Maintain credible, authentic publications - NMC tells Graphic as board takes office
An eight-member board of the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) has been sworn into office with a call on the company’s brands to continue to publish only credible and authentic information.
The Chairman of the National Media Commission (NMC), Yaw Boadu-Ayeboafoh, who made the call, explained that staying true to credible information was the best way to sustain the GCGL, which publishes the Daily Graphic, The Mirror, Graphic Business, Graphic Showbiz, Graphic Sports, Junior Graphic, and the online publication www.graphic.com.gh.
Advertisement
Members
The board is chaired by Professor Olivia Frimpong Kwapong, the Dean of the School of Continuing and Distance Education, College of Education, University of Ghana.
The other members are Ivy Austin, Dr Valentin Kwasi Mensah, Ebenezer Asante Sefa, Dr Ama Boafo-Arthur, Ishaq Kyei-Brobbey, Yaw D. Oppong, and the Managing Director of the GCGL, Ato Afful.
They will serve a two-year term.
Credibility
At the swearing-in ceremony at the Head Office of the GCGL last Friday, Mr Boadu-Ayeboafoh said in an era of fake news, it was important for the GCGL to continue to publish authentic information to bring sanity into the media space.
The NMC chairperson, who had a long stint at the GCGL working in various capacities, including the Editor of the flagship Daily Graphic, and Director of News, indicated that although media houses must endeavour to break the news “you achieve nothing when you come out first with the news but it turns out to be false. “
Consequently, he stated: “You must recognise that you have a responsibility to tell nothing but the truth, so you must not rush to publish a story if you are not sure of the fact.”
Furthermore, the NMC chairperson urged the company to venture more into the publication of investigative stories,saying: “Let no topic be a taboo. You have a responsibility to Ghana not to any individual and also look at what is in the best interest of the people.”
Pension contributions
Mr Boadu-Ayeboafoh also charged the board and management to ensure that all contributions towards social security and other pension schemes were paid regularly and consistently in order not to short-change the workers.
He urged workers to also show interest in their pension remittances by following up and not waiting until their retirement age.
G-PAK
Mr Boadu-Ayeboafoh expressed concern over the management structure of G-PAK, a subsidiary of GCGL.
He urged the new board to consider how the management of G-PAK could be well structured to ensure that it was managed as a separate entity or brought under the same umbrella of the GCGL board.
Information consumption
When he took his turn to address the gathering, the Managing Director of the GCGL said there had been changes in the dissemination of information in the world and that speed for consumer access to technology had reshaped the way news was consumed, which had made everyone a publisher.
Mr Afful observed that the development had become a challenge as media organisations worked hard to maintain their relevance by competing with the over 30 million Ghanaians who had access to information through their mobile phones.
He noted that access to the materials needed for production such as newsprints had also become a challenge especially following the COVID-19 pandemic, as most of the materials used by the company were imported.
In spite of the challenges, Mr Afful said the company maintained its values in disseminating and publishing accurate information and was working assiduously to maintain its good image.
GCGL, a model
The board chairperson commended the previous board for its good work and said the GCGL was a model for both private and print media in Ghana.
According to Prof. Kwapong, although the company had chalked up many successes, the new board had taken note of the challenges it faced and was ready to enhance the fortunes of the company.
She commended the GCGL for lending a helping hand to other state-owned media organisations, saying such moves helped to enhance growth.
Read also: New Graphic board chaired by Prof Kwapong inaugurated