The international seminar on “Journalism and Ethics at the Crossroads of Modern World - Challenges, Opportunities and Ideals in Religious and Secular Media” held at Rome, Italy from 9 to 14 December 2008 affirmed that journalists and media experts must never give up the fundamental and solid principles that inspire and govern us every day.

The participants came from all the continents unanimously agreed to face the challenges of the modern times with great courage, make use of the opportunities for the welfare of the whole world and to practice the profession of the journalists in view of achieving the ideals.

Though we can not share all the experiences of the programme through this humble report, we are happy to bring to you some key findings and recommendations from the seminar.

Concern for Ethics and Values

Addressing at the opening session of the event, the President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli said: As I was reading accounts of the 80-year history of UCIP, I was impressed with a number of characteristics which distinguish it from other associations of journalists. Most importantly it is a Catholic organization which is officially recognized by the Holy See. At the same time, it is not exclusive to Catholics since UCIP also welcomes those who share the association’s core values and goals, but may not necessarily be Catholic.

Objectives of UCIP include its commitment to help those working in the media to aspire to the highest professional and ethical standards in journalism. And while other associations of journalists may promote similar aims, UCIP takes its inspiration from the person of Jesus Christ, true God and true man, in whom we find the roots of Christian morals and ethics. Therefore, UCIP has a distinctly Christian vision of the fundamental dignity of the human person and the obligation to uphold and defend it always. While UCIP’s origins are European, the association is now global, reflecting the diversity and richness of the universal Church.

I am also pleased to recognize UCIP’s special outreach to aspiring journalists through the International Network of Young Journalists – an ideal way to encourage, educate and inspire young people in their desire to excel in this vocation. The UCIP world congresses and special forums focusing on current moral and ethical issues offer important occasions to reflect, share and plan new responses and strategies. Also, the UCIP international awards in journalism have offered opportunities to highlight the highest standards of excellence, truth, respect for human dignity and concern for the common good.

Info-Ethics

The theme of this seminar, “Journalism and Ethics at the Crossroads of Modern World”, with the sub-theme “Challenges, Opportunities and Ideals in Religious and Secular Media”, allowed the participants a wide range of discussions on current issues concerning journalists and media ethics. In his message for this year’s World Communications Day on the theme “The Media: At The Crossroads between Self-Promotion and Service. Searching for the Truth in order to Share it with Others”, the Holy Father put forward an idea, which is particularly relevant to the themes participants discussed in this seminar. Noting that the communications media should ardently defend the person and fully respect human dignity, the Holy Father observed that many see the need for a focus on "info-ethics", just as we have in other fields, such as bioethics in the field of medicine and in scientific research linked to life.

In his message, the Pope noted that: "The role that the means of social communication have acquired in society must now be considered an integral part of the ‘anthropological’ question that is emerging as the key challenge of the third millennium. Just as we see happening in areas such as human life, marriage and the family, and in the great contemporary issues of peace, justice and protection of creation, so too in the sector of social communications there are essential dimensions of the human person and the truth concerning the human person coming into play." His message already serves to highlight some of the foundational ethical insights that would contribute to the development of "info-ethics", a relatively new area of reflection.

We must avoid what has been identified in bio-ethics as the "technological imperative ". In the field of medicine, we have learned that we ought not to do everything we can do. As the Pope reminded, it is equally true of the field of communications that "not everything that is technically possible is ethically permissible."

This message encourages those who work in the media to attend to the great responsibilities that rest with them and to uphold the highest standards of their professions. In particular, they are urged to be vigilant in their efforts to make known the truth and to defend it "against those who tend to deny or destroy it."

Media professionals are invited to defend the ethical underpinnings of their profession and to ensure that the "centrality and the inviolable dignity of the human person" are always vindicated. They are reminded that these ethical commitments can be eroded by factors such as competition for audiences, commercial pressures and ideological prejudices. They are warned of the danger of the media becoming the voice of "economic materialism and ethical relativism".

Secularism, relativism and liberalism

Secularism, relativism and liberalism continue to bring new challenges and even threats to sound journalism and ethics. For professionals working in the religious and secular media compromising solid values and dignity of human person is unacceptable.

Today not only capitalists but also communists and atheists promote unhealthy concepts and ideas emanating from secularism, relativism and liberalism. In countries like Latvia and Estonia, atheists can thus justify unjust attacks on respect for life; ridicule people’s faith in God; and consider men and women of good will incompetent.

In countries like Hungary in central and east Europe, though the communism does not any more exist officially, its ideologies and perceptions of human life are still taking tolls. These ideologies opposed to sound values continue to disorientate people from taking healthy approaches in life. The transition from communism to capitalism has so far worked only for those who make money.

Relativism has other significant consequences in regions like the Caribbean. New religious groups especially Christian ones have sprung up overnight and not only take the time but also the money and energy of many especially the poor. They propose miracles, instant cure for diseases and fortune. When in trouble their leaders also disappear as they came up and go to other places to make more victims.

One of the African participants said how these concepts of secularism, relativism and liberalism, have crept into the election agendas in the United States of America in the year 2008. As Africans rejoice in the election Mr Barack Obama, they are also worried that his views on right to exist can hinder other Africans’ aspirations to achieve similar aims.

Therefore the participants found that the tasks of journalists at the crossroads of the modern world are multiple and complicated. And regular seminars like these must be organised regularly.

20 Years of Summer University and Its Importance to Practice of Ethics Worldwide

The event was also an occasion to evaluate the 20 years of the formation event known as Summer University. The Italian part of the first Summer University was organised in Rome in 1988. During the first Summer University’s Roman days in 1988, the present Pope, then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was a keynote speaker.

