Journalism ethics require media coverage to be truthful and impartial. While these principles ensure fair and comprehensive accounts of current events, they become problematic when addressing authoritarian politics. Not only do the limitations on media freedom in autocracies make the gathering of factual information difficult; in addition, impartiality implies “both sides being heard,” which allows authoritarian elites to spread their own discourses and influence how Western media report on them.

During the 2022 protests in Iran, for instance, “letting both sides speak” often led to the disproportional proliferation of disinformation, as a result of Western media relaying the official statements and narratives of local Iranian news agencies and state officials.

In this GIGA Forum, journalists and academics discuss how democratic media can balance the journalistic ethics of truthfulness and impartiality when reporting on authoritarian regimes and democratic states with autocratising tendencies.

Speakers:

• Alexander Dukalskis, PhD, is Associate Professor in the School of Politics and International Relations at University College Dublin
• Jennifer Holleis is a journalist with Deutsche Welle
• Gilda Sahebi is a journalist and author
• Dr. Janjira Sombatpoonsiri is a Research Fellow at the GIGA Institute for Asian Studies

Moderator:

Dr. Maria Josua is a Research Fellow at the GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies.