Journalism for Social Change in Asia

Reporting Human Rights

Scott Downman, Kasun Ubayasiri

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Year: 2017
• eBook ISBN:
  9781349951796
• Print ISBN:
  9781349951789
• Subtopic: Journalism

This book explores the role and purpose of journalism to spark and propagate change by investigating human rights journalism and its capacity to inform, educate and activate change. Downman and Ubayasiri maximize this approach by proposing a new paradigm of reporting through the use of human-focussed news values. This approach is a radical departure from the traditional style that typically builds on abstract concepts. The book will explore human rights journalism through the lens of complex issues such as human trafficking and people smuggling in the Asian context. This is not just a book for journalists, or journalism academics, but a book for activists, human rights advocates or anyone who believes in the power of journalism to change the world.

© The Author(s) 2017

S. Downman, K. UbayasiriJournalism for Social Change in AsiaPalgrave Studies in Communication for Social Changehttps://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-349-95179-6_1

Begin Abstract

1. Introduction to Journalism for Social Change

Scott Downman¹ and Kasun Ubayasiri²

(1)

School of Communication and Arts, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia

(2)

Griffith University, Nathan, QLD, Australia

Scott Downman

Email: [email protected]

End Abstract

1.1 Introduction

Since the start of the twenty-first century journalism has been in a state of flux. Traditional media has grappled with the digital ecology that now defines and shapes the global journalism industry. Some major media outlets have collapsed, while others have seen dramatic audience losses. The digital environment has caused media executives to rationalise newsrooms, experiment with new forms of reporting and wrestle with the problem of making money in a social media-driven market. But beyond these structural issues, it has also caused some to reflect on how to define journalism. Is journalism a fluid profession that has evolved over time or is it a profession with a set of static, timeless core values and principles? This chapter explores this question by defining journalism through the lens of human rights. In doing so, it seeks to position journalism as a profession of important principles and values, while exploring the notion of journalism as ‘a calling’. This almost ‘evangelical’ notion of journalism is commonly identified by journalists as the reason for pursuing a media career. Although evangelism is usually associated with religion, this chapter argues that, when an epistemological approach is applied to the Greek word euaggelizesthai, the verb from which the word evangelism originates, it relates directly to those who are heralds and deliver news. Therefore, it is not surprising that men and women with a commitment and passion to report the truth, feel this sense of calling.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for the New York Times Nicholas Kristof, who has built his career writing about social justice issues and human rights, is one journalist who has described his journey into journalism as a calling:

Well, I think…that I always had some interest in individuals, some drive to try to make a difference, and I think that was one of the things that attracted me to journalism. And really what changed me onto the trajectory that I ended up is that I went out and was assigned abroad, lived a good chunk of my life abroad, and just encountered poverty. And that was just, you know, life transforming. That once these issues become real and you see these things, you know, you can’t forget the people you meet and you to try to make a difference in some way. (in Blank-Libra 2016, p. 52)

The notion of journalism as a calling is intrinsically linked to values, ethics and objectivity. It is bound to the idea that journalists must uphold and perform certain duties and responsibilities. As Kristof says, it’s about the desire to ‘make a difference’. Journalism is a complex endeavour that involves a combination of advocacy and objectivity. To advocate is to care and to be objective is to be ethical and fact-driven in caring. Simply put, the two concepts are not mutually exclusive. Despite this altruism, journalism is often lampooned and lambasted for not honouring these ideals. The list of misdemeanours against this pivotal profession is immense. Phone hacking, shonky ethics, the proliferation of clickbait, celebrity-driven, shallow news, fake news and a lack of objectivity have become synonymous with modern reporting. However, in this chapter, human rights journalism is used to provide an impetus to review the purpose of journalism and to reflect on the value and values of this endeavour, which Kristof describes as ‘more than a profession’. Interestingly, many human rights journalists don’t view journalism as a 9–5 practice but a commitment to doing whatever is required to reveal the truth. It will be argued that this is the foundation of journalism that for generations has made it an invaluable and formidable part of the global community. In the same way as shonky lawyers and corrupt doctors don’t define professional practice in law and medicine, journalism should not be measured by its worst examples, but by its best, as aspirational role models.

1.2 Journalism as a Calling

In April, 2016 former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson delivered the keynote address at the prestigious Harvard Divinity School’s Dean’s Leadership Forum. In her speech, focussed on the future of journalism, Abramson sought to tackle the challenging task of defining journalism. Her response was simple: ‘Journalism is a public service, a calling’ (Telushkin 2016). For Abramson, a former investigative journalist, the essence of journalism lies in informing the public for the betterment of society. She argues that when journalists view their vocation as ‘a calling’ it becomes an endeavour of great impact. Abramson is not alone. Her sentiment is shared by the world’s most eminent and prominent human rights journalists. The great war correspondent and human rights journalist James Nachtwey not only describes journalism as a calling, but a fight. Nachtwey (2015) says:

We’re the point people, the first link with reality in a collaborative, journalistic chain. Each of us is a single mind, a single sensibility – one pair of eyes and one pair of ears – one heart – moving through the real world in real time, to tell the stories of what happens to people one-by-one, at the sharp end of history. We navigate dangers, endure hardships and get our hearts broken by what we witness, over and over again, because we believe that peoples’ opinions matter – that our society cannot function properly without the information we provide and without the stories we tell.

Nachtwey’s reflections on his calling are a poignant reminder of the importance of journalism in society, but more importantly, the role of journalism as an impetus for social change. Photojournalist Lisa Kristine, who has spent 25 years reporting indigenous people across the globe and more recently has sought to visually document modern-day slavery, argues that the linkage created by the journalist to the audience is pivotal in creating understanding and dispelling ignorance. Kristine, who prefers to use the term ‘witness to humanity’ rather than journalist, says the relationship between the sense of ‘calling’, passion and respect is critical if meaningful journalism that creates change is to occur:

Photography has the power to change the world. Through its visual nature, the images transcend language all together. A viewer from any place or walk of life can be in direct relationship with the image and therefore the subject within it – and be emotionally and viscerally moved to rise up and make a change. (Harlan 2013)

Kristine describes her approach to visual journalism as ‘the one weapon I have to fight injustice’. For Stephanie Sinclair, who has committed years of her life to reporting child marriage, journalism for social change starts with a calling to fight injustice by first presenting a problem:

We can’t just present a solution before we’ve presented the problem, or they’ll feel like it’s already taken care of and it’s not urgent. We want these issues to feel urgent, because for the girls being forced into marriage it is urgent…[But] I think if you make the images too hard to look at, and not beautiful, you turn people away instead of inviting them in. We need to make images that engage people, not repel them. (One 2014)

For Sinclair, creating journalism for social change is a paradox. It is about addressing the complexity of human rights abuses but presenting them in a meaningful way that connects and engages the audience so that an information transfer occurs that has the capacity to spark a desire for change. It is this that inspired South African journalist Angela Quintal to move into journalism after working as a lawyer. She said her career change was prompted by ‘a calling’ to journalism and the role it plays in society. Quintal says:

I opted to become a journalist and not a lawyer, because it was the early 1990s and I wanted to be at the coalface of our transition to democracy. Being a journalist during this period meant that I was able to witness and report on it first-hand. (Masuku 2015)

For Quintal, and for other human rights journalists, the link between journalism and social change is intrinsic and obvious. Harwood (2007) takes this further, arguing that if journalism is to be viewed as ‘a calling’ it needs to be understood in terms of three components: a moral dimension, professional skills and professional aims. These three dimensions are important if journalism is to be used as a mechanism for exploring, investigating and reporting on human rights. Harwood (2007) says:

Yet journalism as a calling asks for more than professional aims and professional skills. A calling goes beyond these to ask for moral commitment to work for more than pay, recognition, seeking public good, and avoiding unprofessional acts. A calling to journalism requires commitment as an educator and trainer, and as watcher for danger and institutional defect. The aims are pursued for their own sakes and not for pay or professional recognition. Pay and recognition might follow or might not.

This framework provides an excellent basis to examine the relationship between journalism and human rights. It also provides a foundation for examining the role of journalism in society. Although Harwood recognises three elements that are critical in making the calling manifest, he stipulates that the moral dimension is central to the calling. Pivotal to this is the notion of truth. The relationship between journalism and truth is paramount to its effectiveness. Evidence for this can be found in codes of ethics that guide and direct journalists in their newsgathering and reporting. Although there are hundreds of codes of ethics providing moral guidelines for journalists across the world, the central pillar within these codes is truth. For example, the first guideline of the International Federation of Journalist...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Front Matter
• 1. Introduction to Journalism for Social Change
• 2. Human Rights as a News Value
• 3. Human Rights Journalism and the New Journalism Ecosystem
• 4. Human Trafficking, People Smuggling, Refugee Migration and the News Media
• 5. Smuggled or Trafficked: The Story of the Rohingya
• 6. Human Rights Reporting, War Crimes and Refugee Migration
• 7. Reporting Human Trafficking
• 8. Best Practice Models for Reporting Human Rights
• 9. Media, Human Rights and Corporate Social Responsibility
• 10. Conclusion
• Back Matter