BRIDGETOWN, Barbados — A cohort of 68 media practitioners, media and law students from 13 Caribbean Community member states participated in a Regional Media Law Seminar held over February 23-24 at the Radisson Aquatica Hotel in Barbados.

The main focus of the two-day seminar was to educate journalists on their rights and the legal parameters within which they are expected to work.

Ten media and law practitioners from some of the region’s most prestigious institutions made presentaitons on a range of topics, including Educating the Public about Their Rights; The Rights of Journalists; Confidentiality of Sources; Defamation in the Context of Media Law; The Media and Intellectual Property; Broadcast Journalism and Responsibile Communication on Matters of Public Interest; Parliamentary and Government Reporting; Reporting on Family Matters and Gender Issues; An NGO Perspective; Online Reporting; and The Impact of the Media on E-Commerce.

The Regional Media Law Seminar was funded by the Canadian Goverment under the Improved Access to Justice in the Caribbean Project (IMPACT Justice) as part of the Public Legal Education Component.

Since 1980, the Canadian Government has been supporting justice reform in the Caribbean.

Through continuous commitment, the Government of Canada has provided over $BD62 million to fund two projects, that were presented to them by the Caribbean Court of Justice and the University of the West Indies.

“Stakeholder consultations over the last year informed the IMPACT Justice team of the need to address the role of the media in informing the public about their rights and also address the media’s own need for information about their rights and responsibilities in a changing world,” Dr Margaret Gail Miller, senior director to the Caribbean Regional Programme and director for Canada to the Caribbean Development Bank, said during her opening remarks on the behalf of the Canadian Government.

She added that, with the upsurge of citizen journalism, it is crucial for traditional media houses and practioners to raise the bar and practice ethical, accurate and fair journalism.

“Long gone are the days when the print media and other traditional news providers were the predominant source of information to the public. With the growth of social media, and at a time when any member of the public armed with a smartphone can become the lead reporter of their own ‘newscast’, it is even more critical for journalists and broadcasters to set the example of ethical, accurate and fair journalism,” Miller said.

— Racquel Porter