Journalism Trust Initiative: the impossible – and undesirable – standardization of the media
Information is not an industrial product. Pluralism cannot be certified. And a private benchmark, which has absolutely nothing to do with an ISO standard, should never be used as an implicit, supposedly objective yardstick in public policies that directly concern freedom of expression.
On its website, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) presents the Journalism Trust Initiative (JTI) as « transparent, neutral and global ISO-type certification for the news industry », a scheme designed to « establish a global and neutral standard for trustworthy media » and « empowering citizens with a healthier information space ». The ambition is clear: to position JTI in the reassuring imaginary of industrial standardization, a symbol of rigor, objectivity and technical probity. But this analogy, so effective in communication, doesn’t stand up to scrutiny for long.
Explicit support from Paris and Brussels
Even before delving into the substance, a political point is worth making: the JTI today enjoys explicit support, simultaneously in Paris and Brussels. Emmanuel Macron recently called for a form of « labeling » of the media, and Culture Minister Rachida Dati referred directly to RSF’s…
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