Term Paper on the Relationship between Police and Media in Bangladesh

Police and Media Relations has been a concern for both the police and media for decades. For law enforcement, the policy has always been to give as little information as possible. The media is believed to be the enemy who is always looking to destroy the credibility of officers. The media feels that law enforcement is always hiding information. Media feel that they are the ears of the public and it is their duty to “tell it like it is”. But good relationship between these two entities can play positive role in the society. Bangladesh is a developing country whose society consists of the combination of both open and closed society. The relationship between police and media has important effect in developing or restructuring the society of Bangladesh. As a police officer and a student of MPS under the University of Rajshahi, my term paper topic ‘Study on the Relationship between Police and Media in Bangladesh’ is interesting to me. I have conducted my study through review of literature on police-media relation in Bangladesh and a questionnaire survey on police personnel and media people in Noakhali region specially. The questionnaire has been formed with different aspects of interaction between police and media through which I have collected opinion of them. Based on the literature review outcome and the group opinion outcomes of police and media personnel I have tried to identify the points of non-cooperation between police and media and then to find out the possible remedial measures of it. Statistics of the research outcome are shown in both charts and tables.
Historically the media has held a fascination for many aspects of crime and criminal justice and therefore, it was almost inevitable that the police and the media would develop some kind of relationship. The relationship between police and media has always been controversial. Ultimately, the purpose of both entities is to serve the public. Police strive to protect the safety, liberty, and freedom that all citizens are entitled. The media serves to demonstrate the freedom of speech that is the cornerstone of any country. How could two institutions with the same purpose end up on separate sides of the fence on many issues? Why does animosity exist on both sides? Police policies are, by nature, secretive. Police are taught not to divulge information. Confidentiality and trust are instilled in every officer that wears the law enforcement uniform. Media on the other hand has a different method of survival. Their existence relies on uncovering information. Their mission is to broadcast facts. The best reporters are always the ones who seem to have the gift of being the first to report newsworthy events. Therein lays the biggest difference. One entity relies on secrecies while the other seeks to reveal the truth. Perhaps the relationship will remain similar to cats and dogs or perhaps it can improve. A closer look into the world of both will offer some useful insight into how the relationship developed. A relationship that can improve and has shown some promise in recent years. This study attempts to find out the level of this relationship in Bangladesh. Police departments should expect to interact with the media. The push should be towards relaying information to the media that is accurate and timely. This would prevent the need for media to obtain information from sources that may be anti-police. The media needs to trust that agencies will remain accessible. The playing of favorites among media outlets could hurt the agencies credibility. All information should be given at a central location that is accessible to all media outlets.

Studies have been concluded that suggest that improved media relations could positively influence the effectiveness of law enforcement agencies.

To better understand the relationship between media and police a survey was taken of police and journalists from Noakhali district. The survey instrument was designed to evaluate attitudes and perceptions of the both regarding their professionals. The basic assumption is that background factors and nascent professional orientations will likely influence future interactions between two groups. This study methodology consists of literature review methodology, questionnaire survey methodology and relating literature review result with the result of questionnaire survey result.

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