Press freedom is inseparable from the independence of journalists. If journalists are directly or indirectly dependent on the government, their independence can be affected.
By
KOMPAS EDITOR
·3 minutes read
Kompas
Media personnel pay homage to Reuters journalist Danish Siddiqui at the press club in New Delhi on July 17, 2021, after the Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer with the Reuters news agency was killed covering fighting between Afghan security forces and the Taliban near a border crossing with Pakistan, the media outlet reported, citing an army commander.
The press is one of the pillars of democracy. Developing the press is like building democracy, which is the same as building a country.
This was the statement made by the chairman of the Press Council, Mohammad Nuh, in addressing the 2020 National Press Day (HPN) event on Sunday (9/2/2020) in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, which highlighted the relationship between the press, democracy, and the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI). Safeguarding the NKRI is inseparable from the efforts to maintain press freedom.
All those who seek to maintain the NKRI must also maintain the growth and development of the press in this country. In fact, maintaining freedom of the press also means maintaining the growth of democracy and protecting the NKRI (Kompas, 9/2/2020).
As part of the efforts to maintain press freedom while protecting the NKRI at the same time, the Press Council, together with stare-owned survey company Sucofindo, recently held a survey on freedom of the press since 2016 in the country’s 34 provinces. Over the last five years, the press freedom index (IKP) has shown significant improvement, with the score rising from 67.92 in 2017 to 69.00 in 2018, to 73.71 in 2019, to 75.27 in 2020 and to 76.02 in 2021. The IKP in 2021 increased by a slight 0.75 points from the 2020 IKP.
As a result of this condition, many news media companies had to seek new sources of income in order to survive, among others, by exploiting the government\'s advertising budget, especially in the regions.
The explanation of the survey results on Wednesday (1/9/2021), which mainly drew on data, facts, and perceptions in 2020, revealed that digital disruption and the Covid-19 pandemic had caused many news media companies to suffer a significant decline in revenue. As a result of this condition, many news media companies had to seek new sources of income in order to survive, among others, by exploiting the government\'s advertising budget, especially in the regions. This had directly and indirectly affected press independence when dealing with power (Kompas, 2/9/2021).
TANGKAPAN LAYAR APLIKASI ZOOM
Chairman of the Press Council, Mohammad Nuh.
Based on the Press Council’s 2021 IKP, the press in Indonesia still fell within the “free” category. The survey assessed three environments, namely the physical and political environment, the economic environment, and the legal environment. Support from the government, including regional administrations, in the form of ad placements, had helped news media companies and journalists to survive. However, such support could also threaten press freedom.
Press freedom is inseparable from the independence of journalists. If journalists are directly or indirectly dependent on the government, their independence can be affected. Will the government, including regional administrations, not be tempted to interfere with press independence for its own sake? As a matter of fact, Article 1 of the Journalistic Code of Ethics states: "Indonesian journalists are independent, produce accurate and balanced news, and do not have malicious intentions."
Journalism should also be accountable to the public. It would be more complicated to maintain a free press if certified journalists rely on government allowances for their livelihood. We need a more elegant and smart way so news media companies can survive and thrive, and more importantly, can maintain their independence. The press, as the fourth pillar of democracy, must be able to stand with their heads high among the three other pillars: the executive, the judiciary, and the legislature.
(This article was translated byHendarsyah Tarmizi)
