Monrovia – “Do we have enough media training in Liberia? Can we say the Peter Quaqua school of Journalism is providing the basic training to young journalists?
Report by Mae Azango [email protected]
Have we asked who are those training these young journalists and where did they get their training?
Young journalists, you have to find role models to learn and take instructions from,” said Lawrence Yealue, program director and trainer at Accountability Lab.
Speaking to many young people on the theme: “The role of media in development” at the fourth power analysis Dialogue held at the Sharks entrainment Center in Monrovia, Yealue stressed the need of media practitioners having the hunger to grow like the past journalists did in Liberia.
“You cannot give to people what you do not have, so you have to be hungry to grow.”
“Why do you think journalists of the past were far better than many journalists today? Because they were hungry to grow in the field of journalism and became better journalists,” Yealue added.
Speaking about bribery in the media, Yealue said many journalists wanted to tell the story, but receiving bribes or “Kato” (accepting gifts) prevent many journalists from telling the real story.
“The media is the best instrument of change, but once you accept Kato from politicians, they tend to control your pen from telling the right story.
“The government is the bigger giver of kato because they are encouraging corruption by throwing lots of money to media houses and say they are helping to equip the media, but that is corruption,” he said.
Yealue then spoke about social media and the negative image of Liberia that are posted by Liberians.
“When you go on my Facebook page, you will see all the good things I say about Liberia because Liberia is my country, so I have to make it look good.
But many Liberians post bad things about Liberia, and that makes the country to look bad, which is wrong.
Because whatever negative thing you put out there about your country, is how people will see your country,” said Yealue.
Last, Yealue spoke on hate messages carried on in the media, where one radio station would attack another on radio talk shows, which is not right because it create hatred among the citizenry.
Also speaking Jefferson Krua, Managing Editor of Bush Chicken Newspaper, who also spoke on bribery or Kato in the media.
“Receiving kato from people is wrong, because you are control by the person.
Do you know the government and NGOs also give bribery to journalists, but yet the Minister of Information, Eugene Negbe blamed the media for the weak media system in the country when in fact they are the cause of some of the problems the media is facing,” said Krua.
He blamed the Press Union of Liberia (PUL) for not setting the standard take actions on media outlets that steal other newspapers stories and publish it as their own.
“Piracy is a crime; Women Voices stole four of our articles and published them without giving us the credit. I reported to the PUL, which the President promised to investigate and get back to me but up till now, he has not,” says Krua.
Zubin Cooper of Omuahtee African Media spoke on the theme: “Media Accountability and the Impact of hate messages on society.”
“Accountability holds the media accountable to the Society.
Something my two colleagues did not mention was how hate messages carried on the radio station that caused the genocide in Rwanda and destroyed the lives of citizens.
So as we go to Elections in 2017, let media houses stop sending hate messages in order to avoid problem among the citizens.”
Cooper said the media could not be accountable to society if many of the newspapers and radio stations are owned by opposition politicians who were pushing their own agendas.
“What do you expect to hear from an opposition news outlet? That news outlet will criticize everything done by the government in power to push their agenda.”
Cooper also spoke about how the social media is responsible for the indecent dress code of the youth in Liberia.