Improving people’s lives

This is my first of regular contributions in The Malta Independent. I thank the editors and publishers of this paper for immediately warming up to the idea of carrying a regular spot in this well-established paper.

Ilove newspapers. During my student days I used to report Parliamentary sittings for a Maltese language newspaper and I found that work fascinating. At the time portals were still not around and the internet was in its infancy. When websites did come around, I quickly sought to work in this exciting new environment with a website called di-ve.com.

I think that the combination of printed media and news portals is fascinating. News portals give you the immediacy advantage over all other media, including TV and radio. The printed/traditional version of the paper, then, gives you the opportunity to delve into more in-depth work and reporting.

Not to mention citizen-journalism or blogs, which in themselves are captivating innovations that came about after my time as a law student.

As a Minister, I admit that news portals and newspapers are an integral part of my life. I keep myself updated on a regular basis every day and they are the first thing I see when I wake up and the last thing I see before I switch off my night lamp.

I also read the comments, which I sometimes find amusing and sometimes grossly unfair, but I do take them with a pinch of salt.

This does not mean that news portals and newspapers are an integral part of the ordinary man in the street. Since my first days in politics, I quickly realised that what we believe is a priority and what the man in the street believes is a priority do not necessarily coincide, and it happens more often than not. Sometimes, what is front page news in portals and newspapers is simply not considered important for families in their homes and vice-versa. All you need is to take a Sunday off and visit a couple of village core areas to quickly realise that.

Some people tell me that the ordinary man in the street warms up to stories with a social tinge or real life experiences. Practically that sums it all up. People care for what is relevant to them and their lives. In those stories they see a scenario that is relevant to them. Seeing some odd Minister speaking about a complex piece of legislation does not.

Of course this does not mean that we should turn everything into a popularity contest. There are issues which, though not popular and attractive, are crucial and important. And it is the duty of newspapers and portals to discuss them and challenge the status quo all the time.

Like most people in Malta, I own a Facebook account. I use my Facebook page, in particular, to communicate to the public positive initiatives which my Ministry undertakes since sadly, for some reason or another, they are not given much visibility by the independent media in particular.

My page gives me the facility to track how many people have actually followed a particular story.

Those initiatives and communications are received very positively. The reason being that they speak about things which improve in a manner or other their way of life, or the lives of their loved ones.

I look forward also, in particular, to the big debate we will be having in the coming days in Parliament on the new Media and Defamation Bill.

Again, the man in the street will probably not make much interest in the eighteen major legislative reforms we will be undertaking through this piece of legislation. Nevertheless, the positive consequences that the Bill will usher through will be felt by everyone after they are passed and soon we will start reaping the benefits.

This Bill will implement a whole array of legislative changes but more importantly a change in culture. When I meet foreign experts who are wellversed in media law they express surprise at the large number of libel proceedings which are filed every year here in Malta. True, access to justice is relatively easy in Malta – I pride myself that Court tariffs are on the low side and it is very easy to hire a lawyer. But yet the high number of libel cases in court signals the need of a change in mentality on the way we deal with each other.

Increased liberty brings about the need of more responsibility. As much as a culture of more tolerance needs to be exercised in Malta, journalists and citizens who contribute to the public debate in general will realise that the weight of responsibility on their shoulders will double once the reform goes through.

Journalists have to exercise their profession with responsibility. Two golden rules apply: facts must remain sacred and hate speech should never be tolerated.

If we manage to stick to those two golden rules, we will make the people out there proud.

Since my first days in politics, I quickly realised that what we believe is a priority and what the man in the street believes is a priority do not necessarily coincide, and it happens more often than not.