Irish Examiner view: Media has key role in defending our freedom 

The threat to free and independent journalism is not just a matter of combating disinformation. That threat is probably starker in Palestine than anywhere else in the world

Freedom of expression in journalism has rarely been so threatened. Picture: Lewis Stickley/PA

Today is World Press Freedom Day, and the very idea of freedom of expression in journalism has rarely been as threatened.

Over the next couple of days, Chile and Unesco are hosting the 31st World Press Freedom Day conference — which is to be dedicated to the importance of journalism and freedom of expression in the context of the current global environmental crisis.

This is a challenge which faces all of us, and there is a clear need to report on this crisis clearly and impartially when it comes to climate change. There is a double threat of deliberate misinformation and casual ignorance, which is particularly dangerous when it comes to this area, and the importance of facts is paramount: Following the science is crucial, and reporting accurately on that science is a vital part of the fight to save the planet.

The manipulation of social media and other online platforms has only served to underline the importance of the press, even as malign actors seek to undermine it. Finding a source of information which can be trusted — which is not pushing propaganda of one sort or another — is a boon to democracy and one which deserves to be acknowledged.

That said, the threat to free and independent journalism is not just a matter of combating disinformation or untruths. That threat is probably starker in Palestine than anywhere else in the world, where those who have been reporting on the savagery of the Israel Defence Forces have been repeatedly targeted with deadly effect.

As of two days ago, 142 Palestinian journalists had been killed in and around Gaza. This would be a shocking toll in any war zone, but it is even more difficult to comprehend here given that this conflict is not quite seven-months-old. 

It is a chilling display of deadly force intended to silence those who would bear witness to atrocity. The importance of these journalists’ work cannot be overstated.

The key term in World Press Freedom Day is "freedom" — without that there can be no real press. Without a real press, it is difficult to see how there can be real democracy.

'Worrying' dental school decision  

Irish Dental Association CEO Fintan Hourihan this week outlined some of his organisation’s concerns to the Oireachtas Health Committee, describing the decision to drop plans for a new dental school in Cork as “ profoundly worrying” given the number of shortages across the dental profession.

This development, reported by this newspaper last February, is truly concerning on a number of fronts.

First, it runs completely contrary to the Government’s stated objective of balanced national development — the lopsided concentration of population and resources around Dublin needs to be addressed, with significant facilities and services moved to the regions.

On that point alone, dropping these plans is misguided. If such facilities are not made available outside the capital, then we are storing up trouble for the future. In this case, more students and their families will come under significant financial pressure to study dentistry in Dublin if more places are not made available in Cork.

In some cases, that pressure will be too great, which may lead to an over-representation of Dublin students in this or certain other professions.

In addition, the Irish Dental Council told the health committee this week that a person convicted of sexual assault had practiced as a dentist in Ireland, while the council added that it was unable to act on several serious incidents due to limits in the Dental Act 1985.

Those incidents included “a person who repeatedly failed to diagnose a severe infection in a young child, and a person who had been erased [from a register] in two other European countries”. The council were notified of approximately 40 dentists who had sanctions applied in other countries, but it could not act as they were already on the Irish register.

If there are concerns about the professionalism of dozens of practitioners in any sector, then clearly that sector is in chaos. It is inconceivable that plans for a new dental school — which would help to resolve this problem — are not proceeding, and the State itself should intervene directly with funding here to resolve this situation.

What's in a name?

A lighter moment and a challenge for readers. Fota Wildlife Park has announced the recent arrival of five ring-tailed lemur babies, and is asking for the public’s help with naming them.

Currently classified as endangered, ring-tailed lemur numbers have declined by about 90% in the last three decades. Lemurs have been in Fota since it opened in 1983.

Since then, the East Cork wildlife park has been very successful in its breeding programmes across a range of species, in educating generations of schoolchildren about exotic animals, and it has also become a vital tourist destination in the region. Elsewhere on this page, the concept of balanced regional development arises in connection with dental facilities in Cork: Fota is itself a shining example of such regional development and all the benefits that can bring.

By encouraging people to propose names for the new lemurs, Fota is reinforcing and strengthening a sense of public participation in and ownership of its activities. However, it is not known if Lee Moore is already taken as a name for one of the new arrivals.

CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY HUB