The Panama Papers is the biggest leak of information in the
history of the world. A 2.6 terabyte leak of files held by the Panamanian law
firm Mossack Fonseca was investigated by journalists in the International
Consortium of Investigative Journalists, German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung
and more than 100 other news organizations. It took the journalists over a year
to sift through all of the information, but what they discovered a host of
scandal and corruption all perpetuated by some of the world’s political and
economic elite. Some of the richest and most powerful people in the world are
avoiding taxes and hiding their money in offshore accounts, and companies are
moving their money to these so-called tax havens. These tax havens are
countries/independent areas wherein taxes are levied at a low rate, which
allows companies to hide their money there in order to save millions, or even
billions, in taxes.
The Panama Papers uncovered an
entire network of scandal and corruption among the world’s elite, but what can
be done now? The journalists can only present the story, but have no say over
what happens to those involved or those exposed. A recent article on The International
Consortium of Investigative Journalists website discusses this idea, and digs
into how the ICIJ was even approached by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office
about a criminal investigation the office has opened regarding those who are a
part of the scandal. The ICIJ declined to be a part of the criminal
investigation, and ICIJ Director Gerard Ryle even said “ICIJ does not intend to
play a role in that investigation. Our focus is journalism.” This is an
important idea for journalists to keep in mind, as the media should be focused
on presenting the story and gathering the information. The media should not be
attempting to punish or harm someone, regardless of the information they
uncover. The role of the journalists, in leaks especially, is to get the
information to the people in an unbiased, correct manner. The role of the
journalist is not to help decide the punishments of the people he or she is
reporting on, especially when considering the power and prominence of modern
day media. In no way is media an extension of law enforcement, and like Ryle
said in the ICIJ article, “ICIJ, and its parent organization the Center for
Public Integrity, are media organizations shielded by the First Amendment and
other legal protections from becoming an arm of law enforcement.” No media
organization has to comply to release evidence or assist law enforcement, and
this is the way things need to stay. Leaks like the Panama Papers always come
with some sort of consequences do to the scandalous nature of what they are
bringing to light. There will always be some sort of effort by the government
to fix what was presented, and the government might expect the journalists to
assist in “fixing” these issues that they have brought to light. However, this
is an unfair role for the journalist, and should not be expected, as the
journalist should present information as opposed to acting upon it.
Sources:
I think you make some important points about how these large international leaks are drawing attention to corrupt individuals and systems, but often do not focus on the journalist, despite their pivotal role in exposing and synthesising the materials.
ReplyDelete