How justifiable is the report tabled by the Media Reform Commission?

As a professional journalist, I have read the report of the Media Commission led by journalist Kamal Ahmed with immense attention. In my 29-year career, I have faced many challenges while reporting on the field for 27 consecutive years in one city, I always felt the need for reforms in the media to overcome those challenges. I have been waiting with great interest to read the report of this reform commission as no such commission has been constituted during the tenure of any political government.

The head of the commission and other respected members have certainly worked very hard in preparing the 180-page report. I thank them and express my gratitude. This report has brought forward excellent examples of the management of state institutions related to newspapers in several countries. A detailed description of the challenges that different types of media have faced during the tenure of different governments in Bangladesh since the independence has been given. The ownership patterns of different types of media established in Bangladesh have been highlighted. In addition, two important draft laws have been given, which are certainly positive and worthy of praise.

However, with all due respect to them, as a journalist who has been reporting continuously in newspapers and television stations for 27 years, this report has not fulfilled my expectations to a large extent. Rather, my expectations have been stumbled in some cases. Especially in Bangladesh, the "main and common" challenge of the media has not been specifically brought to the fore. The commission's report has completely ignored the "major and common" challenge of the media. As a result, it has not identified the major area for reform. Therefore, the report has been fragmented in a sense.

The challenge that has not been brought to the fore

The report has identified the ownership of multiple media outlets by an entrepreneur or a corporate group as a major weakness in the media industry in Bangladesh. This can be identified as one of the weaknesses, not the prime one. To me, the main weakness is the poor editorial management and fragile organizational structure of the media in Bangladesh which has not been discussed at any stage of the report.

An example will make my statement clear. Since the independence, the most powerful and influential media outlets in Bangladesh have been Prothom Alo and Daily Star. The editorial management of the two organizations is very strong because editors of the media cannot be replaced frequently. As the vision and foresight of an editor can create a strong policy and editorial structure for a media outlet, frequent changes in the position will not bring any good to the management policy. This is why Prothom Alo and Daily Star are strong, their editors have been able to independently carry out their responsibilities for a long time and have been able to build strong editorial management. That is why the organizational structure of these newspapers has also remained very strong at all times, during the tenure of all governments. There has never been a case of a large number of employees resigning from these organizations at once. When Prothom Alo was formed, about 90 percent of the employees of Bhorer Kagoj resigned on the same day and joined Prothom Alo. That Bhorer Kagoj could never stand on a strong editorial management or organizational structure. Perhaps, from that experience, far-sighted steps were taken in creating Prothom Alo's editorial management and organizational structure from the very beginning.

What exactly was this step? Due to what kind of management, Prothom Alo-Daily Star was able to stand on such strong editorial management, and despite owning more wealth and power than the Transcom Group, why the other industrial groups could not overcome the weaknesses of the very fragile editorial management? The reform commission's report should have contained the study. Then, the weaknesses of ownership and editorial management in newspapers and broadcast media in Bangladesh could have been identified and effective recommendations could have been made to build strong management. If the activities and influence of social media had been properly assessed, it would have been possible to give effective recommendations for online news media as well.

The report of the Media Reform Commission made some superficial assessments and recommendations but did not come in a specific manner. This is because the report of the Commission did not proceed by identifying the main weaknesses correctly. Due to the weakness of editorial management, strong organizational structures are not being created in newspapers and broadcasting outlets, and journalists in those media are not protected. Rather, they perform their professional duties amidst extreme uncertainty and insecurity. And because they perform their duties amidst instability, journalists cannot be professionals but rather have to save their jobs by playing the role of the owners and their nominated news managers. And when instability and uncertainty become continuous in the media, very few talented and qualified people want to come to the journalism profession. When talented people do not come to journalism, the untalented fill that void, and the entire field of the country's media and journalism becomes weaker and weaker.

Since the Company Act of Bangladesh has a provision for the establishment of groups of companies the recommendation to implement this policy by one owner while keeping that provision intact is not realistic. The report of the Media Reform Commission itself states that big banks can provide their social responsibility funds for establishing news outlets. So if a big corporate organization also invests in the media from its social responsibility fund or startup fund, then there is nothing wrong with that. And even if that investment is considered a subsidy for that corporate organization, there is nothing wrong with that. If a media organization does not make a profit for a few years but runs on subsidy money, maintains professionalism in journalism, and professional journalists receive regular salaries, then there should be no question. However, the Reform Commission report has raised questions about why an organization is running the media even after it is not profitable, which is not considered reasonable.

The report has made recommendations about the qualifications of an editor of a media organization. This is very positive. Of course, there should be a standard for who should be an editor. Without that standard, the appointment of editors should be stopped. In the past, it has been seen that former ministers of political governments, former bureaucrats, investors themselves, or corporate officials nominated by the investors have sat in the editor's seat without minimum experience in journalism. As a result, the entire 'editorial management' has been questioned and even true professional editors have faced a big challenge in fulfilling their responsibilities. The investing organization has appointed people loyal to a certain party as editors need to please the political government for their interests, which has weakened the professionalism of that media outlet.

