Media practitioners warned against fake news in Parliament reporting

National Democratic Institute (NDI) has urged media practitioners to report accurate information when covering parliamentary sessions.

This was said on Monday during training on capacity building for journalists which cover parliament that the organisation arranged in Lilongwe.

Speaking with reporters in a virtual presentation, NDI Country Director Rishi Datta said Journalists are supposed to be at the forefront of information to avoid misleading people.

Datta added that journalists should represent the public by following what citizens are communicating in order to present good stories.

“We understand that this year has been a challenging year for Malawi due to Covid-19 and that Malawi conducted tripartite elections within the period of COVID-19 but this did not stop journalists from working which is a spirit that media practitioners should develop,” he said.

In his remarks, Chief Public Relations Officer of Parliament Ian Mwenye commended media and Members of Parliament for following Covid-19 preventive measures such as washing hands, use of sanitizers and wearing masks when covering Parliament.