Last week, the Ministry of Health said it plans to blacklist journalists who intentionally mislead the public about health concerns. The announcement shocked the media, who argue that newspapers are crucial in uncovering health scandals and that the blacklists could be used to obstruct investigative reporters and discredit their stories. Media commentator Bei Fangshuo calls for the government to rethink its proposals.
At a conference on food additives organized by the Department of Food Safety and the Ministry of Health, spokesman, Mao Qun’an, told journalists that the ministry plans to establish a “healthy platform for reporting” and create a more “healthy media” covering health. Journalists who spread incorrect information in order to mislead will be monitored and may be blacklisted.
Mao reminded the journalists that reports on food safety are hugely influential, telling them not to harm the nation’s development by mistakes and carelessness.
As spokesman for the Ministry of Health, it’s reasonable that Mao should want journalists to stick to the facts, but that ought to be the domain of journalist ethics. The media is scared and concerned by the idea of a blacklist.
If every ministry makes its own blacklist, it will be impossible for the public to hold them to account and the central government’s proposal to promote public supervision of the government will be merely an empty promise. What frightens journalists is the presumption that they are to blame and that ministries are free to punish or reward them as they like. If, among existing newspapers, television channels, radio stations or websites, we want to choose some that enjoy spreading false information and misleading the public and label them as “unhealthy”, then we need to be very clear about the criteria. Otherwise, it’s not hard to imagine that the category will be used to block honest reporting of problems with food safety.
It’s well known that the main reason for problems with food safety is the aggressive cost cuts by businesses in search of greater profits, but the lack of public supervision is also a factor. The Ministry of Health’s planned blacklist shifts the responsibility for problems onto the media. It is as though the problems don’t originate within the food industry but because of the media.
This can hardly be the Ministry of Health’s intention and the blacklist is unlikely ever to appear, but we ought to take note of the relationship between public authorities and the media.
Recently, there have recently been a series of cases in which public authorities threatened the media. The most shocking occasion was when a county party secretary sent someone to Beijing to snatch a journalist’s Dictaphone. These cases reflect public authorities’ prejudices against the media. However these prejudices are being challenged as the media’s role in society grows and the authorities need a new understanding of the media – it’s society’s immune system, not its illness. As one discipline inspection commission secretary said before he was sentenced to death, “the media is the best guard against corruption.”
When a sick man keeps complaining about his immune system instead of going to hospital, his illness can’t be cured. Likewise, when journalists are not safe, the safety of food and even society cannot be guaranteed.
This article has been reworded and edited by Will Bland.
cite:What is the balance between the media and the public authorities?
Yeah ,the journalists are the representatives of our public surpervision. It spreads the cultures and evaluate the government suffiency. However , it sometimes distort its functions and actions and is operated by other sections.
In a word ,I believe that food won't be safe unless the journalists are.
6#2441414
食物有毒，还是人心太毒？社会教育缺失的是否太多？
The society is poisonous in nature，so no to surprise that food is not safe for daily。Absence of common sense and general morality resulted in today‘s catastrophe.catastrophe.
Now this issue has caused wide public concern. Just as the author said, "the media is the best guard against corruption". We must take into account this problem rationally and play more emphases on media's role. Any government that is blind to this point will pay a heavy price.
blacklist ['bl?klist]
n. 黑名单
vt. 把 ... 列入黑名单
obstruct [?b?str?kt]
vt.阻塞，堵塞；阻碍，阻止，妨碍
discredit [dis?kredit]
v.怀疑 n.丧失名誉
calls for
需要
要求
additive [??ditiv]
n.添加剂
domain [d??mein,d?u-]
n.(活动等)领域，范围；领地，势力范围
ethics ['eθiks]
n.道德规范, 道德标准, 伦理学
be concerned by
被关注
aggressive cost cuts
激进的成本削减
take note of
注意，留意
snatch [sn?t?]
v.夺；抽空做；(at)一把抓住 n.片断
dictaphone ['dikt?f?un]
n. 口述录音机（商标名）
prejudice [?pred??dis]
n.偏见，成见 vt.使有偏见；损害
discipline inspection commission
纪委
likewise [?laik?waiz]
ad.同样地，照样地；也，又
cite [sait]
vt.引用，引证；传唤，传讯；表彰，嘉奖
The Ministry of Health wants to blacklist those journalists engaging in reporting false news on food problems, which arouses different opinions. The article suggests that news media play an important part in public supervision and act like an immune system, whose function can’t be denied.
It looks like a warning against the unhealthy food reporting. For those ordinary people who care about health, they welcome the reports on food problems, even if they are false. It doesn’t matter much to the masses, because they can avoid eating polluted foods and the biggest risk they take is they don’t dare to eat some kind of food which is reported to have some problems but in fact not. But it surely irritates the health department and food providers because some pieces of the news are in fact rumors. It will cost much for them to investigate the problem and eliminate the negative impact.
The motivation behind those food addictives is high-profit seeking. In these days, news on food problem becomes popular and eye-catching. Hope the mass media, also profit seeking, will not burst breaking news to mislead the public. But I think there are some channels of supervision to the mass media. And for us, maybe we should read the news with a skeptical eye.
I partly agree
It’s well known that the main reason for problems with food safety is the aggressive cost cuts by businesses in search of greater profits, but the lack of public supervision is also a factor.
54,54
In a word, we have lost trust in each other.
Trust shall be a basic line for people's connection and daily life. There are so many distorted stories in the society due to the lack of trust. If the journalists are safe, can we sure that the food will be safe if it was in the hand of some bad journalists? No, we can't. Hope that every journalist is a honest one is not a safe idea. So when we came back to the topic, what have caused the results? Food is the most important element in our daily life but now we have to worry what we eat, it's kind of joking, right? Thanks god, not every one is a bad guy, there is still hope that we can make this world a better place. Before that, there are so much to do.
14#wufei2134
依这么分析，还得扯出有效独立的第三方机构来监督。以目前砖家、公共事业团体水平来看，又有谁能承担呢？这个难题的解决，恐怕非一日之功。
Absence of ffectivethe third party operating agency ，who will undertake the food security responsibility？
Journalists have their wrong-doings, but we still believe them in a certain degree. On the contrary, we do not believe some supervisors who say food is safe. The fact is that almost all that we eat is not guaranteed. Governors who don't do what they should do are not fined, but they use their powers to supress who tell the truth!
26#happylife87
In my opinion，if we believe sth，sth will be bad.That is the core of our tragedy.Government、experts、charity，even human
Conscience ，which thing has not we believed？And what were the results？No believe，believe can be alive.
46、46
a good article.
in my opinion both sides have their faults. they didn't master the accurate extent of their behaviors. the ministry should not take constraint ; the journalists should be responsible for their covers and insure its authenticity not just for focus.
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