SECTOR 4

Scores:
Individual scores:
1

Country does not meet indicator

2

Country meets only a few aspects of indicator

3

Country meets some aspects of indicator

4

Country meets most aspects of indicator

5

Country meets all aspects of the indicator

Average score: 			

1.5

4.6
Owners of established mainstream private
media do not interfere with editorial independence.
Interference of media owners in the operations of editorial teams and the
orientation of their papers is “systematic”, according to some panelists. Owners
influence the editorial line according to their personal or professional relationships
and the sensitivity of the topic covered. One participant, a newspaper editor, said
that when information went against his political beliefs, he would not allow it to
get into print.
Panelists felt this was understandable because he who controls the purse strings
will obviously be able to exert pressure on the editorial team, the content and
the orientation of his product. However, the Press Code act - echoing the code
of ethics - offers journalists a means to free themselves from the diktat of the
owner: the conscience clause. This allows journalists who may find themselves in
disagreement with a new editorial line adopted by their paper to terminate their
contract at the expense of the employer. Article 65 of the act provides that the
conscience clause may be invoked if there is a substantial change in the orientation
of a media outlet which creates a situation in which an employee’s honour and
reputation or moral interests in general may be affected.
The conscience clause is actually being applied in Togo. One panelist mentioned
the case of a newspaper where four journalists resigned following a change in
editorial policy.

128

AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER TOGO 2010

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