NCFC Media Workshop Promotes Ethical Journalism and Child Safeguarding

The National Commission for Families and Children (NCFC) recently hosted a media workshop in Belize City that focused on topics including algorithms, cyber threats, entertainment content, and the importance of safeguarding children. The gathering also aimed to promote ethical journalism practices amid growing concerns over inappropriate and irresponsible reporting.
Ganesha Smith, Acting Director of the Community Rehabilitation Department, emphasized that responsible reporting remains critical to maintaining public trust. According to Smith, sensationalized coverage not only embarrasses children but can also push them deeper into negative behavior by creating a public identity they may struggle to escape. Addressing attendees at the May 6th workshop, Smith stressed the importance of media houses verifying information before publishing reports.
The workshop highlighted concerns about irresponsible reporting, particularly cases in which published content can endanger individuals or interfere with investigations into sensitive matters. NCFC Executive Director Shakira Sutherland also addressed participants, expressing hope that all media outlets would participate in future training sessions to encourage more responsible journalism practices.
According to Sutherland, the topics discussed during the workshop were selected to address current challenges affecting both media houses and content consumers. “We have noticed from the past media workshop sessions that we have had that we have had some difficulties engaging the media outlets that are created online, specifically via Facebook and through other social media platforms,” she said. “As such, we are trying to encourage and see how we can garner the media support to attend these workshop sessions because the information is very much needed at their end as well.”
The meeting also sought to identify the challenges reporters face and to provide guidelines on how to overcome them. Some of the recommendations focused on safeguarding the identities of victims, particularly children and female minors involved in abuse cases.
At the conclusion of the workshop, NCFC encouraged journalists, bloggers, and members of the public to be more responsible in the content they produce and share. Organizers urged communication professionals to continue striving for informative, reliable, and safe reporting practices that protect vulnerable individuals while maintaining public trust.