New Media Board has a lot on its plate

A seven-member team has taken office as new board members of the Media High Council (MHC), a public institution charged with regulating the sector. The new team at MHC comes at a critical time in the media landscape of this country. A new media law has been enacted and, therefore, full implementation of this new law lies on its shoulders. More importantly, the sector needs a facelift as there is great need to improve professional standards. Currently, our media landscape is largely comprised of unskilled practitioners, whose work is wanting. Therefore, the issue of soliciting training opportunities for the unskilled journalists should be top of the agenda for this new team. The core mandate for the MHC is to promote and defend media freedom and work towards media development. These values must continuously be upheld by the new Board members. In addition, the process of enacting an Access to Information Law needs to be expedited as it will set a platform that eases information flow especially within public organs. Equally important, journalists carry out their work in an independent environment but conscious and respectful of the values of the society they serve. Quite often, some media outlets have blatantly disregarded the law and have shown no will to correct their mistakes. Much as freedom of the press is a treasured value, this must not compromise the freedoms of others. It has its own perimeters as defined by the law. The new team at the MHC will also have to ensure cohesion and harmony among journalists. Rwandan journalists can reap more benefits if they are keen on working together to solve pressing challenges within the profession. Ends

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New Media Board has a lot on its plate