Oleh:Nazihah Abdol Rauh
Reporter should be honest in spreading news.
Is journalism part from job scope profession? Not all agree about it but part of some people become confuse of it. Everyone has they own opinion on this view. It is easy for someone to become a journalist if you are talented in writing and interest in writing. That is why some says that this job or work of journalist is not profession because you do not have to have a high education to be one. Still journalism is part from profession because in this job we learn of lot of thing.
Quote from Media Entertainment and Art Alliance stated that “Journalist describe society to itself. They seek truth. They convey information, ideas, and opinion, a privileged role. They search, disclose, record, question, entertain, suggest, and remember. They inform citizens and animate democracy. They give a practical form to freedom of expression. Many journalists work for private enterprise, but still these have public responsibilities. MEAA members engaged in journalism commit themselves to honesty, fairness, independence and respect for the rights of other.”
“Truth is out there.” This quote is very synonym with the journalist. They are normally would struggle their live to gain truth news in any way from the source. The journalists were most effort in jobs because they have to find the truth, to help to solve any matters that pending, and to spread newsworthy. Journalists are the main important person that responsible to spread news to others. They are the ones who dare and work hard in any situation to publish the news.
Every job field needs an ethics in the work place. So the ethics makes the job more professional as it. So is there any moral and ethics in journalism profession?
This ethics are important and must follow by each one of the members and director or supervisor. There are many things that reporter should alert and concern. In assign news, he or she must be wisdom. In Al-Quran surah Al-Baqarah 269 stated that God had give wise to any man He want, and man should wisely use in a proper way.
The journalist should be truth in his words. Means that he or she must not manipulate any source to confuse anyone and make any controversy. In the future, if the journalist had done a story accuse someone that not guilty, he or she would be summons on what he done. In producing news or information, journalist should be fair. They should not bias or against in any parties. If he or she must consider on what news that will be coming. The journalist is the one that makes readers thinks the next step. Apparently readers are from all different back ground. Sometimes readers would assume in many ways that will change and make misunderstand.
Instead of that, the journalist also should be trusted. The readers only trust the journalist if not where should they gain information?
The book title of ‘ So you want to be a journalist?’ by Bruce Grundy summarize that journalist should know that report are legal or not. He or she should consider the legality of the report that made. Then the journalist should be honest with themselves. Make sure that it is alright and not against the law to plagiarism and takes someone work with out permissions. Even stealing a story from someone else is already against the law.
Although the copyright and intellectual property are well protected by the law. It maybe legal and there may be no question of dishonesty involved but publishing a story about, or a photograph of a person in a pain or an emotionally distressed state may simple not be fair.
Meaning that reporter or journalists are forbid to spread any news and story to other’s without the approval of the public official. In case the reporter should check up what the law dealing with publication. The journalist should also emphasize or pay particular attention to one aspect of a story while ignoring other aspects is to skew a story.
Other than that, sometimes the picture are not seems as it was before. The stories also sometimes manipulated of audiences assume because the stories are not the way it is. More than that, if writing a story we should be aware not to take someone’s quote and change it for our own importance. The important thing that, we should check up the source for sure because to prevent it wrong information.
More than that, Bruce Grundy had also mentioned in his books of “So you want to be a journalist?” that journalism is a business in which decisions have to be made, and made smartly. A reporter or an editor might have 10 hours to deadline, which may not feel like much, or he or she might have only 10 minutes. In radio news, deadlines come around every hour. There is no time for long debates about what should or should not be done. This is never an excuse if anything goes wrong. It is just the reality of what happens.
But in Malaysia, we see that field of journalism are not expose to teenagers because this job are limited in Malaysia. According one of the journalists from newspaper of Utusan Malaysia, Muhd Ferzalfie Muhamad Fauzi,24 mentioned that to become journalist should interest in this field.
Unfortunately this major less expose to the teenagers because this job are limited in Malaysia. In Malaysia, we have only had two main newspapers in version Malay language example like Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian. Opposite from other kingdom like in U.S owns various main newspapers that include of bias, opposition or free and same also in Indonesia.
In high school also not to expose to students about this profession except in level form lower and upper six, but only few of the students know about this profession if they interest by naturally.
“Actually it is not that they not interest in this profession but they receive perception from other’s that assume this journalism have to work hard especially in writing, that they also have to write more, burden of work, and the salary are not satisfaction,” he said. He also stated that these young generation are become fewer and less because they are more interest in simple thing from all aspect. Although this job needs someone hard working and challenging in achieve something.
Ferzalfie also realize that to promote and invite people to join are very complicated situation except if that person are the journalist and retired journalist so they have the ability to convey other’s by explaining they own experience, something new, positive thinking, and salary that equals to our economy now also many things that even normal person would never have a chance to do such as enter in privacy area, meet artist, sport athlete, celebrity, the candidates of politicians and other’s.
Teachers are also not well supportive to students to participate, so the media should main important tool that may help to spread this profession journalism to citizens. They could advertise an exhibition of profession journalism towards school, college, universities and shopping complex.
Now days, we notice that journalist in Malaysia are also not far way behind. Although we are less behind from using technologies but still can get along in writing and publishing news. Some says culture, law and religion may ones that prevent from working but it is only small matters. But the journalist should manage and be comfortable with that situation to spread quality information and to able work smart.
The difference between Islamic journalist and non-journalist are “Islamic journalist is free journalist. Freedom from any authorities mostly material and status. They are special works to do only for God.” (Tuah Iskandar:1997) Besides that, the differences between our reporters that they are lazy, not brave enough, easily get bored, and take things easily.
After all, field of journalism needs to be more aggressive, active, high stamina, and be more alert in any situation. They usually stay up late finishing assignments, go back home lately and sometimes they seems have no live at all. They live busy prepare and assign news to publish, sometimes they even forgot to take care of themselves an example skip meal and had to hold on to have a lunch, meal because busy minding assignments.
So in this situation, it is not the gender neither man or women that prevent someone to be a journalist in this profession but they have to have the characteristics of tough to face the challenges, interest in writing, ambitious, and patient. Patient is very important to the journalist because in getting the news, most of it is hardest thing especially to those new journalists.
Sometimes it is not easy to find news instantly an example journalist or reporter at desk of crime, they are usually have to find any cases, accidents, crime, by they own. So, they have to go to the police station, and if they luckily sources that trust will help them to go to the scene or place to report. There are differences between journalist from desk of crime and other desks an example like sports, business, economy, and others. For this journalist, they own editor have to decide and prepare they assignments, they only have to report of that assignment then the editor will check up if it suitable fit in newspaper that day.
Meanwhile in assign the news, we surely must check the source to ensure that it is truth not fake. The source definitely must in primary source that it is directly involve with the information that the reporter seeking. He or she should alert that sources are the right and suitable person. Hadzlihady Hassan,24 who works as a reporter in the Harian Metro stated that source must be trusted. “If we have an information from a source, we should not expose where we take it, it is against of the ethics,” “an example like a police give statement, so we as a reporter should not mention who are the source.”
More than that, the journalist had to know and learn many things. It is to prove and against people assume that journalist is not a profession. To be a journalist, someone should be freely in writing, not need a qualification to be one as long you desire in this profession. If you are willing to admire and like glamour, journalist is the place where someone can meet people from an ordinary person to our Minister.
But it takes time to be a good journalist. He or she should have traits of journalist an example like creative thinking; self discipline, are organized have and have much general knowledge. This is why the world of journalist should be alert in any occasions and events. In the future, hope that this profession becomes more popular among citizens in Malaysia.
