Ambassadresses of Sweden and Finland to Moldova Urge the Journalists to Perform Their Work with Dedication

The mass-media have the role to inform and the information must be objective. This opinion was expressed by the experts who participated in the second panel discussion at the Mass-Media Forum, 2016 Edition. The ambassadress of Sweden to Moldova, Signe Burgstaller, and the Ambassadress of Finland to Romania and Moldova, Päivi Pohjanheimo, emphasized to what extent the free and independent press is important for a State.
 
On 2^nd of December 2016, Sweden and Finland celebrated 250 years since the adoption of the first press freedom law in the world. In this context, Ms. Signe Burgstaller said that the situation of the media in Moldova has similarities with the pathway of the two countries. At the same time, the Swedish and Finnish ambassadresses urged the journalists from our country to do their job honestly. "We have a mixed picture of the media in Moldova. On the one hand, we see a diversity of media outlets with creative and talented journalists, it is impressive what happens in the online environment; on the other hand, there is also a less free press”, Ms. Signe Burgstaller stated.

In the same vein, Ms. Päivi Pohjanheimo stated that the freedom of the press secures the social and economic development of a country. “You have what to celebrate, and also what to defend. Continue to do your job with dedication”.

Present at the discussion, the Executive Director of the Independent Journalism Centre, Nadine Gogu, pointed out that the "Roadmap" developed at the forum held last year “is basically unfulfilled”. Nadine Gogu also added that if we analyse the results of the last Barometer of Public Opinion which reveals a fall of the population’s trust in the press below 40%, we may assume that consumers started to think critically. Consequently, if we had a freer market, an advertising market with no unfair competition and credible organizations to measure the audience, then the media would understand that viewers can tax them. “We have a lot to do, including in terms of legal framework ... Many laws need to be amended, improved, so that, if implemented, things could change for the better”, Nadine Gogu said.

During the panel discussion, the media experts pointed out one of the main problems faced by the media – the political commitment. In this context, the Executive Director of the Association for Independent Press (API), Petru Macovei, emphasised that the way how the media cover the events shows that journalists create the image of some politicians. “In a democratic society, the free media have the role to promote and defend the human dignity”, Petru Macovei stated.

The panel “The role of the press in a democratic society” was moderated by Viorica Zaharia, chairwoman of the Press Council of Moldova.