Freedom of press must come with responsibility

KUALA LUMPUR: Freedom of the press must be exercised with responsibility to avoid disrupting national harmony, said former Media Prima Berhad chairman Tan Sri Johan Jaaffar.
The veteran media practitioner said the onus is on the journalist to practice self restraint in releasing contents that are religious or racially sensitive.
He said playing up such issues would sell newspapers but would not be good for the country.
"It would not be appropriate for the country. It is our judgment. What we should do is to exercise restrain on such (sensitive) matters involving religion or race," he said in a dialogue session titled "Social Media and Print Media: Accountability in news reporting with a focus on integrity at the Integrity Institute of Malaysia (Integriti) here.
He said before the emergence of online media, news content had to be filtered responsibly as readers took the printed word as truth.
"I always believe that there must be freedom with responsibility.
"Back then, I believe we had to exercise restrain on certain things," he added.
Johan however added that the movement of information in the social media age is so overwhelming that it is almost impossible for its passage to be filtered effectively.
Meanwhile, Integriti president Dr. Anis Yusal Yusoff urged those with access to confidential information on alleged wrong doings, to exercise courage in reporting such information to the relevant agencies.
He said the country has its own laws to protect whistleblowers and witnesses exposing such information.
"If it is for the greater good of our nation, we have to come forward and present our reports to agencies such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.
"We should not be scared...by those who are involved in such wrongdoings. We have the laws and responsible agencies to safeguard the interest and safety of members of the public," he said.