Defamation inquiry - Investigative journalism remains vital

IN THE midst of trouble it frequently helps for people to realise that, as bad as things may be, they might actually be much worse.

Indeed, they frequently are in other parts of the world.

What is happening in Egypt, Syria, and Libya should be a salutary reminder that we are fortunate in so many ways. The people in those countries are on the streets giving vent to their frustrations because they have not had a media that has had the will, the desire, or the freedom to embark on the kind of investigative journalism that would have highlighted the ills that were festering in those countries before they developed into full-blown difficulties.

If a cancer is not tackled it inevitably destroys the body. Likewise in society, the first step is to recognise any cancer, and the media plays a vital role in exposing and identifying the ills of society.

Hence it is important that the forthcoming inquiries into the defamation of Fr Kevin Reynolds do not degenerate into some sort of witch-hunt.

What happened was wrong and inexcusable. The media should be most determined to see that what went wrong is exposed, because ultimately such wrongs are a very terrible reflection on the entire industry.

The media must learn from these mistakes, but this must not be allowed to develop so that senior management at RTÉ become reluctant to embark on investigative projects.

In that case the only winners would be criminals and incompetent public servants. A free press is what separates our democracy from the tyranny that was allowed to develop and destabilise the likes of Egypt, Libya and Syria.

Proper investigative journalism is vital in a democracy. It should be conducted with the best possible practices, and it should not be deterred by the spectre of potential defamation.

In recent years we have witnessed criminals seeking to use the defamation laws to intimidate the media into withholding stories.

The current inquiry into what happened in the Fr Reynolds case must be about uncovering the mistakes that were made in order to prevent a repetition of similar mistakes in relation to any other person.

But it is imperative that the outcome should not impinge on the maintenance of responsible press freedom, which is an imperative of democracy.