The situation is even worse for news chiefs or programme heads on television channels. The freedom of work that an editor has in newspapers is not the same as that of news or programme heads on television. There are no principles or ethics here, but they follow the preferences or wishes of the investor. That is why the owner's relatives and references are given priority in case of hiring. Here, it is more important for the employees to be trusted by the owner than to prove their professionalism. Here, news chiefs and programme heads are just routine positions. As a result, the investor's taste is reflected on the screen of the TV channel they own. Journalists have also adorned the position of CEO on one or two televisions. However, they are also subject to the owner's wishes in terms of work. However, there are some examples of positive reflections on the screen when those in the position of CEO work with a professional attitude.

The Media Reform Commission report does not contain a 'case study '-based investigation and review of the editorial management and organizational structure of newspapers and television channels. That is why the report does not specify the main challenges of the media in Bangladesh.

The picture of challenges and harassment of journalists outside of Dhaka is absent

The report gives an account of how professional journalists and editors have been subjected to harassment and torture during the tenure of various governments. But it is limited to the picture of Dhaka or the center. The picture of journalists outside the capital is completely absent there.

A general idea is that most of those who do journalism outside Dhaka are involved in various types of misdeeds and fraud. During my 26 years of continuous reporting, I have traveled almost all over the country to perform my professional duties. I have visited all the districts, cities, and more than a hundred upazilas. My experience is that most of the journalists there are performing their professional duties with dedication, and taking great risks. But they are deprived. There is a system of protection for those who do journalism in Dhaka in various ways, the office can take direct responsibility in case of any crisis. However, the journalists out of Dhaka have to perform their duties constantly under the threat of the local administration, political parties, gangsters, and criminal gangs.

Except for a handful of news media, those journalists do not receive regular salaries. Several established news media that pay journalists well in Dhaka, those journalists are being paid poor salaries. Here, a difficult reality must be understood. Given the investment made in the media and the monthly operating expenses, it is not possible to determine the salary and allowances for the countryside at the center's standards based on the reality of the allocation. That is why teachers from educational institutions, lawyers, or small independent entrepreneurs are selected for journalism outside of Dhaka. They do journalism along with other professional responsibilities. This has been happening in the field of newspapers for a long time. But with the development of television journalism in the last two decades, in many places, some local bigwigs, political activists associated with terrorism and imposters have joined the reporting. This trend of 'no salary card' was introduced by one or two television channels. Later, it was infected the newspapers, especially 'underground' newspapers. Later, in the online era, it has become an epidemic. As a result, professional journalism in the district has faced more risks and challenges.

During the tenure of the fallen Awami League government, there have been reports of torture and harassment of big editors. But more than a hundred journalists in the district have been tortured under the Digital Security Act, have gone to jail, and have remained neglected. On March 13, 2000, a few local administration officials launched an attack in the name of a mobile court on the house of local journalist Ariful Islam Regan in Kurigram at midnight for reporting corruption against the then Deputy Commissioner of Kurigram. A false case was filed against Regan after he was physically tortured and seriously injured.

The government investigation report proved the allegations of serious crimes against those officials. But later, the fallen Awami League government pardoned those criminal administration cadre officials for their serious offenses. It was expected that exemplary action would be taken against those criminal officials during the tenure of this government as a result of the mass uprising of the students and the public. But no action has been taken so far.
This is just one example. There are more than a hundred examples of such journalist torture during the tenure of the fallen Awami League government. Unfortunately, not a single one of those has come up in the report of the Media Reform Commission. There is no description of the murders of journalists in the past in the district and there is no review, analysis, or reason why the murders were not prosecuted in the 180-page report of the reform commission.

One thing must be understood: So far, the district journalists have been the center of gravity in the field of journalism in Bangladesh. They are the ones who are faithfully carrying out their duties and bring various news of grassroots achievements, innovations, as well as inconsistencies and irregularities to the attention of policymakers. It is impossible to reform the media by leaving them out of the reform programme.

No mention of the weakness of journalistic organizations and the dangerous underground media

Bangladesh is probably the only country in the world where the journalist union is divided into two based on political party loyalty. In 1992, the Dhaka Journalist Union was divided. Naturally, the Federal Journalist Union also split. Panels from two forums were also seen in the elections to the National Press Club. Major complications arose regarding the granting of press club membership. It became impossible for professional journalists to obtain press club membership without the nomination of a forum supported by a political party. That diseased practice still exists today. When the complications regarding press club membership reached an extreme level, an organization of professional reporters called Dhaka Reporters Unity was born. However, this organization did not have professional journalists for very long. Its leadership election also eventually became dependent on the votes of those working for the underground media.

