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SADC-ODL challenges media to stick to objectivity
2008-03-03 09:03:05
By Michael Haonga
Media practitioners have been challenged to live up to their guns in enlightening members of the public objectively by carrying out research findings on various issues.
The challenge was made in Dar es Salaam at the end of a five-day Southern African Development Community (SADC) Open Distance Learning (ODL) workshop that brought together participants from seven African countries.
The focus of the workshop was on Research and Publication Capacity Building aimed at availing the region with various technical aspects of Distance Learning Education improvements.
Speaking to this paper, participants from Botswana, Malawi, Lesotho, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe concurred to the effect that apart from media practitioners being research- based in what they write, they should also raise issues calling for further research by scholars.
``Media houses should come up with articles dedicated to research initiatives and play an active role in ensuring that research ideas and products are given coverage for the public enlightenment,`` said Phineas Seborpelo - Botswana Manager on Research Development and Publications.
Contributing in the workshop, the Botswana SADC—CDEL Director said: ``Media houses as torch bearers in information and knowledge dissemination, should distribute knowledge and information to amplify Africa’s voice in research based works.``
The Manager of Open learning at Malawi Domasis College of Education, Misheck Munthali, underlined the need for media houses’ sustained publications and dissemination of balanced reportage of opinions with researched outcomes from authoritative sources.
Earlier, the Open University of Tanzania (OUT) Acting Vice Chancellor, Professor Dunstan Shemwetta said new economy called for a revolution in knowledge production and dissemination role.
He said: ``At no time in the history of humanity have we seen universities being put under pressure to generate high-level skills for economic competitiveness as it is the case now.``
Hence the need to keep the public abreast with latest reportage objectively, he concluded.
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