(By
Deepraj Sanyal)
Kathmandu, Jan 25: Journalists from
the Karnali region today emphasised the need for a shift in how the Karnali
region is depicted in the national media and discourse.
Speaking in an interaction on the
challenges and opportunities of journalism in Karnali jointly organised by the
Press Council Nepal and the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) here today,
the journalists from the region expressed dismay how their region was portrayed
– as an impoverished region without any potentials – most of the time by the
mainstream media.
They suggested the media to also see
the opportunities and the brighter side of Karnali, a remote zone in the
mid-western region of the country.
The journalists working in the
different media in Karnali also took the opportunity to discuss the various
challenges they face. They complained that as the region lacks adequate
infrastructures, journalism as is practiced in the region is at an infant
stage, and the State and the mainstream media needed to lend it hand to stand
up.
FNJ central member Nawaraj Mahatara,
presenting a working paper on the theme of the interaction, said the way how
the State looked at Karnali was flawed. He said it treated the region in a step
motherly manner.
Mahatara said journalism in Karnali
faced many problems and demanded that the State and the media bodies like the
Press Council, the FNJ and others, as well as the private sector media, to
provide support for the capacity enhancement of journalists there. He also
called for provision of various incentives for the development of the
profession in backward regions like Karnali.
Speakers on the occasion also
stressed the need of addressing the major challenges of journalism in Karnali
through policy measures. They spoke of the need of promoting journalism
education by establishing a media training institute in the region.
Senior editor at RSS Deepraj Sanyal,
BBC Nepali service journalist Haridevi Rokaya, Deependra Rokaya, Manarishi
Dhital, Narayan Giri, and others emphasised on enhancing the professional
capacity of the journalists, providing various incentives to the media
operating in the region and policy measures for promoting journalism.
Speaking on the occasion, Minister
for Information and Communications Dr Minendra Rijal said the infant journalism
in Karnali region should be mainstreamed by providing various incentives and
adopting the policy of inclusiveness.
FNJ president Mahendra Bista,
Coordinator of the Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (ACORAB)
Asia-Pacific Region, Min Bahadur Shahi, Press Council Nepal chairman Borna
Bahadur Karki, National Information Commission chairman Krishna Hari Baskota,
newspaper coloumnist Chandra Kishor Jha and the representatives of Nepal Press
Union and Press Chautari also underscored the need of identifying the problems
of journalism in Karnali and addressing them at the central and local level for
the development of the region. RSS