{"id":29705,"date":"2020-02-19T19:31:36","date_gmt":"2020-02-19T19:31:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.firdevstalkturkey.com\/?p=29705"},"modified":"2020-02-19T21:20:52","modified_gmt":"2020-02-19T21:20:52","slug":"journalists-of-the-world-unite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.firdevstalkturkey.com\/journalists-of-the-world-unite\/","title":{"rendered":"Journalists of the world, unite!"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
With media freedoms under assault worldwide, this is an exceptionally difficult time to be a journalist anywhere.<\/p>\n
Across the world, media workers and journalists are under threat.<\/p>\n
In some countries, they face injustice, arbitrary imprisonment or even murder.<\/p>\n
In others, including in long-standing democracies, heavy-handedness towards the media is becoming the norm.<\/p>\n
Britain is no exception. A culture of entitlement to undermine journalism is steadily taking hold in all sides of the political spectrum.<\/p>\n
There is no doubt that the media environment in the UK is worsening. The Conservative government of Boris Johnson has adopted a restrictive and partisan media policy right from the start. \u00a0A few months into power, they now have one of the country\u2019s most respected public service institutions in their sights.<\/p>\n
Plans to turn the BBC into a privatized subscription service is the first step in a deliberate campaign to dismantle public service broadcasting.<\/p>\n
In a world of disinformation, surviving political and commercial onslaught and making a strong case for an independent and impartial media is not easy.<\/p>\n
However, solidarity among journalists in the UK is still strong.<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, the government\u2019s attempt to bar some journalists attending a briefing on UK-EU trade negotiations ended up with all correspondents walking out.<\/p>\n
Britain\u2019s journalists, their associations and leading media freedom watchdogs strengthen their collective muscle by engaging and cooperating with other human rights defenders and legal experts.<\/p>\n
The most pertinent example was the report<\/a> launched last week, by a panel of legal experts for media freedom.<\/p>\n