KUCHING: Reports on terrorism should focus less on the terror groups.
This was emphasised by senior managing director of Strat3 LLC, Virginia, Robert Jensen at a two-day workshop on “Role of Media in Covering Security Cooperation” at Hilton Hotel here, which ended yesterday.
“By focusing too much on the perpetrators, journalists are unconsciously helping them to promote their ideology,” he said.
“The number one goal of most terrorist groups is to get as much publicity as possible and instil terror in society. They want to use the pressure to achieve their ideological and political goals. Unfortunately, they want the media to capture all their doings such as bombings, kidnappings and shootings because it could help them promote their goals and instil fear in the public,” he continued.
“What the government wants instead is to get a message to the public out there to not let the terrorists win. Don’t let them scare and influence the public to an extend that everyone is afraid to get out of their house and do anything,” Jensen pointed out.
The former principal deputy assistant of United States (US)’s Homeland Security Department further stated that journalists should learn to shift their focus onto the victims instead.
He also reminded journalists that they should be mindful and must avoid stereotyping or jumping into conclusions.
Apart from that, Jensen also advised journalists to be careful of misinformation and rumours as well as to perform their duty with honesty.
“Misinformation and disinformation are growing problems. With the growing usage of social media, journalists have to compete even harder to chase news,” he said.
The statement concurred with a recent statement by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) lecturer in Strategy Programme, Dr Farizal Mohd Razalli during the first day of the workshop where he mentioned that the situation right now is that journalists in Malaysia care more about who reports or flashes the news first.
“Journalists should focus on in depth reporting of the news content instead of winning the race. If this goes on, it might lead to misinformation,” he pointed out.
“The goal shouldn’t be about beating the social media because you would always be scooped by the social media. It is normal and nothing to be disappointed about unless the reporter is staying at the ground with a camera when the incident occurs,” Jensen explained.
“What’s more important is to confirm the details of the occurrence from verified sources. Journalists should prove their relevance to the public by providing useful, timely and accurate information because the public is depending on them to know about current situations revolving around them,” he concluded.
