Free, Independent and Pluralistic Media in the Post-2015 Development Agenda

"The impact of free and independent media is empirically testable, supports inclusive governance and upholds the normative mandate of the United Nations system..."

With an eye toward the post-2015 Millennium Development Goal (MDG) agenda, this discussion brief offers evidence-based insights into the relationship between media development and sustainable development on a global scale. Unveiled during the 58th bureau meeting of the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC), it attempts to clarify and communicate the thinking of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) through arguments stressing that sustainable development is based on public participation and the interaction of state- and non-state actors. These arguments include:

1. "A correlation between free media and sustainable development is empirically demonstrated." - The report here explores the role that each of these - free, independent, and pluralistic media - has played in realising both democratic and developmental rights, and their interconnection. For example, "In several conflict-escalating countries, whose institutions of governance are fragile or virtually non-existent, media has played the role of improving 'dialogue across very different communities so suspicion and distrust can be decreased', thereby creating 'an environment where conflict becomes less likely'" (citation: James Deane 2013. "How Do We Get to a Better Evidence Base on Media and Conflict?"). UNESCO explains that, "[o]n the other hand, it is well known that in countries where the media landscape has not been free, pluralistic and independent, the consequences have included phenomena where warlords and others have controlled outlets to promote hatred and violence in an atmosphere fuelled by rumour and distrust." The report includes citations to various studies that show how free, pluralistic, and independent media relate to the attainment of indicators of development such as child welfare, gender equality, education, health services, and infrastructural development. "This is especially significant as regards [to] collecting, analysing and refining measurable data on development indicators. The quantity and quality of data in circulation and available to a society is in part a function of the effectiveness of a vibrant media landscape."
2. "Support for free, pluralistic and independent media is increasingly recognised as central to the changing contemporary character of inclusive politics and governance." - According to the report, people have long been recognising the role of free, pluralistic, and independent media "as an integral part of the development process and especially in terms of governance." However, what is new is that "the wider context of media work has changed radically, particularly in the wake of the Internet and mobile telephony which have catalysed increases in media access and media exposure and, alongside these developments, greater civic activism." The opportunities for "an inclusionary and democratic governance agenda" that have emerged are, as UNESCO suggests, in tune with the post-2015 agenda. He outlines various "framing options" - citing, for example, ARTICLE 19's 3 arguments (developed in response to the report of the High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda) concerning the centrality of freedom of information in fostering national development.
3. "Free, pluralistic and independent media are a global norm relevant to development norms." - The report describes "immediate harmonies between the international norms of media and the counterpart norms around development when the latter is conceived as a long-term, sustainable and human-centred process", such as an event in February 2014 during which almost 200 civil society groups joined together to urge the United Nations (UN) Open Working Group for Sustainable Development (OWG) to put government accountability and independent media at the centre of a new framework for global development. In a joint statement, coordinated by ARTICLE 19 and the Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD), the advocacy organisations argued that access to information and media freedom are vital elements for a future development plan, as they help to allow people to hold governments accountable in their efforts to achieve economic growth, social equality, and environmental sustainability.

The brief concludes by offering policy recommendations for UN Member States - e.g., "develop national media policy goals which enshrine a free, independent and pluralistic media system as an integral part of governance for sustainable development."