BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THERE is a common practice among some broadcasters/reporters in St. Kitts and Nevis who show no respect for the work of their colleagues, who toil arduously in investigating, researching and visiting crime scenes to gain information for public consumption in their respective media house’s organ or radio station.
These broadcasters/reporters are guilty of plagiarism! They unabashedly use others work with impunity and neither state from where the information was garnered nor give credit to the originator. They simply own it!
There are but a few qualified and certified practitioners in the Federation who, when using their colleagues work, will either seek permission before publication or give credit where due in their reporting.
It is very expensive to run a media house; in that owners have to employ qualified and, most often, professional journalists in order to produce credible reportage, analyses and commentaries on events and issues to bring out dimensions of phenomena that people can ponder on and either accept or reject.
What these individuals are perpetrating is patently unfair and it undermines journalism in the Federation.
Owners of media houses sometimes employ freelancers, but how many of us know from where they find money to pay them.
The money comes from advertisements!
No businessperson or entity will ever advertise with a media house that does not attract a large audience or readership. Therefore, when a journalist/broadcaster/reporter had worked arduously to produce an article and without permission or giving credit it is taken by his/her colleagues to enhance their reportage, they would have committed the cardinal sin in journalism.
The perpetrators know themselves and it is hoped that on reading this article they will desist and do the right thing, because we are all in this business together and should amicably share information on request.
Ii is also known that many of these perpetrators are untrained, uncertified and may have had experience of some sort, either as Disc Jockeys or Talk Show Hosts, among others. Therefore, because of being unaware of the Code of Ethics of this honourable profession, they have been forgiven but, once again, seek permission and do not embark on plagiarism.
SKNVibes, in a subsequent article, will publish a list of Code of Ethics aimed not only as a guide to colleagues, but also to sensitise the public on what are required of members of this profession.
Remember, professional integrity is the cornerstone of a journalist’s credibility.
