International Day Media Ethics Mishal in Media

International Media Ethics Day observed need for constructive journalism in Pakistan

International Media Ethics Day observed need for constructive journalism in Pakistan.

Panelists encouraged journalism in public interest highlighting the socio-economic needs of the society.


International Media Ethics Day observed need for constructive journalism in Pakistan.Islamabad, PK – 20 September 2013 – Mishal Pakistan in collaboration with Coalition for Ethical Journalism and the Center for International Media Ethics, hosted the 3rd International Media Ethics Day (IMED) in Pakistan. IMED was organized, jointly with renowned journalists, academicians and students of different journalism institutions.

“Our challenges are not only complicated but are also complex in nature, therefore the work of the journalistic community demands proactive approach towards creating ethical content in public interest” said Puruesh Chaudhary, CIME Ambassador to Pakistan.
The International Media Ethics Day is celebrated in 27 different locations globally; more than 500 participants will join this year’s debate. Pakistan is hosting six events; one in each in Lahore, Bahawalpur, Islamabad, Lodhran and two in Karachi.

“Today is a good news day for journalists and media leaders,” said Aidan White, London-based Director of the Ethical Journalism Network joined via skype. “The highest priority for media today is to produce journalism of quality. Today we celebrate the importance of truth, humanity and responsibility in the way we communicate and tell our stories. Our ethics are the key to peace, democracy and tolerance and that’s what we fight for every day of the year”.

Speaking on the occasion The Danish Ambassador to Pakistan, Jesper Sorensen informed the gathering about the Danish International Development Agency’s contribution for an open and pluralistic media in Pakistan. He said, “among the key priority areas in assistance are the promotion of freedom of expression, democracy and respect for human right”.

In an Interactive session, Charmaine Anderson from Internews Network, Chairman media sciences department at IIU Dr. Zafar Iqbal, senior journalists Mubashar Zaidi from DAWN News and media development consultant Afia Salam discussed the media’s role in creating informed public opinion and said that professionalism in media and the credibility of content and journalists is becoming one of the most interesting debates in the country. They shared that this recent trend is the onset of the masses questioning sensationalism as one of the leading factors for the media industry in India and Pakistan, both failing to address the realities relevant to the society.

The negative portrayal of societal morality or conversion of an individual’s belief system incites hatred and despondency among different ethno-cultural communities.

Senior Journalists, Osama Bin Javaid from Aljazeera , Taha Siddiqui from New York Times, Umber Shamsi mfrom BBC Urdu and Mahvish Ahmed from Christian Science Monitor in a panel discussion discussed the challenges and opportunities for Pakistani workforce working with the international media organizations.

Mishal Pakistan is the partner institute of the Center for International Media Ethics and Global Competitiveness and Benchmarking Networks, World Economic Forum. Mishal assists the forum in creating the soft-data on Pakistan, identifying Pakistan’s competitiveness challenges. Mishal has also launched Pakistan’s first journalism awards on the framework designed jointly with the Center for International Media Ethics and UNESCO’s Media Development Indicators.

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