Journalism must prioritise public interest over attention — Kwesi Pratt
Veteran media practitioner and Managing Editor of The Insight, Kwesi Pratt Jnr, has urged media organisations and journalists not to reduce journalism to a contest for attention.
Veteran journalist Kwesi Pratt Jnr warned against media organizations reducing journalism to a competition for attention. Speaking at the 77th anniversary symposium of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Pratt emphasized that the primary responsibility of journalists was to determine what the public needed to know. He cautioned that in the digital age, speed should not outweigh accuracy, and being the first to publish a story did not guarantee its importance.
"A journalist could be the first to publish a story and still be wrong, while another journalist could publish later and produce the most important story of the day. The internet rewards speech. Journalism requires judgment," he stressed. Pratt urged media organizations to uphold professional standards and resist pressures from the digital world that undermine these standards.
He highlighted five pillars of media credibility: accuracy, verification, fairness, courage, and investigative scrutiny of influential individuals and institutions. The GJA symposium, themed "GJA at 77: Building on our legacy, advancing ethical journalism, and shaping the future of digital media," brought together prominent speakers from media and related fields.
Pratt underscored Ghana's journalism tradition's vital role in shaping public consciousness and the Ghanaian media's active participation in the country's struggle for self-determination. He stressed that the profession must continually evaluate whether it is fulfilling its democratic, social, and national responsibilities. He also cautioned about the impact of ownership, financing, advertising, and political affiliations on editorial autonomy, stating that while freedom from censorship existed, it didn't guarantee freedom from external pressures.
Pratt criticized TV stations for using social media popularity as criteria for hiring, deeming this practice an affront to journalism. He called for Ghanaian media institutions to reassess the representation of various segments of society in national news coverage, emphasizing that ordinary citizens should not be relegated to the background but featured prominently in news stories.
Written by urgent.news from MyJoyOnline Ghana's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
