The newspaper at that time needed more analytical stories to help readers understand the electoral situation at the moment
Three items published by Folha this week served to renew complaints from readers who believe that the newspaper is being partial and has carried out electoral coverage against President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva and his left-leaning Workers Party; the editorial “Lethargic favoritism” (Aug. 24), the column by Publisher Otavio Frias Filho, “Amnesty for Lula,”and, the same day, a series of stories begun Wednesday under the headline “Police probe if there is link between PCC (the First Capital Command criminal gang) and PT.”
Various readers who wrote described themselves as PT activists, which does not disqualify the complaint. Folha published, in Letters to the Editor on Friday, three letters with criticism of Frias Filho’s column and one with praise. The most discomforting passage asserted that if Lula is re-elected in the first round, “the boldness of voters will hurt the quality of democracy in this election.”
The editorial and publishers’ column are opinion pieces. One of the roles of newspapers is to instigate ideas and defend controversy. Opinion is free, to each his own, and it is not the job of the ombudsman to agree or disagree. It does allow, however, evaluation of two related aspects: if contrary opinions are given space in the newspaper to state their case (pluralism) and if the company’s opinion contaminates the news (unbiased and non-partisan).
Frias Filho’s column is one of six published since Aug. 14 to “follow and debate” the election. The columnists chosen have distinct profiles. You can’t say that philosopher Marcos Nobre, who writes on Wednesdays, has the same opinion as Frias Filho. In his first column, “The faces of conservatives” (Aug. 16), he wrote, “Brazilian conservatism … is disseminated on the pages of newspapers, magazines and the Internet.”
In my opinion, the newspaper at this time needed analysis to understand the electoral situation at the moment and its breakdown more than it needed opinions, which already have space guaranteed on pages A2 and A3. But that is only one opinion.
My critiques about journalistic coverage came before the opinion pieces this week. I already pointed out various cases in which I believe the newspaper lost balance. This does not mean an objection to the critical journalism practiced by Folha. To the contrary. What I have complained about on numerous occasions is that this principle is not being widely applied.
Information published through Friday about the involvement of the PCC gang with the PT seems nebulous, inconsistent and contradictory. If there is a police investigation, it is obvious that the newspaper must report about it because it is public record. The question is how to do it. At the point at which investigations are (not), the attention and the focus given on the front page and inside seem hasty to me.
It is a typical case of police news mixed with politics. The newspaper still has not managed to question the failures in the investigation of the state public safety office, which said it had information from 2004 and recordings of criminals in May, but still has not shown any proof. Folha also has not managed to obtain any inside information from public officials who are involved in the case.
There is no lack of complaints used for political benefit, such as during the kidnaping of executive Ablio Diniz, in 1989, which involved the PT, as described in the false Cayman Islands Dossier, which affected the (then-governing) PSDB (Brazilian Social Democracy Party), and, more recently, the list of (electric generating company) Furnas, which also affected the PSDB and up to now still seems to be a fraud.
The press and power
Fbio Konder Comparato recently published “Ethics – Law, Morals and Religion in the Modern World” (Companhia das Letras) and is president of the Citizens for Political Reform Forum created by the Brazilian Lawyers Guild.
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OMBUDSMAN – How do you evaluate the role of the news media in the modern world?
FBIO KONDER COMPARATO – We can’t forget that the modern mass media are a form of power. Ethically, all power must submit to the grand political principles, notably republican and democratic principles. Generally, the big mass media news organizations are under the control of business owners and they work in this realm, in my opinion, less to make money than to exercise power. Therefore, it is very difficult, the way things are, for business owners to act in a truly republican spirit, it is worth saying, to put the common good of the people above their individual interests. Therefore, it is indispensable that we study some instruments to bring about republican control of the power of the mass media.
OMBUDSMAN – Do you defend control by society or by the government?
FBIO KONDER COMPARATO – In the case of newspapers, what seems very important to me is an increase in the right of response. Let’s say that a newspaper carries out a campaign that is judged to be discriminatory toward a certain segment of the population. Theoretically, except when there is a crime or civil damages, public authorities and prosecutors don’t intervene. But what it requires is a public discussion of the topic. The NGOs who represent these collective interests should have the right to respond. In the end, while newspapers don’t provide public access, such as radio and television do, in other words, allow space to belong to the people, they exercise power over public opinion.
OMBUDSMAN – How do you evaluate how the Brazilian press covers politics?
FBIO KONDER COMPARATO – It lacks a vision that surpasses the level of political representation. It is clear that this can’t be discarded and it must be improved. But what is most important is to introduce direct or participatory democracy. The people should have the right to decide the future of the country. The decisions about this topic can’t be made exclusively by the so-called representatives of the people. The public debt policy, for example, represents a major transfer of income from the poor to the rich that this country already knew. Folha has touched upon this point frequently, but what it lacks is going deeper. In other words, this must be decided by the people. This is the biggest sense that newspapers lack. They frequently exercise an important critical role concerning the actions of public agents, but the nature in general is negative. It has lacked the development of purposeful criticism, presenting and discussing solutions for the country’s problems.
OMBUDSMAN – Has the press contributed to keeping citizens well informed?
FBIO KONDER COMPARATO – It is concerned about political scandals because they provoke discussion. But I don’t see, with rare exceptions, a reflexive work to reform the national political system deeply. It is necessary to discuss the cause of the problem. We are in a phase of ethical sickness. We need to know its causes, with the aim of deciding the therapy to pursue.
Translation by John Wright
