Protect media diversity to enhance democracy- Irish president

Ireland's president, Michael D Higgins, has called for media diversity and plurality to be protected.

In an opening address to the world congress of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) in Dublin, he said:

"Pluralism, real diversity and choice are critical and should never be reduced to a false choice between partisan media arrayed on ideological grounds, and identikit news organisations chasing the same narrow commercial ground."

Higgins told the delegates that real pluralism "occurs at a granular level, within countries as much as within regions, reflecting religious and ethnic diversity, and the views and needs of rich and poor alike."

He added: "Governments and civil society need to keep this issue at the forefront of media policy – democracy, freedom, even economic growth depend on it."

Higgins, a noted human rights campaigner, has written widely about international conflicts, and was the first recipient of the Seán MacBride peace prize in 1992.

He referred to the press freedom principles agreed by the member countries of UNESCO as being an important act of solidarity. If the commitment was to be of real value, he said, "human rights aspirations" must be turned "into guarantees".

He went on to outline the challenges facing journalists, such as the concentration of ownership, the convergence of technologies and the fragmentation of audiences.

The president said: "Journalists attempting to investigate and provide information on political and corporate corruption can often be hindered and intimidated by those with vested interests, including by use of violent means; which, if acceded to, would lead to a dangerous misrepresentation or even falsification of information which would not be in the interests of individual citizens and would obviously be detrimental to society at large."
Source: http://cablequest.org/news/international-news/item/2552-protect-media-diversity-to-enhance-democracy-irish-president.htmlSource: http://cablequest.org/news/international-news/item/2552-protect-media-diversity-to-enhance-democracy-irish-president.html