Press urged to be accurate in reporting

JAKARTA (JP): Observers urged the local press on Saturday to place more attention on accuracy and developing social consciousness in presenting news that will educate people rather than going for tacky or sensational stories.

"I am very concerned about the accuracy and language since I am often a victim myself. There are even cases of fictitious reports," sociologist Imam Prasodjo of the University of Indonesia told a media seminar commemorating the 1st anniversary of the enactment of Press Law No. 40/1999.

He cited an example from Republika daily in which a story reported that he had graduated from Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta.

"My friends at the daily have interviewed me from time to time but how can such a basic mistake be made?" Imam said.

Imam also cited an example of an established daily like Kompas in one of its editions mistakenly associated him with a mass forum whose name he had never even heard.

"The report said the forum was supporting the appointment of Muslim scholar Nurcholish Madjid (Cak Nur) as one of the country's presidential candidates. I had the opposite stance as I preferred Cak Nur not become presidential nominee," Imam said, while Nurcholish, who was also a speaker at the session, smiled broadly.

The session also featured former minister of information and former Armed Forces (ABRI) chief of social and political affairs Lt. Gen. (ret) M. Yunus Yosfiah.

Yunus reminded that press freedom must be fully supported for the interest and the development of the nation.

"The press is a reflection of our society.

"We have to admit that if the quality of the reports are bad or sometimes the news being reported is controversial ... it is because the people here, from the officials to the writers, probably do not have a good (point of) reference or education and that affects their character and intelligence," he said.

So the low quality of the media reports are due to the fact that most Indonesians are not well educated, Yunus said.

"The core of the problem is the failure of our national education system. Proper training for prospective reporters is needed," he added.

Imam also reminded that currently there are growing numbers of identity groups based on religion, ethnicity or race and social movements such as environmental, women's rights and other non- government organizations.

"So journalists have to be careful in writing news, because if they are wrong, they could end up in friction with these groups or even trigger emotional or group sentiments that lead to unrest," Imam said.

He cited as example the recent mass mobilization and violence of Banser security guards of the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Muslim organization's youth wing and Surabaya-based Jawa Pos daily.

Nurcholish reminded the press to have a conscience.

"Public opinion is not always right because it can be engineered or manipulated. So sincerity is far more important than (press) freedom," he said.

"I was in United States back in 1990 when one of the editors of the Washington Post told me that one of their reports had cost the life of an innocent man," Nurcholish said.

"The Post wrote of an alleged scandal, and it turned out to be wrong. The daily tried to make it up to the businessman but the damage was already done. He eventually committed suicide when his company went down the drain due to the reports.

"Media have the power to do good things or the other way around, so use the freedom wisely." (edt)