Investigative journalism can help stamp out corrupt practices

Luis Franceschi (right) with Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira

Luis Franceschi, the Assistant General Secretary of the Commonwealth, urged member countries at the 9th annual conference of the Commonwealth Caribbean Association of Integrity Commissions and Anti-Corruption Bodies (CCAICACB) to embrace the findings of investigative journalism as they work to stamp out corrupt practices in their country.

He noted on Monday that in the era of social media, the work of investigative journalism has suffered as a result of media houses not being able to fund and pay for good investigative journalists to produce in-depth reporting.

“150 characters can destroy something that has been building for years. Twitter approaches are very abusive, very direct and very personalized. That is a huge challenge to us and we have to do better and think better,” he underscored as he urged the countries to consider the critical role investigative journalism plays in the fight against corruption.