Journalists do not want to be tools in the hands of black PR agents

The Commission of journalist ethics regards publishing the "cassette materials" as the act of PR manipulations. "Using the illegal methods of obtaining information, biased nature and unbalanced presentation of information enable us to perceive this activities as those having nothing in common with professional journalism", this thesis is contained in the statement of the Commission. The statement about publishing the phone dialog between Viktor Yushchenko and Aleksandr Omelchenko by Dmitriy Ponamarchuk, a member of the Popular Rukh, also contains the idea that "the beginning of 2002 became the first stage of new tests for the Ukrainian society and Ukrainian mass media". Journalists believe that "with the beginning of the so-named "cassette scandal No. 2" the election campaign with the application of black PR technologies has really started". The Commission representatives regard that it was mass media that became weapons in this war. In the opinion of the authors of the appeal, "using journalists as weapons in the PR battles, on the one hand, and the readiness of the journalists themselves to be used as weapons, on the other hand, may become a very explosive mixture". "What is understood as an exception in a civilized society, may become (and, in fact, is already becoming) a norm in Ukraine", reads the Commission appeal. Election-2002, in the opinion of the Commission, "may become the test for survivability for the independent Ukrainian journalism". "We appeal to the Ukrainian journalists to do their best to pass this test with banners flying". The Commission of journalist ethics unites the representatives of about 300 Ukrainian mass media. Journalists themselves remark that they "acutely feel their responsibility for the role of mass media in conducting the just and free election in spring-2002, for presenting to voters the information sufficient in size for taking responsible decisions, for honest observance of professional and ethical norms".