The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has implored journalists to weigh the implications of their publications on financial stability before going ahead to disseminating it to the general public.
This is contained in a speech read by BoG Director of Research, Philip Abradu-Otoo on behalf of Dr. Maxwell Opoku-Afari, first Deputy Governor of the central bank at a workshop for financial journalists on Thursday, April 28, 2022, at the Ecobank head office in Accra.
Mr. Philip Abradu-Otoo said in the line of work of financial journalists, it is important that they report accurately.
He said journalists obtain information from different sources and must always draw a distinction between accurate reportage that comes from publicly available data and accurate reportage from non-publicly available information.
“As financial journalists, it is possible to come in contact with different information sets, some of which may be confidential and which, if published, could destabilise the financial system. Financial journalists, therefore, have a responsibility to carefully weigh the implications for financial stability of information they intend to publish,” Mr. Philip Abradu-Otoo said.
According to him, the media’s role in influencing the economic narrative is even more crucial during periods of heightened uncertainty.
He stressed that under such instances, the media has additional responsibilities to decide the timing of release and newsworthiness of the information at hand for accurate reportage.
In his concluding remarks, he applauded organisers of the workshop, indicating that such an event can help equip journalists with the relevant knowledge of the financial sector and the nature of risks and incentives facing the sector.
Thursday’s workshop was organised by Journalists for Business Advocacy (JBA) on the theme “Accurate reportage, key to financial stability”.
Source: Modern Ghana
Add Comment