Indonesian media under fire for bias, corruption

Indonesian media under fire for bias, corruption

Viva Goldner, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Despite the increased freedom it enjoys during the reform era,
the national press is increasingly under fire, with accusations
of bias, corruption and a lack of professionalism among
journalists.

Salahuddin, secretary-general of the Alliance of Independent
Journalists (AJI), expressed his concern that the fight for
professionalism was being hampered by the rampant practice of
wartawan amplop (pocket journalism), where the often poorly-paid
reporter is passed an envelope of money after an interview or
media conference in exchange for favorable coverage.

"It is very common for Indonesian journalists to receive
bribes -- our research has shown some 80 percent to 90 percent of
journalists are indeed envelope journalists," Salahuddin said.

"Many sources, even government bodies, contribute to this
situation. Our research in 2000 showed that at least Rp 864
billion was allocated by the government in the national budget
for envelope journalism," he said.

Mohammad Budyatna, a professor in mass communication at the
University of Indonesia, said the media had lost focus in its
transition from an authoritarian system to one of social
responsibility.

"The freedom enjoyed by the press today is too excessive,
because the journalists don't yet know how to be responsible to
the government and to society," Budyatna said.

He said a culture of libelous reporting was developing, where
journalists gave little consideration to the rights of
individuals or the government.

"The press should function as a watchdog -- to monitor the
government and make corrections to the statements of government
officials -- in order to expose corruption, collusion and
nepotism. But there is now a wildness in the dissemination of
information," Budyatna said.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri has twice slapped the media
over their knuckles, most recently on Friday during the
celebration of National Press Day in the South Kalimantan capital
of Banjarmasin.

While encouraging the press to remain critical, Megawati said
the media had the responsibility to offer solutions to all the
problems the country was facing.

"We are not supposed to, and should never, lose our critical
stance. We indeed need criticism, likewise we should provide
solutions to the problems.

"If necessary (the critics) should substantiate the validity
and reliability of the alternatives they offer," said Megawati to
the cheers of the audience.

A few days earlier, Megawati rapped the media for their
coverage of the floods which she said placed too much the blame
on the government.

While reporters are obliged to abide by an official code of
ethics, Budyatna said many journalists were not even aware of the
charter's existence.

Articles in the PWI code of ethics prohibit a journalist from
receiving payment from sources, and stipulate reporting must be
balanced, objective and factual.

Salahuddin said there was a tendency for journalists to
sensationalize the events of the day, with reports aimed at
heightening conflict and emotion rather than objective analysis.

He also criticized the style of jurnalisme omongon (talking
journalism), where the statements of public figures are used as
the basis for news stories without clarification or concern for
the implications of the statement.

Despite his criticism of the press, Salahuddin expressed
concern over government attempts to regain control over the media
through legal measures.

The government, he said, aims to restrict press freedom by
proposing the Criminal Code bill which contains 40 articles that
could lead journalists to prison. The existing Criminal Code
comprises just 37 articles related to crimes committed by the
press.

The government's plan to revise the 1999 Broadcasting Law has
also sent a warning to the media as 21 out of the 63 articles in
the new draft are intended to restrict the media, he said.

AJI data in 2001 revealed 95 cases of violence and
intimidation against journalists.