Press council tells media to be neutral

Written by changthai11 on Friday, October 10th, 2008

Reporters covering the civil unrest have been warned to exercise caution and not to take sides, the National Press Council of Thailand said yesterday.

Members of the media must adhere strictly to journalistic ethics while covering the present political turmoil, the council said in a statement issued yesterday.

The statement added that state agencies, especially the Royal Thai Police Office and government-run NBT television, should take care not to jump to conclusions when reporting news.

Some reports should wait until official investigations are concluded.

NBT is sometimes accused of airing biased stories, especially about Tuesday’s clashes between People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) supporters and riot control police.

If not handled carefully, the live broadcasts of the PAD campaign at Government House could worsen the conflict.