Centre for Excellence in Journalism (CEJ) at the Institute of Business Administration in Pakistan is offering counselling service for the 'emotional' wellbeing of the media personnel in Pakistan.
The free service is aimed for those journalists who are possible victims of the current stresses in the media industry.
Talking to SBS Urdu, the Director of the Centre, Kamal Siddiqi says many journalists have come up to highlight the pressures being faced in their line of work.
“Currently, there is a job crisis in the media industry especially when we talk about salaries (not being paid)."
“Journalists are not only being fired but salaries are also being reduced of those who are still on jobs.” – Director CEJ – IBA, Kamal Siddiqui
Siddiqi says the counselling service is quite expensive in Pakistan and not many journalists could afford it.
“Not many people in the media know that they may require counselling. We get to know that people in the work place get aggressive, get into arguments or even stop working altogether due to depression.”
“The other issue is the stigma in the society of meeting a counsellor. People assume that a person is ‘mad’ when he or she is visiting a counsellor, otherwise what’s the purpose of going for it.
Media in Pakistan is not only under economic pressure, but several journalists have lost their lives in this line of work.
Between 2000 and 2016, as many as 105 journalists were killed in Pakistan on account of their work. This represented one of the highest fatality rates for journalists in any country for this period, according to Media Landscapes.
Pakistan ranks 142nd out of 180 countries on the World Press Freedom Index – Reporters without borders.
However, Siddiqi says that we also have to take into consideration the changing media landscape and the skill-set of journalists required for new media.
“Media in Pakistan is going through a correctional phase. There is a reduction in print media while online media is growing. Many journalists are not trained for digital media while the skill-sets of some are not required in the market anymore.”
The service is available throughout Pakistan and media employees can take counselling sessions via Skype.
Follow SBS Urdu on Facebook and Twitter.
Also, listen to SBS Urdu radio program on Wednesdays and Sundays at 6:00 pm AEDT.
