Journalists' contribution to award inflation

For some time now, there has been a noteworthy debate regarding professional ethics within the Progressive Journalists Association (ÇGD).

The Headquarters issued a statement declaring that the Bursa Branch's “awarding a prize to a private university is contrary to the principles and traditions of the ÇGD.” The statement added, “It is also meaningless to give an award to an institution related to ‘education,’ a subject outside our field, without providing any reason related to journalism.”

Bursa Branch President Yüksel Baysal responded with a harsh article filled with words like “tutelage” and “your capacity.” He also wrote that Mudanya University had waived the award. The Bursa Branch's statement argued that “The Headquarters has both put the Bursa Branch in a difficult position before the democratic public and provided ammunition to the dark mentality that it has been fighting against in Bursa for years.”

ÇGD Eskişehir had also given awards

I looked at the award list, and it includes individuals and organizations other than journalists. The Turkish Women's National Bridge Team was deemed worthy of a sports award, the LÖSEV Nature Village Institute of an education award, the villagers resisting a gold mine in İnegöl of an environmental award, and the earthquake survivors seeking justice in the İSİAS case of a law award.

Previously, the ÇGD Eskişehir Branch had also given awards to names such as the A National Women's Volleyball Team, Naci Görür, Sami Selçuk, İbrahim Kaboğlu, Rezan Epözdemir, Aras Bulut İynemli, and Gürer Aykal; I had written about this issue back then as well.

Unfortunately, these awards carry no meaning beyond the ÇGD contributing to the award inflation in Turkey; furthermore, they diminish the value of the awards. The awards are being reduced to the level of mere plaques.

I also honestly cannot understand why both the ÇGD Headquarters and the branches distribute separate awards every year. Are the reasons for needing so many awards purely professional concerns related to journalism? Or what contribution do these awards make to our profession? The answers to these questions also need to be discussed.

Of course, it is not just the ÇGD and its branches; dozens of professional organizations, the number of which we cannot even track, keep distributing journalism awards every year. Unfortunately, when so many awards are distributed, their value decreases.

The number of awards that significantly contribute to a journalist's career and make them jump for joy upon receiving them does not exceed three or five. It is time for all journalism organizations to review their award systems.

Let us neither receive nor give awards

What should really be focused on here is a journalism professional organization giving awards to individuals and organizations outside of journalism! It is problematic in terms of ethics and practice for journalism organizations to give awards to individuals and organizations outside our professional field. First and foremost, individuals and organizations outside of journalism are our news sources. Furthermore, it is not up to journalists to evaluate their activities, or in other words, to determine their success scores.

For the same reasons, journalists should not receive awards from organizations outside of journalism. Those organizations cannot evaluate our journalism, nor can they grade us. At most, what they give would be a plaque of appreciation or solidarity, and that is all…

Let us not contribute to award inflation; let us neither receive nor give awards to individuals and organizations outside of journalism…