Doing journalism in a crisis

At the best of times, the relationship between power and journalism is a cautious one. With the deepening of the covid19 challenge to the country, there have been occasions on which ministers, even the Prime Minister, have chosen to be combative with the press because journalists haven't chosen to demonstrate just how clever and knowledgeable we can be.

In a media conference, our job is to be the voice of the public in the presence of power and asking questions that ministers may regard as basic and stupid offers our leadership an opportunity to clarify unusual measures and simplify their explanations.

While we may share the concerns of every citizen and appointed leader in this country, our obligation is to communicate facts, question and clarify and consider the ramifications of decisions being made in the public interest that may have far reaching consequences as new precedents are set in law and governance. Sometimes that means facing down officials who choose to be testy and intemperate, sometimes it’s even more difficult.

Journalists in a public area at the San Fernando General Hospital were confronted last week by openly hostile guards who thought nothing of hitting a working videographer’s lens aggressively with a baton.

No journalist expects to meet only media-trained professionals in the course of their work, but there is a continuing misunderstanding of the role of the media in providing information to the public.

Journalists are positioned to educate and inform a public that faces an avalanche of information, much of it well-intentioned, but often wrong. Not every viral WhatsApp message is verified news, and it is the media who must confirm what's correct, while ruthlessly debunking unfounded rumour.

Demonstrating authority through clarity and fact-checking in the face of misinformation and emotion remains the pivotal role of journalism and in an era of anxiety and fear. Our duty is to mediate between what politicians are willing to announce and what the public needs to know, to exhume facts buried in needless obfuscation.

The traditional stresses between the political leadership and the press are likely to only become sharper in the coming weeks, but politicians must understand that the media are not an extension of their communications departments, respect our commitment to verify facts and in so doing, build trust in critical public information.