World Press Freedom Day: Journalists must be shown more respect, IĠM says

The Institute of Maltese Journalists (IĠM) is calling for a concerted effort for journalists to be shown more respect in their line of work.

On World Press Freedom Day, IĠM highlighted challenges faced by journalists in Malta since the COVID-19 outbreak, while noting the importance of journalism in the face of misinformation.

"As the fourth pillar of any democracy, independent, fact-based and reliable journalism is something that any country depends on. Journalists are aware that their job comes with its own dangers. Journalists will not shy away from these challenges but the least they expect is to have authorities respect the work they do," the institute stated.

IĠM went on to note the harassment faced by women journalists on social media, "which is not only demeaning but also serves as a disincentive for young people to join the profession".

"World Press Freedom Day is an opportunity to support and applaud journalists in providing the public with reliable, quality information. This is something that has not only become important in the face of constant misinformation fomented through social media channels but has become much more difficult since the COVID-19 outbreak. The IĠM cannot accept any attempts to use the pandemic to adopt restrictions on press freedom or in any way silence debate," the institute said.

These issues were discussed with President George Vella at a recent courtesy visit to San Anton Palace. The new IĠM council expressed belief that press freedom must not be restricted, and that the State is duty-bound to protect journalists from harassment, threats or censorship.

According to IĠM, President Vella reiterated the importance of this sector as a pillar of an open and democratic society, and insisted that journalists play a key role in reducing the divisions and achieving national unity.

IĠM also noted that media outlets experienced losses as a result of the pandemic and expressed an interest in initiating a discussion on having financial assistance extended to all media houses on an annual basis.

"Many media outlets in Malta have faced immeasurable losses during the pandemic. Although the government’s help through the COVID wage supplement and the one-time media grant helped lessen the impact, journalists, like many other professions, had to take pay cuts while expected to work more to continue providing accurate information for their readers or televiewers," the IĠM said.

PN flags threats to media freedom

In a statement to mark World Press Freedom Day, the Nationalist Party said this was an opportunity to recognise the contributions of the media and investigative journalists in publishing stories of national importance. However, the party also acknowledged that journalists face several challenges in their line of work.

Among the issues that the PN flagged are the number of Freedom of Information requests that are denied by government, SLAPP threats, economic threats, and the lack of access to procedures that could safeguard journalists' security.

The PN extended an invitation to government to work with them to secure several aspects, including better access to information, legal protection for journalists, fact-checking measures, and a system that addresses the economic challenges faced by media houses, especially those challenges brought upon by the wider move to digital media.