The importance of an independent media is not reinforced enough. Not only is it a key factor in any fully functioning democracy, it also holds governments and those in power accountable for their actions. Over the last few years, with the rise of independent journalism came an increase in the level of attacks against journalists. From crackdowns on press freedom, to the ongoing threats against journalists themselves.
Between 2016 and the end of 2021, UNESCO recorded “the killings of 455 journalists, who either died for their work or while on the job. At the same time, imprisonment of journalists has reached record highs.”
Due to the rise of social media, it has become easier and faster for independent journalists to share information with the world via the use of social media platforms. The simplicity of social media has also seen a rise in citizen journalism, in which your every day consumers are given a platform to share footage of things they have witnessed. This of course undermines a lot of government agendas and mainstream media news reporting, putting their credibility at risk.
While mainstream media has the job of reporting on current events, often it acts as little more than a mouth piece for the government. Meaning all they do is spew their nonsense and propaganda talk back to us. That’s where independent journalists come in, their duty is to the public rather than to those in power. They hold world leaders to account for wrongdoings and impart all necessary information to the public, without withhold information which may damage the public image of any government or billionaire for that matter.
Independent media is free from the influence of government’s and rich people in power, they are able to provide a plethora of different views and persepectives, allowing the public to make well informed decisions. When it comes to reporting on matters of public interest, the natural human response is to feel some sort of emotion, thus total impartiality is impossible and that’s the issue with mainstream media. They claim total impartiality when in reality their bias lies within those in charge, whereas independent media organisations disclose their agendas, whether their left wing or ring wing, liberal or conservative, and this transparency enables consumers to see the full picture behind their reports.
Gina Chua, global managing editor at Reuters says “Fact-based and impartial reporting is more important than ever. We’re also continuing to see challenges to a free press worldwide. It is critical that journalists are allowed to report the news in the public interest without fear of harassment or harm, wherever they are.”
As mainstream media is government funded or owned by corporate billionaire, they echo their agendas and are selective in their reporting.
The power of independent media is most prominent when calling out attacks on human rights or rpeorting on matters of conflict. Unfortunately, a free and independent press isn’t easy to come by, according to Freedom House only an estimated 13% of the world’s population has access to a free press.
The most recent example of how much positive change can come from independent journalism has been the genocide taking place in Palestine. Through the power of independent journalists, the illegal war crimes of Israel have been exposed to the world, through social media and other means of reporting.
Without independent media, all the rest of the world would know about Palestine is what Israel wants them to know. Mainstream media outlets have continued to spew Israeli propaganda and vilify the people of Palestine.
Journalists are standing on the front lines of war, putting their lives at risk in order to expose the truth behind Israel’s genocide. Thanks to their risks, we have seen reports of Israel’s illegal bombing of hospitals, schools, refugee centers and the outright killing of civilians.
As of January 16, 2024, it has been reported that 112 journalists have been killed in Gaza. These aren’t accidental deaths either, Israel is strategically trying to silence independent media by killing off the very journalists reporting the information, as this will enable them to again steer the media narrative.
Israel has even gone as far as blocking global media organisations from having independent access to report on what’s happening in Gaza. Thus the responsibility remains at the hands of the Palestinian journalists who have already suffered great losses, from watching over a hundred of their colleagues die, to having to report on the deaths of their own family members.
Israel feels threatened by the power of independent media, just as most power hungry and corrupt nations do. That is the exact reason why we must continue to support independent media and help it thrive.
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