World Press Freedom Day is a day of support for the media, which intends to curb the freedom of media. It is also a memorable day for journalists who lost their lives by working.
The United Nations General Assembly marked on May 3, 1993 as World Press Freedom Day. The core principles of this day is to assess the freedom of media around the world, to defend the media against attacks on their freedom, and to pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives.
World Press Freedom Day is the result of a recommendation adopted in the twenty-sixth session of the 1991 UNESCO General Assembly. It is the date to promote and develop initiatives that support media freedom and assess the state of media freedom worldwide. World Press Freedom Day is a day of support for the media, which aims to curb the freedom of media. It is also a memorable day for journalists who lost their lives by working.
This year UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has released reports on Press Freedom and Disinformation and Media Capture. The organisation declared this year’s motto as “Journalism without Fear or Favor”.
The sub-themes for World Press Freedom Day 2020 are:
- Safety of Women and Men Journalists and Media Workers
- Independent and Professional Journalism free from Political and Commercial Influence
- Gender Equality in All Aspect of the Media
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday said in a statement that the role journalists play in helping people make decisions can be a matter of life and death.
“As the pandemic spreads, it has also given rise to a second pandemic of misinformation, from harmful health advice to wild conspiracy theories, the press provides the antidote: verified, scientific, fact-based news and analysis”, Guterres said.
“We call on governments to protect media workers, and to strengthen and maintain press freedom, which is essential for a future of peace, justice and human rights for all,” he added.
According to UNESCO, at least 1,388 journalists have been killed in the line of duty since World Press Freedom Day was first observed in 1993.
This year, Colombian investigative journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima has been named as the laureate of the 2020 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on the recommendation of an independent international jury of media professionals.
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