist's duty to just report or provide an account of what is happening.

If it borders on enhancing impunity, then journalists too are not immune from bearing responsibility.

No comments:

Post a Comment