Media urged to act independent of political and economic interference

TIRANA, Sept. 23 – Last Friday was the international day on media ethicsء day which the head of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Ambassador Eugen Wollfarth used as an opportunity to send a message to the Albania media.
Being free of political and economic interference was a main call.
Albanian media has changed a lot from being politically biased during the former communist regime to being allegedly free and independent in the last two decades.
But it is not totally free and fair as it has a lot of political influence and economic pressure.
True there are a considerable number of balanced private newspapers, radio and television stations– not even imaginable during the former communist regime. But the ‘fourth power’ in modern democracies is not always serving or functioning as a watchdog for public good over the legislative, executive and judiciary powers.
Post-communist Albania is still in the stage of transition and the media role assumes even greater importance as newspapers, radio and TV stations also need to act as what can be called public educators, added the Ambassador.
“Certainly the media should be free of any political and economic interference in performing their public duty to inform the people,” he said.
Wollfarth urged journalists and editors “to nurture a strong loyalty to their professional responsibilities by their strict adherence to the principles of accuracy, objectivity and timeliness.”
The Ambassador also reminded the government “that it is the duty of the state to prepare and maintain the conditions for the media to report freely Ů The state should not attempt to regulate editorial content under the guise of regulating the business as the problems that stem from the freedom of media can only be solved by more freedom of media.”