Ways and means of fighting 'envelope journalism'

Anett Keller Leipzig, Germany

I read the stories about bogus journalists in The Jakarta Post's edition of March 20 with great interest. Press officers from companies and the bureaucracy apparently feel terrorized by crowds of wartawan tanpa surat kabar ("journalists without newspapers"), as bogus journalists are often called, a word play on an Indonesian abbreviation for prostitutes.

These bogus journalists arrive at offices, claim to work for certain media, and proceed to combine the demand for money with the demand for press freedom. They are hard to root out because many of their "real" colleagues may also show up at a press event simply seeking to leave with some cash in their pockets.

Doing research on the media in Indonesia leads quite quickly to the phenomena of "envelope journalism". Certainly, Indonesia is not the only place in the world where bribing journalists takes place, but there are not many countries where it is so rampant and openly practiced.

It's easy to avoid bogus journalists by simply refusing to give out envelopes or other gifts, as a press officer from the Ministry of Finance stated in one of the articles. However, it seems that nobody is really interested in such a solution. Press officers frequently rake off half the "PR funds" for themselves. Both companies and ministries are attempting to buy good publicity rather than trying to convince the public with results.

In fact, there is no other way around bogus journalism than to eliminate "envelope-culture". That means seeing the practice for what it is: bribery, and not some small, meaningless gift. It is important to explore the reasons that force journalists to seek a 'second income', as Nezar Patria put it. And it is important to remind media owners that they have to provide adequate remuneration for their staff. But lamenting that Indonesian journalists are too poor to act professionally is not enough. Nor is it necessarily correct: there is empirical evidence that journalists with the lowest income are not always the most corrupt.

As Nezar also pointed out, we cannot just blame one side. Constructing a solution requires understanding of both public relations and journalism. It also requires more empirical data, which requires funding that should be provided by all those who claim to have an interest in ending envelope culture. This information needs to lead to open discussion and finally, collective agreements that contain precise declarations of intent.

However, all of these factors depend on improved transparency. During my research on the Indonesian press in Jakarta last year I had the chance to talk to many newspaper journalists in the capital.

I learned that there are some media companies who return money to the respective sources after press events, as it is assumed to be impolite to refuse it at the event. Data about sources and amounts are collected for administrative reasons. Theoretically, everybody could know which ministry pays how much for attending a press conference, or which multinational is "supporting" its product launchings with dollars.

Why is it not possible to publish these lists? If a media company feels clean, I see no reason to hesitate. Especially if we come to the engagement of multinational companies in bribing local journalists, it is likely that the public in their home countries also would like to know. There should be follow-up, investigated and published by foreign journalists.

In strengthening transparency, media journalism could play a vital role. Media journalism has the media itself as its topic. In the USA and in Europe, media journalism has a long tradition and is not just present in special interest magazines but also in newspapers.

Almost every national daily has a permanent media page that is filled by writers specializing in covering media subjects. It contains more than just a TV program guide and some movie previews. If journalists are kidnapped or killed, it becomes a topic. If a certain media owner tries to terminate a collective agreement with his staff, then this is a subject for coverage.

If a TV station excessively uses product placements in its daily soaps, it is addressed there. Decisions of the press council are discussed. And, if journalists are faking interviews or stories, such as the German Tom Kummer or his American colleague Jayson Blair, it is published there. Media experts are interviewed on current topics, or analyze the role of media and journalism in their own articles.

I asked Indonesian colleagues about media journalism here in Indonesia. I learned that criticizing competitors is widely viewed as trying to drag them through the mud. Sungkan was the term one journalist used for the feelings journalists have about reporting on their fellow colleagues. What goes on in other newspapers or TV stations is mostly considered to be their own business.

Media journalism, if executed in a professional way, means neither praising the home media company nor disparaging competitors.

Media journalism means that the media feels responsible for informing the public. As the German journalist Rupert Neudeck once stated, it means transparency of the media, within the media, and with the media.

Media journalism can play a very important role - some scholars even say it can function as a fifth pillar of democracy. With media journalism, the media is explaining its role, its structure, its constraints and its opportunities to the public. Therefore it should become a permanent issue in the general- interest media and not just in media watchdog magazines with a small circulation that is only read by media experts and journalists.

"The role of the media is not confined solely to information. The media must also play a role in organizing discussion and public debate," said Jakob Oetama, the founder of Kompas and CEO of Kompas Gramedia Group, recently in this paper. This is also true for debates about the role of journalists and media companies.

Media journalism could help to reduce envelope journalism. And, as a by-product, it could help strengthening the public's trust in the Indonesian media.

The writer is a freelance journalist who studied in Leipzig and Yogyakarta. She is currently finishing her thesis on the press in Indonesia. She can be reached at anett_keller@web.de.