Influencers are no journalists – representatives of Promedia.mk react

At the meeting with media representatives from Ohrid and the surrounding area, members of the SEMM register of professional online portals – Promedia.mk, the attendees raised several interesting topics based on their daily experiences.

Journalists demand a clear distinction between “influencers and journalists”, given the already widespread practice – some of the influencers share informative content via social media which does not meet even the most basic standards of responsible and ethical communication with the public, especially when it comes to young people.

“The difference comes as a result of the fact that influencers, when communicating with the public, advertise the products of their sponsors, thus spreading biased information, which in turn contradicts the very foundations of journalism” – representatives of the portals pointed out at the meeting with SEMM.

“In the absence of a network of correspondents in the country, i.e. a decreasing number of journalists in smaller towns across Macedonia, the PR teams of state institutions and officials take centre stage as unfair competition” – SEMM’s interlocutors note, adding that instead of advocating for maximum transparency of the institutions, they distribute already edited video materials to the editorial offices, of their own choosing, seldom examining the state officials through a critical lens.

The continuous fragmentation of the media space, especially of internet portals, according to representatives of Promedia, is already a major cause for concern that is eroding the quality of media content, which is why they suggest creating conditions for journalists to unite in consolidated editorial offices, with greater editorial capacity, as a prerequisite for more responsible and diverse content that will help restore trust in the media.

Currently, 115 internet portals are members of the Promedia.mk registry, voluntarily committing to comply with the Code of Journalists of Macedonia and the Guidelines for Ethical Reporting in Online Media. The members of Promedia.mk have also undertaken the obligation to participate in the process of media self-regulation by publishing the decisions of the Complaints Commission at the Council of Media Ethics, in case a complaint is filed against their content, and that upon the request of the complainant, if they violated any of the rules for responsible and professional journalism – they would apologize in a timely manner and rectify the mistake.

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