Govt wants to hold media accountable

PRIME Minister James Marape says the Government will come up with laws to penalise or hold media organisations accountable for misreporting or defamatory news.
He also urged the country’s mainstream media, especially the two dailies, to practice responsible reporting.
Marape was responding to Karamui Salt Nomane MP Francis Alua in Parliament on Wednesday regarding crime reports being given prominence in the dailies in recent days.
Alua told Parliament that this had portrayed the country negatively and was a poor reflection on the Government.
“The media are portraying the Government as not managing the situation. As government, are we taking an measures to address the issue?”
He made reference to a story and images of people beheaded in Madang being splashed on the front page of this newspaper this week.
Marape said the Government would look into the matter.
“We are looking into this area. Media and journalism accountability will be stepped up. You write a story, you must include your name. We are looking at defamation penalties. We are also looking into some of these laws next year. Not just formal media but social media platforms as well.
“Our media companies, while they have total freedom to write, print and disseminate information must also take some responsibility. Freedom of speech is a qualified right. Write facts not rumours. For the two print companies, have some sense of responsibility to our nation.”
He added that overseas newspapers did not always publish crime upfront.