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Ranil criticizes Daily Mirror reporter: Media associations express concern |
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Sunday, 11 November 2007 |
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Several Media Associations have expressed concern over the incident of reprimanding Parliament Reporter of the Daily Mirror Newspaper Kelum Bandara by UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe over the telephone.
The UNP leader allegedly pulled up the journalist for not giving publicity to a media release of his party.
In a joint statement, Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association, Free Media Employees’ Trade Union, Sri Lanka Muslim Media Federation, Sri Lanka Journalists’ Association and the Free Media Movement pointed out that the editors of the Newspapers have the right to publish or not any news story. However news stories are not published to pacify politicians.
The media upholds the tradition of publishing new stories that are of public interest, giving opportunity to every political party to express their views. It is a matter of serious concern that the state media and several private media institutions in the country violate such norms of balance reportage.
Meanwhile, the Editor of the Daily Mirror said that her newspaper gives adequate publicity to the views of the UNP. It is a clear violation of media freedom and an interference with the independence of media personnel to threaten a journalist for not giving publicity to a statement of a political party, she added.
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