Attention Nepali media!

The press undoubtedly is a dynamic agent of change and remains integral to a nation's development and that it can use its "media power" to destructive ends by pandering to narrow individualism and disrupting social cohesion, or it can concurrently serve to accelerate the achievement of the national objectives. The Nepali media must now begin soul searching and decide for themselves as to which category it fits into the above mentioned two sets of different objectives.

At a national level media seminar organized by this weekly last week participants at the seminar vehemently criticized the role being played by the Nepali media in supporting the establishment in achieving good governance in the country. Participants including the diplomats based in Kathmandu indirectly hinted the Nepali media that it had not been that much supportive of the government in so far as promotion of good governance in the nation was concerned. Implied in their message was that the Nepali media kept itself engaged in petty political matters and that its reporting on certain topics, for example, corruption were far from being satisfactory in the sense that the Nepali media more often than not forget to go deep into the matters related to the corruption. In their opinion, the needed follow up, verification and deep investigation were the three things that the Nepali media prefer to ignore. Obviously with no accuracy and balance the credibility of the media gets lost. These are the suggestions, which apparently were meant for us in this profession.

However, the media sector too appeared divided on its own role. While a section maintained that the Nepali media had been playing its due role and been suggesting the establishment to do this or do that in order to provide good governance to the lay men, the other section opined that the role of the Nepali media had not been up to the mark. However, the fact is that only a small group of Nepali media men fall under the former category whose voices go in effect unheard in the existing political milieu for obvious reasons. On the other hand, the second category comprised of such media men who were more commercial in their dealings and have nothing to do with the nation's development whether it be in the sector of governance or the likes. It is this group that has in effect damaged the very prestige and popularity of the men engaged in this profession.

We wish here to quote Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad who some time back had said of the media which apparently fits into the second category mentioned just above which is as follows: "if it is assumed that power tends to corrupt and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely, by what magical formula are the media themselves, with all their awesome power, exempt from this inexorable tendency? The Malaysian authority further wishes to add: Is power the only cause for corruption? Freedom too can corrupt and absolute freedom can corrupt absolutely"'.

We see in Malaysian Prime Minister's expression some food for thought. While we write stories on corruption and accuse some one in the bureaucracy or even in the cabinet, we often forget to assess as to how much corrupt we are ourselves? While penning stories on certain scandals, we deliberately wish to forget our unethical connections with the wrong doers of the society and money-spinners for whom we perhaps possess some soft corners? Is this not a sort of corruption? It is!

Is this Nepali journalism? Perhaps yes. With some exceptions indeed, the Nepali journalism is currently under tremendous stress due to these anomalies that have sneaked into this profession of late more so after the advent of this new order.

To expect any sort of support from this highly partisanized and excessively greedy lot in favor of good governance in the country would be simply a futile affair. More or less this was the conclusion of the media seminar.

However, there is nothing to panic. The participants hoped that the negative trends seen at the moment in Nepali journalism will in due course of time fizzle out and facilitate the way for a healthy, informative, investigative and accurate reporting on events of national importance including those which fall under the domain of governance, good governance and even bad governance.

A mechanism has got to be brought into effect which, according to Ambassador Lemp, brings the media men together with those who were in government authority and were decision makers who day-in-day-out claim to be engaged in providing good governance in the country. Who will initiate this mechanism is a million-dollar question indeed.

It is perhaps time that we in this profession too must contribute whatever is possible from our side in order to provide good governance to the people and support the establishment as and when it approaches us for support in this regard.

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