Due to the political division, the Journalist Union, the main organization for protecting the professional rights of journalists, became weak. Taking advantage of that weakness, a large number of journalists from the 'underground' media, who pretend to be journalists, get membership in the two sections of the journalist union and press club. As a result, even though professional journalists are in the leadership of the union, they have to depend on the so-called journalists of the 'underground' media to win elections. As a result, the journalist union becomes a platform for the loyalists of the ruling party to obtain immoral benefits during the political government and for the interests of the underground media's scammers. I do not know of any other country except Bangladesh where there are dozens of underground media like this.

Now, what is this underground media? In 2005, I did an investigative series report on this underground media. At that time, I had to face severe threats for a long time. Newspapers may have more or less circulation. However, the circulation number is not the criterion for underground media. Even if a media outlet with a small circulation has professional editors, journalists, and editorial management and maintains a minimum level of professionalism in news publishing, it cannot be called an underground media. Rather, there are a few newspapers with a smaller circulation than the more widely circulated media outlets, where the editorial management, organizational structure, and professionalism in news publishing are much better.

‘Underground’ media are those media outlets that are mainly published by one person or a small group. In my research in 2005, I saw that more than a hundred daily newspapers were published from a few presses in Fakirarpool in the capital. Their circulation is not more than fifty to one hundred. In most of these media outlets, the editor is unknown, there is no office, and although two or four people who pretend to be journalists exist, they are blackmailers and fraudsters. Their main profession is extortion by threatening to publish false news against various institutions and individuals. They are the biggest fraud ring in Dhaka.

The biggest issue is that these underground media are owned by leaders of various levels of political parties. Some of them are also leaders of the Journalists Union, National Press Club and Reporters Unity. Many of them have a ‘declaration’ business. They get newspaper declarations quite easily. They grab government advertisements by showing the fake circulation of that newspaper. This is their main source of income. In my research, I have seen that although it is difficult to get a declaration to start a professional media house, there is no problem in getting a declaration for this ‘underground’ circle. In the case of television channels, too, the activities of one or two channels have been seen to be conducted in an underground manner.

Later, in the era of online media, this underground media has taken the form of an epidemic. Hundreds of online media are being launched without any kind of editorial management organizational structure and recruitment of professional journalists. The registration process of online media was introduced during the time of the fallen Awami League government, but it is seen that this underground circle is getting registration very easily according to the declaration of the newspaper. During the time of the fallen government, underground online sites, which often lacked proper editorial management, received registration from the Ministry of Information. The underground syndicate has taken advantage of the registration process that was established during the era of the rise of information technology during the period of stagnation.

On the other hand, those who want to establish professional online media have to go around for days to get registration even after everything is in order. A proper investigation will reveal the real picture. At that time, several online media outlets established under professional management did not get registration. These issues have also been mentioned in the report of the Reform Commission. But there is no case study or investigation in the report of the reform commission on any kind of weakness, or opacity in the entire process starting from applying for registration, what kind of harassment is there, and what kind of irregularities are there. There is also no specific recommendation on how to make the registration of online media easy and transparent through the use of information technology. However, the recommendation made in the report of the commission to recognize an online portal as a news medium only if the editorial management is like that of an established newspaper and there is a solid foundation for investment is commendable. The proposal to entrust the jurisdiction of granting registration is also timely and reasonable.

Overall, it can be said that due to the political division of the journalist union, party-based journalism has spread to several established media outlets. Although the commission report analyzes and criticizes party-based journalism, its source has not been investigated. As a result, there is no effective recommendation to stop party-based journalism. There is no way to stop party-based journalism except by forming a unified professional journalist union instead of a politically divided journalist union. There is no suggestion or opinion in the reform commission report on this matter.

On the other hand, due to the manipulation and blackmailing of the underground media, the social status of journalism in Bangladesh is constantly being undermined. Professional journalism is being held hostage by fraudsters and scammers in the name of journalists of the underground media. Without eliminating the underground media associated with fraud and blackmail through strict legal measures, it is not possible to free the professionalism and social status of journalists from the hostage situation. There are no specific recommendations in the reform commission report on these matters either.

How is effective reform possible despite such a huge challenge?

The commission's report mentions the establishment of a media commission through specific legislation, which is the most positive aspect of this report. The way the media commission is proposed is correct. However, there should be a clear provision in the law that no government bureaucrat can be the chairman, member, or secretary-general of this media commission. The manpower to assist the secretary should be appointed through the commission's recruitment process.

My proposal regarding the formation of the first commission is that the first commission can be formed by combining the head and members of the reform commission that tabled this report. Because each of the members of the reform commission is well-known and has been tested for professionalism in their respective positions. As a result, both the complexity and time will be saved in forming the first commission.

Rased Mehedi, Editor, Views Bangladesh