GPU President Warns: “A Story about a Child Told Without Care Does Not Stay in One Newsroom”
IHRDA Child Rights and Ethical Reporting Training © Askanwi
By Edward Dalliah, Jr
The President of the Gambia Press Union (GPU), Ms. Isatou Keita, has urged journalists to exercise greater care when reporting on children, warning that a story told without consideration for a child’s rights and dignity can quickly spread beyond the newsroom and have lasting consequences on their lives.
She made the remarks on Tuesday, 11th August 2026, during the opening of a two-day training at SeneGambia Hotel, organised by the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa (IHRDA), in partnership with the Gambia Press Union (GPU) supported by UNICEF.
Addressing participants, Ms. Keita noted, “A story about a child told without care does not stay in one newsroom alone. It reaches the child's school, their neighbours, [and] their community.”
The training, held under the theme “Strengthening Media Capacity on Children's Rights and Ethical Reporting in The Gambia,” seeks to strengthen the capacity of media practitioners to undertake ethical, accurate and child rights-sensitive reporting, as well as develop media content and programming that promotes and protects children's rights.
According to the Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBoS), the country’s population “is predominantly youthful, with 40.8% under 15 years of age...,” highlighting the importance of responsible and ethical reporting on children, whose lives, dignity and future can be significantly affected by media coverage.
Ms. Keita urged journalists to balance the demands of the profession with their responsibility to protect children. She told participants, “Our job as media is to tell the truth without adding to that burden.”
The GPU leader further added, “From the journalist's perspective, we often walk under real pressure. Tight deadlines, competition for views and clicks, and the pull towards whatever headline gets the most attention, ethical reporting on children is not always the easiest path in the moment, but it is the path that protects both the child and our own credibility in the long run.”
In Part three of the new revised GPU Cherno Jallow Charter of Ethics for Journalists and Media Operators 2025, journalists are expected to always consider the best interests of the child when reporting.
Speaking on what inspired the training, the Executive Director of the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa, Dr. Musa Kika, said the “training was born out of us wanting to sit and discuss how we can approach reporting around the ongoing case before the Supreme Court and what's happening around that” and highlighted child-related issues requiring careful media attention, including “child exploitation in tourism, child marriage, and child labour.”
UNICEF Country Representative to The Gambia, Ms. Nafisa Binte Shafique, emphasised the influence of the media in shaping public attitudes and behaviour.
She told participants, “The media is one of the most powerful forces for shaping society. Your voice, your pens, your microphones, your cameras, and your platforms can influence how people think, what they believe, and ultimately how they act.” She added that “a single story can begin a national conversation, change perceptions, influence policy, and inspire action.”
Meanwhile, Information Minister Dr. Ismaila Ceesay cautioned journalists about the potential consequences of irresponsible reporting involving children.
He pointed out that “a journalist's pen, your microphones, your camera or digital platforms can change a child's life, with consequences that are far-reaching,” while adding that “a sensational story can turn a victim into a public spectacle and a few minutes of irresponsible reporting can leave a child carrying the consequences for the rest of his or her life.”
