Animosity towards journalists

Reporters Without Borders’ 2018 World Press Freedom Index makes dismal reading.

It is not just in North Korea and a host of other countries where the situation is dire;  press freedom is also deteriorating in many democracies.

The report points to both growing animosity towards journalists, openly encouraged by political leaders, and the efforts of authoritarian regimes to export their vision of journalism to democracies.

The world has taken a turn for the worse. Freedom of the media and freedom of speech underpin democracy and human rights. 

The fact freer places are among  the least corrupt is also no surprise.

Freedoms are difficult to rebuild once undermined or lost.  

Far too few citizens take an interest in these foundations of a free society, even in nations well up the list.

In New Zealand, reasonably placed at number eight (up from 13 in 2017),  insufficient heed is  paid to these bedrock principles.  

When, for example, Winston Peters, the deputy prime minister, brought action against two journalists over leaked information, there should have been much more of an outcry.

And when social media maelstroms shut down dissenting views there should be deep concern.  We must retain a plurality of voices and the ability of people to disagree — even when we find views repugnant.

The founders of the United States understood the importance of  freedom of the press, ranking it — in the First Amendment —  alongside freedom of religion, speech, the right of assembly and the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Politicians, even at local levels, will often be irritated — and more — by the media for its errors (both  real and imaginary) and its "bias".  

That is normal and that tension is healthy.

But, some leaders, like United States President Donald Trump, have used suspicion of and antipathy towards the media as a weapon.  He has gone as far as to refer to journalists — just as Soviet dictator Josef Stalin once did —  as enemies of the people.

Reporters Without Borders notes the line separating verbal violence from physical violence is dissolving. 

Philippines President Rodrigo Djuterte not only constantly insults reporters but also said they are not exempt from assassination.  In India, hate speech targets journalists and is fomented and augmented on social media.  Four journalists in each of these countries were shot in cold blood last year.

Meanwhile, in Myanmar, journalists who do not follow the prevailing anti-Muslim line are harassed with verbal violence by Buddhist extremists, encouraging self-censorship.

In Europe, the Czech republic’s president arrived at a media conference with a fake Kalashnikov inscribed with words for journalists and Slovakia’s Prime Minister called journalists "filthy, anti-Slovak prostitutes and idiotic hyenas".

Media freedom thrives in New Zealand, the report says.  But it was not exempt from economic pressure, and pluralism and independence were threatened by moves to concentrate media ownership in ever fewer hands.

There were also political pressures on media, and the press continued to seek changes to make the Official Information Act more effective. 

The Government’s plans to strengthen whistleblower protection was seen as a good example.

The report contains concerns about the Chinese model of state-controlled news and information being exported to other countries, notably Cambodia and Vietnam but also Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.

It is difficult for New Zealanders to do much other than be appalled by the state of global press freedom.  What we can, at least, attempt is to keep our own house in order.  We can try to establish ourselves as a beacon of media freedom, and maybe one day topple Norway from top spot.