Accra, Jan. 3, GNA - Participants at the 55th Annual New Year School at Legon, in Accra, on Saturday threw the searchlight on the performance of the mass media, leading to criticisms that bothered on the abuse of media freedom.

They took the swipe at the media during the interactive session of a lecture on "Press Freedom: What Limits," at the event organised by the Institute of Adult Education of the University of Ghana (UG). The participants were unanimous that the media have over-stepped liberties accorded it by the Constitution.

Some of the participants called on journalists to be well informed about issues they put in the public domain while others suggested the need for legal action against media houses that wilfully libelled people in the name of press freedom.

The School on the theme: "A Decade of Constitutional Rule in Ghana, Critical Issues facing the Nation," attracted the Editor of the Daily Graphic, Mr Yaw Boadu-Ayeboafoh who gave a critical assessment of the performance of the media.

He said journalists had to accept that the freedom of the media would be meaningless if it was not exercised with responsibility.

"We must equally note that as individuals, we have personal interests which should at all times be subordinated to the national course."

Mr Boadu-Ayeboafoh, who is also a lawyer, quoted portions of the Constitution to support his views.

He said the freedoms guaranteed in the document were subject to laws that were reasonably required in the interest of national security, public morality, and for the purpose of protecting the reputation, rights and freedoms of other persons.

Mr Boadu-Ayeboafoh called on journalists to be open-minded, objective, accurate and credible to win the trust, confidence and respect of the people.

"Therein lies the significance of the mass media; therein lies the essence of the guarantees of media freedom."

He however cautioned against the use of laws to restrict or limit media freedom, explaining that it was inimical to the tenet of the Constitution.

Mr Boadu-Ayeboafoh said the Complaints and Settlements Committee of the National Media Commission and other internal disciplinary policies of the media institutions were more acceptable than censorship by government, stressing that settlements at the courts should be the last resort.

He rebuffed claims that journalists were over-stretching their professional boundaries, saying when professionals refuse to comment on national issues, the media had no other choice than to fill the gap. Mrs Margaret Amoakohene, a lecturer at the School of Communication Studies of the UG, who chaired the function, attributed the low professional standards of the media to interference from media owners, pressure groups and political parties.

She said freedom of speech meant using the media to generate development and progress.

Mrs Amoakohene called for public boycott of media houses that churned out poor quality programmes and newspapers and violated professional standards.