The Ghana Journalists’ Association (GJA) has urged journalists to be ethical and responsible in their coverage of the ‘simmering conflict’ between the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and Dormaahene Osagyefo Agyeman Badu II.
In a press statement dated January 19, 2022, the professional body charged editors and social media activists to be circumspect in their choice of words to prevent the escalation of verbal exchanges between the chiefs.
“The sensational tilt and explosive angles which have characterised the coverage of the verbal exchanges should, therefore, give way to conflict sensitive reporting which will allow tempers to cool down and the issue to be contained or resolved in the long run.
“It is needless to state that the hyper-sensitive issue involving the two prominent chiefs can degenerate into a conflict of unthinkable proportions, if it is not handled with the highest degree of circumspection, especially by the media,” the GJA observed.
The Association entreated media practitioners to “think through the consequences or weigh fully the implications of anything they put out on the matter.”
“The GJA, particularly, wants traditional media editors and social media activists to filter any pronouncements from the two chiefs through a very tight weave of journalistic responsibility and gatekeeping.
“This is to ensure that the public is fed with ethically wholesome and culturally edifying information which will not escalate the tension nor compromise the peace and security in the two traditional areas, and by extension the entire nation.”
“The media must be part of the solution and not part of a chieftaincy clash of staggering magnitude,” the statement concluded.
Below is the full statement: