BAD-NEWS BLUES
Over the past few weeks, there were many times I worried about the state of journalism in Thailand. The media in general came under fire a lot this month, and there were some good — or rather bad — reasons behind it. Just last week, when a boy fell from an escalator in a well-known shopping mall, the media rushed in, as many of them happened to already be there for a press conference, and made sure the public knew what was going on. In their rush, many reports came with conflicting information, mainly regarding which floor the boy actually fell from, as well as other minor details.
There’s tough competition out there. And in a time when media outlets are closing down and laying off their employees, organisations try to stay afloat by any means necessary. Ratings, and thus the ability to attract advertising, become much more crucial and competitive than ever. And in news, many make sure to be quick in their reports, as they aim to be the first to break news. Unfortunately, for this to happen, some have sacrificed accuracy for speed in the process. And a few even went beyond the line of ethics to attract the crowds to their channel.
An incident which saw this controversial practice played out was the recent Korat mass shooting that put the entire nation in fear. That evening, Thais were glued to their screens as everyone waited to hear updates from the havoc caused by the gunman.
Media personnel, both on-site and in-studio, pulled an all-nighter in providing live updates throughout the incident. But as some were praised for giving accurate reports without giving too much away, others allegedly interfered with the rescue mission, revealing crucial details of the operation live as the incident was ongoing. They were accused of feeding information straight to the killer, and many believe this also caused the incident to take longer to resolve, with more casualties than there should have been.
But it got worse. Some media were trying to phone those who were still stuck inside the mall and interview them as they were still hiding. Some of their family members were also contacted and put on air, and got asked how they felt about losing their loved ones. Many insensitive questions were asked. Privacy was violated. And, all in all, we have to ask: Is this what we must do to survive nowadays? What does journalism still mean today in the face of commercialisation?
As much as I’m a journalist, I was also an audience member with a choice that night. And so I stuck with a news outlet I trusted to give quality, ethical reports. I commend them for standing their ground when others have gone, well, entirely elsewhere. And so I was really surprised — and sad — to find out later from a survey that my preferred news outlet actually did poorly in terms of audience share on the evening of the mass shooting.
But what of the outlets that many viewers strongly attacked and universally hated online? They were leading the ratings game. And, in the end, that’s the verdict. Even as people were cursing it, they still watched those troubling news reports more, and unknowingly helped to sustain this cycle of practice. The ratings had spoken, and the voice was louder than the people’s call for these media outlets to be punished somehow.
This isn’t the first time the media has come under strong criticism for their questionable conduct, and unfortunately it won’t be the last. What can we do to stop them? Personally, I feel that unfollowing and ignoring these media would be best. That’s probably the most obvious message one can send to let them know this kind of practice is unwanted. And in these past few months, I have unfollowed many news pages on Facebook, and just stuck with the few I still believe in.
Ignore it. Let it die. Any attention, positive or negative, will just encourage them to continue. Ratings don’t take your intention and concern into consideration.
That’s my take as an audience member. And as a journalist, I’d also say it’s our responsibility to uphold the integrity of our profession. We’ve heard a lot about some wanting to “reform” the media and even to control it. Don’t give anybody any excuses to control what we do. Because if we ever allow that to happen, what will it eventually lead to? Our voice will be monitored and silenced, and the information that the public could receive from us will be in jeopardy of interference from the authorities. The limited freedom of speech we have will be even worse.
Ratings are much more crucial and competitive than ever before