LAST

night there was a talk by Peter Greste, best known by most for his time in an Egyptian prison. The talk was on ‘The War on Journalism’, a concept that is offensive although the reality is horrifying.

The advent of fake news and its use and abuse by President Trump and others is presented in the media as being a major concern although it is minor compared to the treatment of many journalists around the world.

A check online using Wikipedia lists more than 100 journalists killed during recent wars although more concerning are those who were killed deliberately rather than by ‘accident’ as can easily occur in a war zone. The number imprisoned is in the 100s with one example, Turkey having more than 50 imprisoned journalists.

The concept ‘war on journalism’ is offensive as no such activity should occur in any free or reasonable society. A society that cannot be told the truth will surely, or hopefully, collapse or else suffer the consequences of a lack of freedom – sadly something that is occuring too often.

Journalists are subject to the laws of the land and although most countries respect the freedom of the press there are countries that imprison them, not for telling the truth but just for asking questions.

Be glad you are reading this in a newspaper that is able and willing to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. DENNIS FITZGERALD