CNN’s Christiane Amanpour spoke about the state of journalism at NewsXchange, a conference that brings together broadcasters from around the world, Thursday in Morocco. CNN.com has details of her “plea to fund and protect journalism”:
“Good journalism is good business,” Amanpour said, addressing a news industry fraught with concern about falling advertising budgets, challenges from the Internet and fears over the cost of maintaining news coverage. “Without the storytellers there is no business; there is no successful business.”
Amanpour said that politicians were putting increasing pressure on journalists; particularly those from their own national and local media. She called for a recommitment to the principle of the freedom of the press, and a move away from the demonization of journalists themselves.
AdvertisementShe described the U.S. administration of President Barack Obama as the most “litigious against journalists that we have had in decades,” making clear it was not just a problem in emerging democracies such as Turkey, Cairo and Sri Lanka. … At the same time Amanpour made clear journalists had a responsibility themselves to protect balance in their work and also not to portray every politician or person in authority as vain or corrupt. “We are also at risk of further tearing down the fabric of civil society by adding to the notion that every form of authority is simply useless; hopeless.”