Kathmandu, 17th July : Women journalists working in various media outlets have emphasized on professional and dignified journalism. Journalists participating in an interaction program on ‘Digital Media Management and Journalist Code of Ethics’ held in the capital on wednesday have pointed out the need for accountability in the Nepali journalism sector in recent days. 

In Coordination with Working Women Journalists (WWJ), the program was organized by Press Council Nepal . The women journalists participating in the program discussed the need for the Press Council, the body responsible for monitoring and regulating the independent press,  to play an important role as there are currently many problems in digital media.

At the program, Press Council member Santaram Bidari informed about the journalist code of ethics and said that it will bind journalists and the media morally. Press Council member Nakul Aryal, answering the questions of women journalists, said that the council is a supportive organization for journalists and it will facilitate making journalism professional and dignified. Similarly, former member of the council and WWJ advisor Subekchhya Bindu Tuladhar informed about the women-friendly communication guidelines, disability-friendly communication guidelines, senior citizen-friendly communication guidelines issued by the council. She recalled that these guidelines were prepared after a detailed study of Nepal's national laws, international treaties and agreements and after collecting opinions and suggestions from relevant stakeholders. 

Chief Officer of the council, Jhabindra Bhusal, informed that the council is working on YouTube regulation and management. At the program, WWJ President Ramkala Khadka said that the increasing interference in the press and freedom of expression is a matter of serious concern and emphasized that journalists should follow the code of ethics and promote dignified, responsible and professional journalism. She said that in some cases, journalists have complained that the council itself has pressured them to remove news from online portals, and that the council should work in the coming days to eliminate such a trend and create an environment where they can work independently.

Kathmandu: Working Women Journalists (WWJ) organized the editing skill training to Women Journalists on 30th June, 2023 at Union House, Anamnagar, Kathmandu. Editor-in-Chief of Annapurna Post daily, Akhanda Bhandari and WWJ Founder President Sangeeta Lama trained in the Participants.

The training was attended by two dozen of female journalists working in different online, newspapers and radio. In the opening session of the training, WWJ President Nirmala Acharya said that the organization has been organizing skill-based training for a long time to enhance the capacity of women journalists. President Acharya added that through editing skills organized by WWJ, which was established in 2006 with the aim of increasing the number and quality of women journalists will help to increase the editorial capacity and efficiency of women journalists.

The Program was conducted by the Secretary General of the organization, Chanda Bista. Trainer Bhandari trained women journalists on topics to be considered while editing any news or feature articles, how to improve language and writing editorial and opinions. In the same way, another trainer Lama focused on how to develop their leadership skill along with enhancing their abilities and how to make the content of news, feature or opinion interesting.

Treasurer of WWJ Rukmini Pokharel coordinated the Program. Ramkala Khadka, Vice President of the organization, thanked the trainees who participated in the training. She also added that women Journalists should try to reach in leadership position by using editing skills and improving their writings. The training was conducted with the financial support of Ministry of Communications and information technology.