Proper media organizations needed

JAKARTA (JP): The registration of around 300 new newspapers, weeklies and tabloids at the Ministry of Information has heightened the need for professional associations and unions, journalists and newspaper proprietors said here on Saturday.

Speaking at a discussion, Atmakusumah Astraatmadja of Dr. Soetomo Press Institute said that while a conflict of interest between owners and journalists was a "classic problem", the latter would have better bargaining power if they retained their professionalism.

Media observers such as Christianto Wibisono have said that under the previous government the permits required for printed publications became a political commodity. Even with billions of rupiah in capital, it was not possible to get a permit without good political connections.

"Now anyone with money can issue a publication," Atmakusumah said.

The talk was organized by the Api Foundation, which publishes the new Bongkar tabloid. The topic of discussion was a new translation of a 1997 book on the media in the United States by Robert McChesney entitled Corporate Media and the Threat to Democracy.

Since former president Soeharto stepped down in May, more than 10 journalists' organizations have been set up. Under the previous regime only the Indonesian Journalists' Association (PWI) was recognized by the government.

Among the new professional bodies to have sprung up since May are the Indonesian Television Journalists' Association (IJTI) chaired by Haris Jauhari and the Alliance of Indonesian Radio Journalists (ARI) chaired by Fajroel Rahman.

Lukas Luwarso, chairman of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), said that while the post-Soeharto government was no longer an obstruction to press freedom, "the press now faced (a threat from) media owners."

Atmakusumah said that sanctions for any party proved of obstructing press freedom have been proposed in a bill being drafted on the media.

Jacob Oetama, president of the large PT Gramedia publishing group which runs the Kompas daily, agreed that greater professionalism on the part of journalists could help reduce the influence of media owners.

In response to the case of Paron tabloid, which closed down earlier this year after its owner withdrew his capital, Fikri Jufri, general manager of Tempo weekly, said that journalists should be "selective" in choosing investors.

Paron staff said that the investor, timber tycoon Mohammad "Bob" Hasan, had objected to their increasingly critical reports.

Atmakusumah cited the former Target tabloid, which once failed to publish after reporters, angered by the owners intervention to prevent publication of a critical report, went on strike.

"The strike was an attempt to say that editorial policy should not be influenced by owners." (01)