Reporters, photojournalists and live broadcast directors should be on the priority list for COVID-19 vaccination as they are at the frontline covering the latest developments, the Association of Taiwan Journalists said yesterday.
“Journalists work long hours in a [high-risk] environment, from covering how people are affected by the [COVID-19] pandemic to interviewing disease prevention workers and public health officials. They could easily become spreaders of COVID-19,” the association said.
If journalists contract the virus or sustain other occupational injuries, the government should make sure that their employers give them sick leave and other benefits, it said, adding that freelance journalists should be given subsidies through the National Health Insurance system.
In a democratic country, journalists play an important role by reporting public affairs, the association said.
“The oversight from the news media over the nation’s disease-prevention work is to ensure the transparency and credibility of the government. Such a role makes news media professionals indispensable personnel to maintain the operation of society, which should qualify them for priority vaccinations,” it said.
While most journalists covering the pandemic wear protective gear at work, public health officials should give specific health guidelines to protect journalists from contracting the virus, such as maintaining a proper distance between interviewees and journalists, it said.
Likewise, news media management should follow the guidelines by providing enough protective gear to journalists, observing standard procedures to contain the disease outbreak and educating them about disease prevention measures, the association added.
“We also urge media outlets to use lighter and smaller equipment when covering stories, which is easier to disinfect and lowers the risk of spreading the virus,” it said. “They should also make sure that satellite trucks and video-editing rooms are disinfected.”
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Liu Chien-kuo (劉建國) in March advised the Central Epidemic Command Center to list journalists as part of “essential personnel” to maintain social order, one of the priority groups for vaccination, when local people were hesitant to receive jabs.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said at the time that the center would consider Liu’s suggestion, but did not further comment on the issue yesterday.
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