Several of the participants of the Summer University present at seminar in Rome, expressed not only their gratitude, appreciation and nostalgia but also emphasised that they are the best occasions to understand the importance and relevance of ethics and concretely put them into practice worldwide by mutual inspiration from the Summer University participants and organisers.

During the past 20 years, UCIP Summer Universities have been organised worldwide promoting, formation, education and communication, animating young professionals and exposing them to diverse cultures and situations in order to enhance journalism and media ethics and values, and encouraging networking and mentorship between people from all parts of the world.

Summer Universities have been organised in Switzerland, Italy, France and Liechtenstein; Canada and United States of America; India and Pakistan; Hungary, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Poland and former East Germany: Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and South Africa; Hong Kong and Macao with individual visits to China and Taiwan; Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil; Cambodia and Thailand with individual visits to Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines; Trinidad & Tobago, Guyana and St Lucia with individual visits to Cuba and Haiti; Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Yugoslavia; Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador; Colombia, Ecuador and Peru; Bangladesh, Sri Lanka; Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

The event in Rome was also an occasion to celebrate the two decades of “initiatives of formation and bridging the world”: The major initiatives included World Congress at New Delhi, India together with the first awarding of the Gold Medal (1986); Creation of the International Network of Young Journalists (1987); First Summer University (1988); First World Convention of Young Journalists (1989); International Award for Excellence in Journalism (1989); First Refresher Seminar (1991); and creation of specialised awards in 1992 (Titus Brandsma, photojournalism), in 1994 (solidarity with refugees), in 2001 (inter-religious dialogue, women issues), in 2004 (edu-communication).

Freedom and Spirituality

The participants affirmed that sound spirituality practised in responsible freedom must constitute the best foundation for upholding ethics, principles and values at the crossroads of the modern world. New technologies and possibilities should not define the values but the respect for the other and the equal rights of the other must be the bases for norms and criteria.

Both traditional and new technologies, tools and possibilities have given persons to respect the other or annihilate the other. And nations were and are still led to war and mutual killings, because some want to dominate, some want to try their new technologies, possibilities and weapons.

It is exactly there where journalism based on true freedom and authentic spirituality should play its role. These are the constant challenges and opportunities for professionals in religious and secular journalism and media. These challenges can take new forms, but essentially they are the same.

Models that can be reproduced

The seminar invited journalists and the media to invent and sustain model publications, radios, televisions, web sites and other media organs that can be easily reproduced by others. There is no meaning in saying that one has the best or most successful daily, publication, website, radio or television. The best and successful ones are those based on values and can be easily reproduced by any one who is equally successful so that information is given to all respecting equality and dignity.

Those who pretend that they have the best publication or broadcast station are like those scandalous towers amidst shantytowns. Our aim must be not to become the best but to make every one the best. That is the only way to ensure that everyone is equal and has the same access and right to information.

By inventing and establishing such exemplary, simple and effective models, we also ensure that peoples get involved in decision-making on all levels. It is impossible to communicate from skyscrapers to shantytowns and the aim of skyscrapers is not to have any communication with the common people and go away from them as much as they can.

But at the same time, it shows that one can not escape realities by escaping to skyscrapers or to gated nations that multiply complications especially through entry visas with impossible-to-meet conditions for common people.

Therefore, there is need to rethink the whole concept for competition for the best. It is such segregations and discriminations that make our world fall apart and bring divisions among us. And media’s primary role is not competition but giving information to all in spite of all obstacles.

Approach to Religions

World’s old and non-established religions give the most difficult challenges to journalists especially from monotheist traditions. In this regard, it is not Islam that gives real intellectual and social challenges because it is monotheist. Buddhism gives tougher challenges, Hinduism the toughest, as they go directly into the fundamentals and reach the hearts of all peoples in all traditions and cultures. They touch the universal human nature.

These challenges especially intellectual ones are great opportunities for journalists to re-conceive their profession as well as to better understand ethics, equality, fraternity and freedom and to define ideals to be shared at the crossroads of the modern world.

There is a growing systematic rejection of established religions in all parts of the world by intellectuals and those who have fair access to information. They want answers based on reason compassion and love for the other. The other group that rejects organised religions are the population that is in a hurry and in constant stress: they need instant coffee, fast food, rapid results and instant religion.

Upholding Values

There are always ways to uphold values even in the most difficult situations. One of the resource persons from Africa explained what happened in his nation a few months ago. The Minister of Information banned two publications saying that they went against national security.  In spite the judicial findings found that there was nothing against national security and what the publications did was ethically right, the minister did not want to allow the publications to continue.

Such cases can happen any where in the world. But the solution journalists found to this problem was inspiring to many other nations. The journalists decided not cover any function of the Ministry of Information and some other key functions of the government.

This concerted action of journalists to uphold values and ethics born fruit and their reaction was non-violent, seeking the truth and therefore exemplary.

The Human Person

The ultimate goal of any journalism must be the human persons and their environments. And realising this aim journalists have to understand the cultures, languages, signs, customs and traditions worldwide. There is no use in exporting or importing norms from outside especially they do not make sense.

It is not just to impose superficial arrangements and values, as one has to go deeper in order to understand what happens to a person. Journalism that imposes ideas, ideals and norms is advertisement. And true journalism is exercised in universal interest.

There is no national, continental or religious journalism if one does not take into consideration the well being of all peoples and nature of this universe.

Feedback

The first reaction from participants and organisers was their appreciation to all the speakers from different parts of the world. They suggested that in the future there could be more panels as it can give more voice to different regions of the world.

They also said that this meeting should be organised annually if possible in Rome as a reference and regular meeting point for journalists and other media experts to evaluate periodically the challenges media faces in the modern world and to inspire from the examples of others.

In this regard the next meeting will be held in Rome very probably in October-November 2009.  The participants also appreciated the possibilities to visit and interview personalities and institutions.