The state of our media

A Freedom House report gives us the disconcerting news that Bangladesh has slipped three points below its previous standing where press medium is concerned. As citizens, we are properly concerned. But, then again, can we really say we are worried, given what has been happening around the media in recent times? Press freedom is one of the proudest achievements of Bangladesh. With many flaws we have been able to push forward the ideas of a free press.
But there is also the other side of the picture. We notice with disquiet that dissent is fast becoming unacceptable as a principle to the powers that be, that a result of such subtly expressed intolerance of opinion on the part of the government or its loyalists is the self-censorship which many in the media have chosen to go for. That cannot be healthy for the growth of a truly democratic culture. Indeed, we cannot but make it known here once again that when a newspaper like The Daily Star is barred from all official programmes related to the prime minister and the ruling Awami League, without any specific reason being given officially, one becomes aware of the extent to which intolerance may swiftly be turning into a method of intimidation not just for this newspaper but also for any media house determined to investigate and report on everything that must be brought into the public domain.
A free expression of opinion is fundamental to the quest for a functioning democracy. Any move by those in power, now or at any other time, to push the media to the wall through subtle or direct modes of intimidation can only lead to a weakening of the state itself. The Freedom House report should be an eye-opener for the government.