Need of the hour
These are testing times for Pakistan’s media industry with multiple problems across all mediums. From a financial standpoint it has to be accepted that internationally conventional media is having a tough time keeping above water. In Pakistan however with the abrupt cut in government spending on advertisement by the PTI the situation is much worse. The economic slowdown has compounded the problem with companies slashing advertisement budgets to cut down on costs. Simultaneously, efforts are being made to control the narrative through media management. Those who dissent are excluded from ad campaigns and only those who tow a certain line are entertained, which is essentially an extension of the first problem. Fear tactics, abductions, detentions and curbs on distribution and broadcasting are common. To legitimize this anti-democratic practice a new regulatory body PMRA is being formed that will be a one-window operation aimed at curtailing press freedom.
Currently there are different representative bodies for editors and media owners with sub-bodies for various mediums like print and electronic due to which there is a divergence in views about the prevailing scenario amongst stakeholders with some even choosing to ignore it altogether. Therefore the formation of a new media representative body PNMA (Pakistan News Media Association) is a welcome move aimed at establishing a more comprehensive and inclusive body with representation across all platforms ranging from editors and television anchors to digital media outlets, columnists, advertisers and intellectuals. In a first the heads of all national press clubs have also been included in the body, which will provide working journalists a broader forum to voice their legitimate concerns. The sort of tacit censorship that is being practiced currently has not been seen previously in the chequered history of the movement for press freedom. Hence it is imperative now more than ever to have an organisation like the PNMA to put up a united front against the pressures being faced by the fourth estate.
