Verification and authentication of information should be a cardinal principle in life, but most importantly the media should unflinchingly abide by this principle because they have a huge responsibility to ensure that accurate information is disseminated and in so doing help to maintain a stable society free from ethnic, political and social tensions.
Anita Chanda in her article notes that the “media in all its forms, print or electronic, is a mirror of the times and societies we live in. It connects us to the world and the world to us. We know about the people and happenings of other places and countries, as they know about us through the picture created by the media. Media can make or mar one’s image. It inspired and ignited the freedom struggle and it inspired and coaxed the citizens to come out and vote. It brought out the barbaric tradition of horror killings from the quiet villages to the national limelight and also brought shame to many a celebrity!
“An unfettered press without ethical concerns can be a threat to a free society and to its very independence.”(N. Bhaskar Rao, Media Ethics Getting Complex- The Tribune, Dec. 9, 2005)
Unfortunately, here in Guyana there are some media houses which do not abide by the principle of verification and authentication of information. Instead, they engage in spreading sensationalism, misinformation, rumours, spurious and unsubstantiated allegations and speculations under the guise of news reporting. One particular media house seems to have a penchant for this kind of news reporting.
A typical case in point is the recent issue with NICIL with one media house hurling unsubstantiated allegations of corruption and impropriety at the company and its head without a shred of evidence. However, this media house presented these reports as the gospel. And this has not been the first time that this media house has engaged in such unethical practice.
On Tuesday night a panel discussion was hosted by NCN television with a view to clearing up the misinformation being spread about NICIL and to answer questions with respect to its operations.
Strange enough that media house, whose owner was among the panellists, did not carry a line on the panel discussion which cleared up several issues that were in the air pertaining to NICIL operations.
All media houses have a duty and a moral responsibility to tell the truth and only the truth. But it would seem that in Guyana today it seems as if some media houses are more involved in propagating hidden agendas and becoming the “Trojan Horses” for certain political forces, instead of being involved in telling the truth and providing accurate and objective news reports.
We have seen throughout the world damage and almost irreparable harm which have been caused around the world due to the irresponsibility of media houses.
Having learnt from  experiences in other parts of the world, we should therefore do our utmost to ensure that similar occurrences do not happen in our beloved country. That is which our media houses need to abide by, the cardinal principles and ethics of journalism.

As Ms. Chanda further pointed out in her article “Social Responsibility Theory- Authoritarian Theory went into history with the decline of monarchy. With the spread of modern-day democracy, the Social Responsibility Theory of media ethics has become the norm now. This
theory inspires self-control by the media, for the good of the society. In terms of this theory the media should-
* Accept responsibility towards society by providing information in a truthful, objective and balanced form, while respecting privacy and importance of secrecy of issues related to national security.
* Avoid publishing information that could lead to violence or social disruptions.”