The latest report from the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) shows significant improvement in ethical standards in the Ghanaian media.
The report shows that incidents of ethical violations have reduced consistently from July to September by 40 percent – from 152 violations in July, to 135 in August, and 92 in September 2014.
The reduction is reflected on all the three media platforms being monitored by the MFWA (radio, news websites and newspapers).
Newspapers recorded the highest reduction – from 16 in August down to only two (2) ethical violations in September. Of significant mention is the fact that The Chronicle newspaper which recorded a total of eight (8) ethical violations in August registered only one ethical infraction in September.
With regard to radio stations, Nkawkaw-based Obuoba FM recorded the highest number of ethical violations followed by Accra-based Oman FM.
On the news website front, GhanaWeb.com recorded the highest number of ethical violations (47 out of the 92 violations recorded on all the 40 media outlets monitored). Thus, for the fifth month running, GhanaWeb.com has recorded the highest number of ethical violations.
While commending media managers and editors of the newspapers being monitored, the MFWA urges media managers and editors, especially those of GhanaWeb.com, Obuoba FM and Oman FM, to step up their gate-keeping role to help improve professionalism on their respective platforms.
The monitoring and reporting of ethical violations on selected media outlets forms part of the MFWA’s project titled “Promoting Professional Standards and Enhancing the Watchdog Role of the Ghanaian Media” which is funded by STAR-Ghana.
The project aims at contributing to improving professional standards of the media in Ghana and supporting them to play a more effective role in fostering transparent and accountable governance in the country. It involves daily monitoring and analysis of ethical violations on 25 selected radio stations, 10 newspapers and five news websites across the country.
Please click here for the full report.