Press Freedom Index - It shouldn’t be confined to the media

IRELAND has fallen five places from ninth to 14th in the latest Press Freedom Index, published by Reporters Without Borders.

The 2017 Press Freedom Index reveals that, as in other matters of liberalism, the Nordic countries lead the way, with Norway in pole position.

For most people, that may not be Earth-shattering news, of interest only to journalists and others who work in the media.

But press freedom is important for everyone, part of a wider right to freedom of expression and something to be guarded, nourished and preserved. In a democracy, it ensures that governments, decision makers as well as powerful people are held to account and operate in a transparent environment.

Freedom of the press is everyone’s business.

The index points to three main threats to press freedom in Ireland: the highly concentrated nature of media ownership, the proliferation of defamation lawsuits and the Garda Síochána Act of 2005 which bans gardaí from talking to journalists without prior authorisation.

It also points to the fact that Ireland — along with eight other EU states — still has blasphemy on the statute books.

On the face of it, having media ownership concentrated in few hands may pose a risk to the freedom of journalists to report without fear or favour, but it is a crude yardstick. The real issue is whether such a perceived risk actually translates into a widespread diminution of press freedom.

There is no evidence that it does. RWP points out that Independent News and Media (INM) controls 40% of the daily and Sunday newspaper market in Ireland. That may well be so, but it doesn’t prove anything, least of all that, as a result of such concentration, there is less press freedom in this country compared to other countries where media ownership is more diverse.

The index is on sounder ground with regard to defamation.

It is mostly the major cases that we hear about, when very big awards are made, as in the Monica Leach case where the plaintiff was originally awarded €1.87 million in damages, later reduced by the Supreme Court to €1.25m.

A survey by the national newspapers’ representative body, NewsBrands, estimates costs associated with defamation for 2010-2015 for its members to be in excess of €27.5 million. That includes awards, settlements, and legal costs. That is an enormous figure for the traditional media that is already facing an existential threat to its existence.

The 2009 Defamation Act was supposed to bring some semblance of sanity to the situation, but little has changed. The level of awards are still out of kilter with the norm in other EU countries.

Press freedom isn’t just about freedom of the press. It is about freedom of thought, expression and access to important information for everyone. It is not – and never should be – confined to journalists and those who work in the media. It is too important for that.