PM's statements rub journalists the wrong way

PORT-OF-SPAIN (CMC):

Interim president of the Media Association of Trinidad and Tobago, Suzanne Shepherd, yesterday expressed concerned at statements made by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar that there were "rogue" journalists operating against her government.

President of the Association of Caribbean Media Workers, Wesley Gibbings, said, "There is little doubt that such vitriol from these quarters can lead to a measure of nervousness and ensuing self-censorship.

"Perhaps that is the intention. But these kinds of outrageous attacks are predictable perils of the trade. Whoever thought it won't ever come to this? What should concern us all is what the administration proposes to do about its several charges," he added.

Shepherd said that in her address to members of the ruling United National Congress on Monday night, "Persad-Bissessar asked us to go back to old-fashioned value. The fact of the matter is that our values have not changed.

"However, the conditions under which we operate have changed radically over the years and we have had to adapt and adjust to do that ... to function effectively within the changing landscape. But certainly being a rogue is a label that has implications that I find very disturbing as well and very unfortunate that that is the way the prime minister sees some in the media."

Shepherd said that the prime minister did not specify who the rogue journalists were and exactly what they have done to earn that label.