BANGLADESH鈥橲 journalists are the invisible scaffolding of democracy. They stitch together public life by informing citizens, holding leaders accountable, chronicling national struggles and amplifying unheard voices. Without them, truth would be smothered in silence and power would go unchecked. Yet paradoxically, those who defend the public鈥檚 right to know remain among the most vulnerable, exploited and insecure workers in our society.
This reflection was partly inspired by a recent solo talk show of 抖阴精品 Editor Nurul Kabir, in conversation with astute host Matiur Rahman on a national television channel. Some of the arguments presented here may resonate with Kabir鈥檚 impromptu responses to the host鈥檚 probing questions.
The interim government has spoken of reform, of supporting press freedom and of rebuilding trust between state and society. If these promises are to mean anything, they must begin with concrete protection for the people behind the news 鈥� media personnel in print, television and digital spaces alike.
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Price of truth: poverty in journalism
FOR decades, media workers have endured indignities that would be intolerable in any other profession. Local correspondents outside Dhaka often survive on meagre per-story payments or nothing at all. Some juggle multiple jobs to subsidise their reporting, while others abandon the craft altogether.
Even in Dhaka, salaries are meagre, irregular and far outpaced by inflation. Reporters who risk their safety exposing corruption scandals or covering violent protests often return home unsure if their pay cheque will arrive 鈥� or arrive at all. Compare this to the civil service, where grade-based salaries, allowances and pensions guarantee stability. Journalists face the same long nights and the same national duty, but without a safety net.
This disparity is more than unfair. It is corrosive to democracy. Financial insecurity makes journalists more vulnerable to undue influence and weakens accountability. Poverty silences the press as surely as censorship does.
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Welfare in name only
BANGLADESH does have a Journalists Welfare Trust, and occasional disbursements of financial aid or scholarships are welcome. But these remain one-off gestures, not systemic solutions. Handfuls of cheques cannot replace the guarantee of monthly salaries, health coverage, pensions and job security. Nor should journalists鈥� welfare depend on the selective benevolence of ministries or political patrons.
Welfare must be institutional, transparent and universal. A journalist should not have to wait for illness, injury or political reprisal before support arrives. Welfare must be embedded in the pay and benefits structure itself 鈥� not doled out as discretionary charity.
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Television鈥檚 unique strains
AMONG all platforms, television journalism demands the most relentless presence. Anchors and correspondents face punishing schedules, from early morning shows to midnight bulletins and sudden 鈥榖reaking news鈥� alerts. Reporters in the field work under blinding lights, intrusive crowds and often direct threats of violence.
Appearance, speech and dress are scrutinised daily, and women journalists in particular face a double burden: harassment in the field and online vilification after broadcasts. Yet their pay and benefits rarely reflect these added pressures. Television may be the most visible medium, but its workers remain invisible in wage and welfare negotiations.
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Digital precarity
THE rise of digital media has broadened the public square but also fragmented employment security. Many digital reporters work for small portals or online newsrooms with little financial stability. Some receive stipends far below living wages; others are paid in 鈥榚xposure鈥� rather than earnings.
Yet these are often the fastest reporters on the ground, covering protests live, navigating threats online and facing harassment, trolling and cyber-bullying. Unlike print journalists, they lack institutional or legal protection. A digital reporter beaten in the street, sued under cyber laws, or doxed online must shoulder the medical bills, legal fees and psychological costs alone. Without equal recognition, we risk creating a two-tiered press: one semi-protected, the other disposable.
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Wage board for democracy
THE most urgent step is to establish a journalists鈥� wage board with enforceable pay and benefits across print, television and digital platforms. Today, there is no national framework. Each media house follows its own rule 鈥� or misrule 鈥� in setting salaries and increments, leading to arbitrary deductions, years without raises, and chronic exploitation.
A meaningful wage board must ensure minimum salary standards tied to civil service grades, ending the indignity of unpaid or tokenly paid correspondents. It should also provide health insurance that covers injuries, psychological trauma, and long-term care. In addition, pensions or provident funds are essential, acknowledging journalism as lifelong public service. Journalists should receive allowances, such as housing or 鈥楧haka allowance,鈥� to offset urban living costs. Legal aid must be guaranteed so that journalists sued for their reporting do not have to fight alone. Finally, hazard pay should be introduced, recognizing the heightened risks faced by television and digital journalists working live in conflict zones or under public exposure.
Such measures would not only protect journalists; they would protect the very integrity of news itself. A journalist secure in tomorrow鈥檚 income is one less vulnerable to today鈥檚 pressure.
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Beyond pay: protecting lives and freedoms
WAGES alone cannot shield media workers if they remain targets of harassment, lawsuits and violence. Journalists beaten during protests or sued under cyber laws highlight a grim reality: in Bangladesh, truth-telling is still treated as a crime.
Reforming the Cyber Security Act is essential. Vague clauses on 鈥榟urting religious sentiment鈥� or 鈥榙efaming institutions鈥� have long been abused to muzzle dissent. Without real legal safeguards, journalists鈥� welfare will remain fragile no matter how many welfare cheques are distributed.
Accountability is equally vital. Attacks on reporters must be investigated with the same urgency as attacks on police or officials. Impunity emboldens aggressors and sends young journalists the chilling message that their lives are expendable. No democracy can survive such a message.
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Why society must care
SOME may ask: why prioritise journalists when so many workers struggle? The answer is simple: journalism is a multiplier. Weak journalists mean weaker advocacy for everyone else. A reporter exposing wage theft in a factory cannot do so if she herself goes unpaid. A correspondent investigating land grabs cannot resist pressure if his family depends on a landlord鈥檚 goodwill.
Protecting journalists is not a privilege for one profession; it is protection for every cause that requires a voice.
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From rhetoric to reality
THE interim government has an opportunity to restore trust in institutions by treating media personnel not as nuisances or adversaries, but as partners in rebuilding the republic. That begins with a wage board, enforceable benefits, legal protections, and real accountability.
Editors and owners must also rise to the challenge. Profit margins cannot justify exploiting the very people who generate the content on which those profits depend. Sustainable, independent journalism requires sustainable, independent journalists.
And finally, the public must care. Every reader scrolling headlines, every citizen watching the evening news, every follower clicking a digital story is indebted to those who risk their safety to provide that information. Supporting journalist welfare is not charity 鈥� it is democracy insurance.
Press freedom means nothing if it is not anchored in material reality. A print journalist without pay is not free. A television reporter without health care is not secure. A digital correspondent harassed without protection is not independent.
The interim government has promised reforms. The time has come to turn those promises into enforceable policies. Establish a wage board for all journalists. Guarantee benefits. Reform the laws. Enforce accountability. Only then can Bangladesh truthfully claim to defend those who defend its democracy.
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Dr Abdullah A Dewan is a former physicist and nuclear engineer at the BAEC and professor emeritus of economics at Eastern Michigan University, USA.
