ANONYMOUS SOURCES

How much of what you read in the newspapers can you really trust?

Article 1 of the SNAJ Code of Conduct states that ‘the duty of every journalist is to write and report, adhere to and faithfully defend the truth’. It goes on to say, ‘A journalist should make adequate inquiries, do cross-checking of facts in order to provide the public with unbiased, accurate, balanced and comprehensive information.’

But can we be confident that the journalists are telling us the truth when so much of their information published in their reports and articles comes from unnamed sources? Actually, that isn’t quite true because the journalists try to disguise the fact that they are using anonymous sources by giving characters in their stories fake names.

Go through any Swazi newspaper any day of the week and count the number of times you see an asterix (*) against someone’s name and a note at the bottom of the report or article saying ‘not their real name’.

Another trick is for the journalist to state that they have withheld a source’s name ‘for ethical reasons.’ This trick is particularly annoying because usually there is no ethical reason at all for withholding the name. In fact, the exact opposite is the case – it is unethical to withhold the source’s name because this contravenes the journalist’s duty to provide the public with unbiased, balanced and comprehensive information.

Here are some examples of reports in the newspapers in recent days that have not named their sources: a witness to an explosion at a factory; an informant in a case regarding bogus army recruitment; an informant in a report on an armed robbery; readers who gave comments on a crisis in the health service; a nurse commenting on a traffic accident; an informant to a report on cattle theft; unnamed mothers recounting their experience giving birth at Mbabane Government Hospital and a man involved in an assault.

Reports and articles that do not name sources of information are untrustworthy. Without names the reports and articles become speculation, gossip and rumour. How can readers trust unverified claims and allegations? Last Wednesday the Times of Swaziland published a series of very good reports on the health crisis in Swazi hospitals. There were vivid accounts from people who spoke about there own dreadful experiences in hospital. But, these people were not named. How can readers be sure that these people actually exist?

There is one exception to the rule that sources should be named. The SNAJ Article 7 states that journalists are bound to protect sources of confidential information. Such cases are few and far between and usually involve ‘whistle blowers’ who are giving information to journalists to expose some crime or other wrong-doing and may be in danger of recrimination if they do so. None of the examples given earlier come from ‘confidential sources’.

The use of anonymous sources makes it impossible for anyone to rely on and trust the information and analysis that it is contained in the news reports and articles. This means the use of anonymous sources undermines the integrity and standing of the work of journalists and the media generally.