The press is often referred to as the Fourth Estate. It may be debatable who coined the phrase, whether British historian and politician Thomas Macaulay or Edmund Burke, an Irish statesman and author. What matters is, what was said: “There are three estates in Parliament but in the Reporters’ Gallery yonder there sits a Fourth Estate more important far than they all. It is not a figure of speech or witty saying, it is a literal fact, very momentous to us in these times.”
It is indeed “very momentous to us in these times” because serious journalism is facing grave challenges not just from the Establishment but also, perhaps, even more seriously, from the social media and self-declared journalists.
To say that serious journalism is an essential prerequisite in a healthy democracy is an understatement. But it is going through a bad patch, not only in terms of dwindling sales and falling advertising revenue, certainly in the print media, but, more so, quality-wise.
If serious journalism is not saved, society would lose an effective tool in its dealings with the authorities. It is, therefore, in the best interest of society that serious journalism remains alive and kicking, becomes stronger and is not afflicted by the ills that plague the social media.
Such an appeal was made during a recent national conference called by the Institute of Maltese Journalists to discuss ethics in journalism. It was made amply clear by seasoned journalists present that serious journalism was at stake and risked dying a natural death.
Ways and means to save the industry had to be found and no stone should be left unturned to ensure that the highest standards were observed, they said. One way of ensuring quality journalism, of course, is effective auto-regulation. This, in turn, depends on a well-drafted code of ethics that is respected in both spirit and word and is voluntarily adopted by as many professional journalists as possible.
How to save the industry as financial revenue continues to drop is no mean feat. State subsidies, in one form or another, could be very risky. Accepting money from the State risks eating away from the high degree of independence and autonomy a medium requires to be able to fulfil its task without fear or favour. Such risk in terms of commercial entities is spread and there is more room for manoeuvre but in the case of the government there is only one source, which can be easily controlled or blocked if a medium is considered to be unfriendly.
The industry therefore needs to be more creative, and adventurous, in tapping new revenue streams.
There are quarters which argue that quality journalism sells and that people would be willing to pay for it. These same quarters claim that the lower sales, in both circulation and advertising, are the result of falling standards, as mainstream media houses emulate and compete with the social media where quality does not feature high on the agenda.
That is why a good code of ethics is a must and the Institute of Journalists ought to declare this as its 2017 project. Once drafted and widely discussed, it can then be voluntarily adopted by well-meaning journalists and, ideally, form part of their employment contract.
The code of ethics of the US Society of Professional Journalists speaks about honesty, fairness and courage in gathering, reporting and interpreting information. Those are the hallmarks of serious journalism, which is as much in demand as ever before, if not more.