Journalists should fully follow journalistic code of conduct: Press Council

Press Council Nepal stressed that journalistic code of conduct must be fully followed while publishing or broadcasting the journalistic contents.

Journalists said that the Press Council should actively make aware about the code of conduct at a time when there is an increase in the number of fake news on digital platforms.

Speaking at a program organized by the Press Council in Doleshwor, Bhaktapur on Tuesday, all the participants expressed their collective commitment to abide by the journalistic code of conduct while publishing or broadcasting the journalistic contents.

In the program organized by the Press Council Nepal and coordinated by the Federation of Nepali Journalists on challenges of journalism including YouTube and online media and questions on code of conduct in Bhaktapur, editors of various media outlets, journalists and media persons expressed their commitment to follow the code of conduct.

Council Chairman Bal Krishna Basnet said that journalists are not allowed to make mistakes in the name of publishing the news.

“Journalists are not allowed to make mistakes. Human errors should be corrected immediately. The Council has been regulating and monitoring the contents regularly,” Chairman Basnet said.

Saying that the print media should also go online in recent times, he said it is necessary to use the digital media platforms and the media must follow the code of conduct.

Emphasizing that the government should conduct a media literacy campaign across the country, Council Chairman Basnet said, “It is necessary that the state should conduct a media literacy campaign throughout the country. The state should allocate the budget for the same. The Press Council has been conducting a media literacy campaign across the country with limited budget. The state should also extend support to the campaign. The provincial and local government should also support such type of campaign”

On the occasion, Rastriya Samachar Samiti (RSS) Chairman Dharmendra Jha said that the Council has been regulating new media including YouTube in an organized manner. He further said that other agencies should also facilitate this work.

“Now, the media has been digitalized. It does not mean that the future of print media is at a threatened stage. The print media is still in a wait-and-a-see situation,” he said.

Also speaking in the program, Federation of Nepali Journalists Chairman Bipul Pokharel said that the print media are also being digitized.

“Now, it is necessary to think in a different way. It is necessary that the print media should also be digitized. Now, the distribution system of papers should also be made through technology,” he said.

Journalist Ujjwal Acharya said that the media outlets should find an alternative to advertisements as the source of income.