Sustainability of media houses, self-censorship and access to information were among many issues journalists raised during the Press Freedom Day, yesterday. Journalists from different media houses had come together to discuss the issue.
A few of them feel it is about time for introspection too. The effort for change must come from the journalists themselves, they said.
They also said the pride and dignity to the profession has died. Kuensel’s Editor, Rinzin Wangchuk, said that is the reason why so many senior media professionals are quitting. “I used to feel proud of being a journalist but now the charm is gone.” Rinzin Wangchuk is one of the senior journalists in the country.
He also asked what the Journalist Association of Bhutan would be doing to stop senior journalists from leaving the profession.
The President of the Journalist Association of Bhutan (JAB), Passang Dorji, said there is no solidarity amongst the journalists themselves. He said JAB has a list of activities to bring the journalists around the country together.
The panelists also spoke on the sustainability of media to an extent. Many private newspapers are barely floating. As results, the media houses haven’t been able to pay their reporters for months. Some newspapers went online and some reverted to being weekly.
Sustainability of even the national newspaper, Kuensel, was brought up. During the annual general meeting of Kuensel, the shareholders had asked the board of directors let the paper return to being bi-weekly or even weekly, if it is not commercially viable.
They were also asked to consider closing down the regional printing press of Kanglung in Trashigang.
Bhutan’s Press Freedom index has been dropping significantly. In 2013, Bhutan ranked 82. It dropped to 92 this year.
The World Press Freedom Day was also obsreved at Sherubtse College in Kanglung. The panel comprising senior journalists and the Secretary of Ministry of Information and Communication, Dasho Kinley Dorji, spoke on exploring media’s importance in development, safety of journalists and rule of law and also on the integrity of journalism in Bhutan.
Media students of Sherubtse College also participated in the event.
