PAKISTAN has gone up seven spots in the latest World Press Freedom Index, moving from 157 to 150th place out of 180 countries evaluated in the 2023 index released by global media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Wednesday. Commenting on Pakistan’s position in the index, the RSF notes in its report that “changes of government loosened constraints on the media in Pakistan” adding however that the country still continues to be among the world’s most dangerous countries for journalists”.
Improvement in ranking is really welcoming and should be seen positively. There is no denying that our media is the most vibrant, open and blunt when compared with the regional countries. The media outlets either television channels or newspapers can be seen freely criticizing government’s wrongdoings or other issues faced by the masses. To a large extent, the media enjoys freedom of expression in spite of political pressure and direct bans sometimes. Free media comes with a package of advantages such as educating people, raising awareness, developing public opinion and most importantly it supports democratic systems. Compare Pakistan’s current generation with their predecessors and one sees that when the media faced huge censorship and was not free, people knew a little about societal issues. Previous generations lived with low awareness owing to inaccessibility to information and hence vulnerable to manipulation. The current state of affairs harbingers a bright future as the masses have great knowledge about the issues faced by the country. But as also pointed out by the RSF, there is still a long way to go. According to the index, we are only better than thirty other countries. At least one hundred and forty cases of threats and attacks against journalists, media professionals and media organizations were reported in the country between May 2022 and March 2023. Hence, a lot needs to be done so that the media professionals can work in an environment free of intimidation and security threats. Responsibility in this regard rests with the government to do the needful in this regard. At this point in time when polarization has reached record levels in the country, it is also for the media to tread a careful path and avoid disseminating disinformation and advocating specific agendas. Instead of taking sides, the stories be reported in an unbiased, even handed and impartial manner.
