Saint-Louis, Dec 8 (APS) – The Senegalese journalist and international consultant Mactar Sylla advocated on Saturday in Saint-Louis (north), the establishment of a media regulatory authority which should take into account television, written press and social networks.
« Il [ne] “We don’t need an audiovisual regulatory authority but a media regulatory authority,” said Mr. Sylla during a graduation ceremony for training in journalism and communication organized by the Senegalese Institute of Management. (ISM), of which he was the godfather.
This authority should take into account not only television and the written press but also social networks, explained the former Director General of Radiotélévision Sénégalaise (RTS).
He believes that regulation is not just punishment but the competitive organization of a sector so that it is dynamic and moves forward in an innovation process (…).
“That’s what it’s about, there will be sanctions but they will be piecemeal,” added the speaker.
He pleaded for the involvement of self-regulatory bodies such as the Council for the Observation of the Rules of Ethics and Professional Conduct in the Media (CORED) which “must be strengthened to play its role well”.
Mactar Sylla also insisted on the need to review the composition of these regulatory bodies which must take into account the concerns of educators, women, environmentalists, doctors, athletes, etc.
The financing, content and specifications must be reviewed, said Mr. Sylla, regretting that political debates are taking precedence over other themes that may affect the lives of populations.
-The scientific committee of the media conference which he chaired for two years made a report with recommendations linked to the content, the viability of the sector, training, the safety of the journalist, he said, recalling that it was presented to the Minister of Communication while waiting to do so with the Head of State
He affirms that it will be necessary to legislate taking all of this into account by projecting the country into the next 25 years.
He says he is proud to have been chosen to be the sponsor of this first promotion, of this innovative training for journalists and online communicators.
”Our country needs to have professional media and this requires permanent strengthening of skills,” argued the founder of Label TV and Label Radio, a pan-African audiovisual group based in Gabon.
Seven professionals working in the media sector benefited from this certified training, including three from Saint-Louis.
AMD/ASB/AB
