A 小蝌蚪APP communication professor addressed Chinese journalists and students at the request of the U.S. Embassy in Beijing for World Press Freedom Day on Tuesday.
Dr. William R. 小蝌蚪APP淏ill小蝌蚪APP Davie cited the courage and sacrifice made by over 110 journalists who gave their lives covering news throughout the world in the past year. He also criticized the 小蝌蚪APP渓apdog小蝌蚪APP tendencies of many journalists who forego policy issues and investigative reporting to write the "click bait" of sensational news and entertainment content.
Davie is spending a year in Xi小蝌蚪APP檃n, China, as a Fulbright Scholar and teaching at Xi小蝌蚪APP檃n International Studies 小蝌蚪APP. He accepted the invitation from the U.S. State Department, which organized the event at the Beijing American Center for about 200 participants from newspapers and television stations, as well as journalism students attending Beijing小蝌蚪APP檚 elite universities.
Davie pointed to excesses in news coverage of the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign that he said has featured vulgar insults and the 小蝌蚪APP減olitics of outrage.小蝌蚪APP He presented Pew Center data that demonstrated how harmful that kind of reporting can be on Americans小蝌蚪APP confidence in the press, government and politicians in the United States.
Taking special note of the Panama Papers coverage in Hong Kong and China, Davie challenged the largely Chinese audience to ignore the 小蝌蚪APP渓apdogs of news sensationalism,小蝌蚪APP and attend to the watchdogs whose investigative journalism and policy reporting gives democracy the oxygen it needs to survive.
In commemoration of World Press Day, UNESCO gave the Guillermo Cano Award to Khadija Ismayilova of Azerbaijan, who was jailed following her series of investigative reports on corruption implicating her country小蝌蚪APP檚 president and first family. She broadcast her reports on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty; the award is named after assassinated Colombian journalist Guillermo Cano, who was killed in 1986 after reports connecting public officials in Bogota to drug cartels.