MAIMANA (Pajhwok): Deputy Minister of Information and Culture Mujahir Farahi says officials and government spokespersons are obliged to cooperate fully with the media and pay serious attention to journalists’ access to information to prevent the spread of fake news.
The Ministry of Information and Culture (MoIC) held a one-day seminar on “Enhancing Intellectual, Ideological and Professional Capacity” for journalists, media officials, writers, literary figures and young people in northwestern Faryab province.
Several directors of the ministry, local officials, university lecturers and journalists attended the seminar.
At the beginning of the programme, Provincial Information and Culture Director Mawlawi Shamsuddin Mohammadi said such programmes played an effective role in improving journalists’ intellectual development, strengthening religious and Islamic values, increasing professional knowledge and improving media activities.
He added that the media were important tools for public awareness, social reform, cultural development and reflecting realities, and journalists had a responsibility to provide people with accurate and useful information with honesty, integrity, accuracy and adherence to professional principles.
Meanwhile, Mujahir Farahi spoke about the responsibilities of journalists and the media, saying the media should convey to the public the decrees of the Amir al-Mu’minin issued for the welfare of the people and introduce the achievements of the Islamic Emirate to the people and the world.
Farahi said officials and government spokespersons were obliged to cooperate fully with the media and pay serious attention to journalists’ access to information to prevent the spread of false news.
Qari Habib Ghufran, head of Public Relations and spokesperson for MoIC, Mawlawi Abdul Haq Hammad, adviser to the Deputy Ministry of Publications, several local officials and university lecturers also spoke about journalism principles and journalists’ responsibilities at the programme.
Qari Habib Ghufran said journalists should verify the accuracy and truth of every report before publishing it and refrain from publishing false and baseless material.
He said journalists played an important role in raising public awareness and that the media had a responsibility to contribute to creating an informed society and the country’s development.
A number of journalists welcomed the programme and called for the problems faced by media outlets and journalists to be addressed, while stressing the need for such training seminars to continue to enhance journalists’ professional capacity.
Firoz Ghafoori, director of Radio Afkar-e-Mardom in Faryab province, welcomed the organisation of the seminar and told Pajhwok that the problems faced by media outlets were discussed during the programme.
He said media outlets and journalists faced economic problems, limited access to information, the suspension of broadcasts by some media outlets and restrictions on the use of images.
He expressed hope that the problems faced by journalists and media outlets would be addressed.
kk
