Mr. Christopher ‘Kit’ Nascimento in his letter to the press published on May 17th 2023, has decided to go into his toolkit to tinker with the Guyana Press Association and declare what should or should not obtain.
It is regrettable that Kit has resorted to his tools but it is not unexpected-after all he served as Guyana’s only ever “Minister of Mechanical Equipment, Plant Maintenance and Hire” under the ‘Forbes Burnham Administration.’ What is also regrettable is that Kit proceeded to analyze, interpret, and pronounce on a situation without much evidence and data to ensure that he was informed before he sought to inform.
He states that the Guyana Press Association (GPA) is the one body representing professional media practitioners and journalists in our country and has been doing so for some time. He tacitly admits therefore that all the other bodies formed over the course of Guyana’s recent history The Media Proprietors Association, the Independent Media Association of Guyana, the Union of Guyanese Journalists have all fallen by the wayside. The Guyana Press Association has survived since 1945 because it has been fiercely independent and rejected all attempts to demean, diminish, denigrate its leadership, its membership or to destroy the organization from within and without.
I am not sure about the relevance of Christopher’s Informed Affirmation of what he did in the 1960s. Suffice it to say he did much to keep “our government” out of office then. He has clearly found his Damascene Dénouement under the current Dispensation.
While Kit attended Boston University in the mid-1960s over a decade and a half later I attended Syracuse University. Both He and I must have been exposed (I was) to “Daniel Boorstin’s notable work ‘The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America (1961), in which Boorstin argued that many events are staged for publicity purposes and have little real value. Boorstin defined a pseudo-event as an ambiguous truth that appeals to people’s desire to be informed. He argued that being in the media spotlight was a strong incentive for public figures to stage artificial events, which became real and important once validated by media coverage. Boorstin described pseudo-events as the opposite of propaganda, although both forms of communication have similar consequences and result in public misinformation. Whereas propaganda slants facts to keep the public from learning the truth, pseudo-events provide the public with artificial facts that people perceive as real.
Pseudo-events are carefully choreographed, following a prepared script and leaving nothing to chance. In order to maximize the event’s exposure, they are scheduled in advance, and journalists are informed of the specific time when the event will occur. Pseudo-events are designed to be dramatic, to make them interesting for the public, and they tend to generate iconic images’” (like De Star Boi with his Hands Akimbo).
It is, therefore, unfortunate that Mr. Nascimento expresses some considerable concern that there appears to him to be a controversy into which the credibility and, as a result, the efficacy of the GPA to speak for freedom of expression and freedom of the press in Guyana has become enmeshed. The old saying “start a fire and then be the first to come with a hose” is apposite at this point.
Kit Nascimento goes on to ruminate on what he slips in as “some factual detail” that a soi-disant contender for a post for which he was not yet nominated from the floor, stated on the floor and repeated in the press. Any serious contender for any position must of course gather data of the members, constituents or participants and lobby them, convince them and therefore expect their support. The contender could have canvassed all the media houses and know who are the members in this case. In addition, that contender must do so with civility.
What I witnessed, in dismay, at the Theatre Guild reminded me of a Brink Show there years ago where a Political Candidate blurted out “I was Robbed, the Elections was Rigged, Give me back me Candidates”. So many years later what occurred is not what Kit saw from a distance. The GPA’s Executive explained why and how its eligible members could vote at the elections and why the list was announced at that time. The “contender” participated in previous GPA elections and is aware of the process. He is even aware that because registered members were tardy back then they were encouraged to pay their dues before they can vote. He must be aware that there were other contested elections to the point that one Vice President won in a tie by a coin toss.
According to the GPA’s Constitution, Full Members, essentially those who have practiced as professional journalists for a minimum of three (3) years, “shall be entitled to exercise full voting rights in the affairs of the Association”. There is nothing in the Constitution that requires their names to be circulated in the public domain simply because another registered member not yet a nominee for a position demands that be done. The fact that a highly respected Attorney, Mr. Ronald Burch-Smith, agreed to preside and presided as the Returning Officer over the election should tell us all something. The fact that five female representatives from the Diplomatic Community (on Mothers’ Day) observed the process is instructive. The lack of civility and the instigation of controversy in the ‘Boorstinian’ sense may not be lost to them.
To mark World Press Freedom Day, the Heads of Missions of the United States of America, the British High Commission, the Canadian High Commission and the Delegation of the European Union emphasized that “it is imperative that all stakeholders, including decision makers such as the government and the opposition, maintain a mutually respectful relationship with the media in its capacity as the fourth estate and as a vital part of democracy in action”.
Editor, Kit Nascimento must be aware that those missions were there at the GPA Elections on May 14th 2023 and are fully aware that the Chapultepec Declaration in the Preamble states: “Wherever the media can function unhindered and determine their own direction and manner of serving the public, there is a blossoming of the ability to seek information, to disseminate it without restraints, to question it without fear and to promote the free exchange of ideas and opinions. But wherever freedom of the press is curtailed, for whatever reasons, the other freedoms vanish.”
After a period when attempts were made to legitimize government control over news outlets, it is gratifying to be able to work together to defend freedom. Many men and women worldwide join us in this task. But opposition remains widespread. Our continents are no exception. There are still countries whose despotic governments abjure every freedom, particularly those freedoms related to expression. Criminals, terrorists and drug traffickers still threaten, attack and murder journalists.
But that is not the only way to harm a free press and free expression. The temptation to control and regulate has led to decisions that limit the independent action of the media, of journalists and of citizens who wish to seek and disseminate information and opinions.” The Guyana Press Association must remain resolute to ensure that any attempt/subterfuge to undermine its credibility/operations is soundly and utterly discredited and abandoned.
