The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has called on media houses to organise in-house training for their staff to curb the prevalence of indecent language on the airwaves as captured in the latest Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) quarterly report.
After three months of monitoring from the MFWA, the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) led in the number of indecent expressions on radio with 104 incidents of intemperate language between April and June this year.
The report comes days after the chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Mrs Charlotte Osei, cited the media as one of the catalysts for the tension and hostilities in the country ahead of the December 7 polls.
Speaking to Class News, the Executive Director of the MFWA, Sulemana Braimah, blamed radio show hosts for the prevalence of indecent language in the media.
“If our show hosts, our presenters and so on are very meticulous in what they allow people to say, we can help ensure that campaign communications on radio become more decent than we are witnessing now. A lot really depends on programme presenters on our various radio stations and I think that is where the emphasis should be rather than perhaps looking at it from which party is dominating. I think if our radio stations do their work and do it right, if I’m a politician and I’m going on a radio station and I know on this particular programme the presenter or the producer will not allow you to say certain things and if you dare say certain things in a particular way he could even walk you out, I will caution myself before using a certain type of word or expression on the programme,” he stated.
Meanwhile, the General Secretary of the GJA, David Agbenu, also speaking with Class News, tasked media owners to train practitioners on the ethics of the profession in order to reduce indecent language on media platforms.
“It is for the media houses to educate and train their staff and continue to give them in-house training on the ethics of the profession. The GJA is doing its bit, the GJA is educating its members, the GJA has come out with the code of ethics and it is your employers who are supposed to also encourage you to practise professionally by adhering to the ethics of the profession,” he said.
Source: Ghana/AccraFM.com
