While a journalist’s duty is to observe and report, they must never lose their humanity, especially when covering people facing trauma, conflict and hardship.
This has been highlighted by fijivillage News Editor Rashika Kumar during a discussion following a screening of Civil War, hosted by Journalism and Media Studies students and staff at The University of Fiji to commemorate World Press Freedom Day.
Kumar says ethical journalism requires a careful balance between objectivity and compassion, ensuring those at the centre of stories are treated with dignity and respect.
The University of Fiji Vice-Chancellor, Professor Shaista Shameem says journalists are not just observers of history, but witnesses to it, as she reflected on the emotional challenges of reporting during a major period of ethnic tension in Fiji.
Professor Shameem shared her experience as a young journalist covering a major period of ethnic tension in Fiji.
She says while journalists are observers and must remain professional and understand deep human significance of the events they are reporting.
She says balancing objectivity with personal identity can be one of the hardest challenges in journalism, particularly when the stories being covered directly affect your own community.
The film, which shows journalists reporting from the frontlines of a war-torn America, sparked wider conversations on the emotional toll, ethical responsibility and personal sacrifices that come with reporting during times of crisis.
Second-year Journalism and Media Studies student Milika Rabulu says she cried in the washroom following her first day as a journalist working for a newspaper because the pressure was real.
Speaking during the event, Rabulu shared her first-hand experience of stepping into journalism, revealing that on her first day in the newsroom, she covered three events back-to-back, including an emergency assignment, without even having time to take a break.
She says balancing studies, assignments and practical newsroom work quickly became overwhelming, but those difficult moments helped build her confidence, resilience and passion for the profession.
Also speaking during the discussion, former journalist and Suva lawyer, Sainiana Radrodro stressed that journalists must step back and critically analyse how situations unfold, saying media workers have a responsibility to ask difficult questions about what leads society to breaking points.
Radrodro warned that becoming too detached can be dangerous, saying simply reporting events without reflection can contribute to harmful outcomes, while many journalists carry lessons and regrets from stories they covered earlier in their careers.
