United News of Bangladesh

The annual District Correspondents’ Conference of United News of Bangladesh (UNB) took place at the news agency's conference room in the capital's Malibagh on Saturday, bringing together nearly 100 journalists from across the country to discuss contemporary media landscapes, professional integrity, and digital challenge. Zahir Uddin Swapon, who served as Information and Broadcasting Minister till the eve of the conference, inaugurated the daylong gathering as the chief guest.  Addressing the evolving media environment, Swapon said that readership for hard-copy newspapers is declining as audiences shift toward device-oriented, digital platforms. While acknowledging that media houses naturally experience an instinct to break news quickly, he warned that the rush for instant sensation can trap organisations in a lack of objectivity. "The credibility and credentials of a media organisation are like glass. They can break or develop a crack in a single incident," Swapon said, stressing that building long-term trust requires continuous dedication to objective reporting. 

Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapon on Friday said the biggest challenge facing journalism today is the battle between misinformation and accurate information, falsehood and truth, and dishonest journalism and objective journalism. Speaking as the keynote speaker at a seminar titled “Role of Media in Sustainable Democracy” organised by the Television Editors’ Council at a city hotel, he said protecting credible information has become the core ethical responsibility of journalism. “Protecting clean information is now the fundamental ethics of journalism. Combating dishonest journalism is also the responsibility of honest journalism,” the minister said. “Therefore, the main challenge today is not simply the government versus journalists or media owners versus journalists. Rather, it is the battle between misinformation and accurate information, falsehood and truth, and dishonest journalism and objective journalism,” he added. The seminar was attended by Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir as the chief guest. Swapon said sustainable democracy and a free, responsible media are complementary to each other. “Just as sustainable democracy requires an independent media, the development of an independent media also requires a democratic environment,” he said. The minister said there is currently no interference in the media by the government or any intelligence agency. Raising the question of whether democracy should be established first or whether a sustainable democracy will emerge through the growth of a free media, he said the two must advance together. “These two issues complement one another and should move forward in parallel,” he said. Describing the media as an industry, Swapon said media organisations must remain financially viable to survive. “A media organisation must have financial capacity and ensure profitability to sustain itself. At the same time, accountability, compliance with the law and social responsibility are equally important,” he said, describing the government, media owners and advertisers as key stakeholders in the media ecosystem. “The government is accountable for serving the people, media owners are responsible for ensuring institutional sustainability, and advertisers strengthen the industry's economic foundation. A healthy media system can only be built if there is balance among these three stakeholders,” the minister said. He also highlighted the growing influence of digital platforms, global technology companies and artificial intelligence (AI) on journalism. Swapon stressed that establishing sustainable democracy and a strong media requires a comprehensive understanding of the entire media ecosystem. “It is not possible to reach effective solutions through a partial understanding of these issues,” he said.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapon on Wednesday pledged to ensure a media environment free from fear in Bangladesh, promising steps to protect journalists. “I know the mental torment faced by those who live in fear. Especially for professionals in respected fields like journalism, being constantly monitored is extremely stressful. We understand this problem,” he told reporters at the Bangladesh Secretariat on his first working day. The government has all necessary plans to address media issues. “InshAllah, we will create a fear-free media environment (in Bangladesh),” he said. About the challenge of disinformation, the minister said this has emerged as a new challenge globally. “We have to move forward cautiously. While technology empowers, it also brings problems that must be solved using technology. We will resolve this in line with media guidelines that ensure information is presented truly to the public.” Political pressure, economic insecurity threaten media freedom: Speakers Earlier, after visiting the Jatiya Press Club, Swapon said that media development is impossible without addressing journalists’ problems. He emphasised the importance of independent journalism to strengthen the media. State Minister for Information Yeaser Khan Chowdhury was also present during the Press Club visit. Jatiya Press Club President Hasan Hafiz, Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists General Secretary Qader Gani Chowdhury and Dhaka Union of Journalists President Shahidul Islam were, among others, present.