Samoa’s media freedom climate: ‘Shining the light’

Abstract

Media freedom has had a long, proud history in Samoa. Struggling against the odds, the country’s only daily newspaper, the Samoa Observer, founded in 1978, championed the free media cause under the leadership of its founder, publisher and inaugural editor, Gatoaitele Savea Sano Malifa. Now, as Samoa, enters into a new media generation, there is a pressing need for more training, better salaries, more women involved in media management, better technology facilities and more emphasis on media ethics and values in a Samoan context.

Keywords

• defamation
• ethics
• freedom of expression
• intimidation
• investigative journalism
• media freedom