More than a month ago, I met the students of the University in Iasi, after I received the invitation from Mihai Ionut Ganju, the President of the Alliance of the Romanian Students. For three hours, I have answered the questions coming from the people present, but I have also discussed with the studious young Romanians, which werenât intimidated at all by the fact that I had been introduced as a TV star.
The number one subject, and probably the only one of the discussion: the status of the press.
During the past 16 years, I had numerous occasions to talk to the audience about the free and independent press.
I have never - I emphasize this - met with such a bad opinion about the press.
Since they took me as a representative of the guild, the students in Iasi started shooting questions and reproaches at me. They can be divided into two categories:
a) the low level knowledge of the TV editors, reporters, and broadcasters.
b) the journalists that write as they are ordered to.
For me, this came as a confirmation of an older supposition.
Our process is going through a dangerous process the consequence of which is the disappearance of the credibility.
Of course, when the press has to write about itself it is normal for the newspapers and TV stations continue to maintain the illusion of a press as an institution respected and listened to by the Romanians.
The same thing happened with the approach of the spectacular results of the Public Opinion Barometer, made in May 2006 by the Foundation for an Open Society, which regarded the image of the media among the people.
Te newspapers and the TV stations did all they could to bring the press on the third place in the credibility chart. There were other results of the barometer that have been put away. They were disquieting.
Therefore, 73% of the interviewees
