Employees of the press and mass media

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Dear friends!

I sincerely, wholeheartedly congratulate you and the respected veterans of the sphere on the widely celebrated Day of Press and Mass Media Workers in our country.

This is a celebration not only of those who have dedicated their lives to this profession, but also of millions of readers, listeners, viewers, the whole society enjoying the fruits of your hard creative work.

And today, the words of the Jadid enlighteners, who laid the foundations of our national press, are very important, that the press should serve the development of the nation and the country, be an expression of opinions, a luminary illuminating the minds and hearts of people, a mirror of every person's conscience.

It was only thanks to gaining independence that the cherished dreams and aspirations of our great ancestors became a reality.

In recent years, as a result of the historical transformations taking place in the country, a solid legal framework and conditions have been created in society for the mass media to become a platform for free expression of opinions and active defenders of the interests of the people.

We consider ensuring freedom of speech and the press, the right to receive and disseminate information an important and integral part of our development strategy aimed at protecting the interests, honor and dignity of a person, building a democratic society and a State serving the people. In the updated Constitution of the country, the relevant provisions have been further strengthened, which indicates the consistency of our actions in this direction.

Currently, there are 2,140 mass media outlets in Uzbekistan, or 626 more than in 2016. Among them, 65 percent are non–state media, which indicates the ongoing structural transformations in the sphere. It should be noted that along with traditional mass media, Internet publications are also rapidly developing, the number of which has reached 745, and their audience is steadily growing.

The creation of information services in State organizations and local authorities has a significant impact on strengthening dialogue with the population.

A system of ensuring openness, transparency of activities and accountability of state bodies and organizations has been introduced, the practice of determining indicators of openness and its assessment based on advanced international standards has been established. In particular, the Openness Index was recently published for the first time to evaluate the work of government agencies and organizations based on the results of last year, which was an important step in this direction.

The country's mass media are confidently integrating into the international information space. The programs of the National Television and Radio Company of Uzbekistan and a number of private TV studios are broadcast in more than 100 countries around the world. The National News Agency of Uzbekistan and the Dune news Agency also distribute their materials in 10 foreign languages.

The worthy contribution of employees of the publishing and printing industry to the noble cause of popularizing the culture of reading in the country deserves special attention. In recent years, publishing houses of the republic have released 132 million copies of books of fiction and other literature, which undoubtedly plays an important role in expanding the worldview of people, especially young people.

In order to support the media, they have been granted income tax benefits for a period of three years, which has become a great help for their economic stability.

Dear friends!

The current rapidly changing time poses extremely urgent tasks for us in all spheres, including in the field of information.

Today, events that cause everyone concern are taking place in different parts of the world, so we cannot but be concerned about the growing challenges in global information processes. Unfortunately, we have to state that in some regions of the world, the mass media, in favor of certain political forces, serve to incite information wars, mislead public opinion, distort facts and substitute concepts.

In the current difficult situation, when superiority in the information space is crucial in many ways, we see in you real professionals who firmly follow the basic principles of the democratic press – objectivity, reliability of information, dedication to national interests, people who, with their knowledge and potential, a sharp pen and a truthful word, help the public to understand the essence of the ongoing social processes, to be protected from the negative impact of disinformation.

We rely primarily on you, dear journalists and bloggers, and especially on our talented youth, who are entering the national media space with new ideas and initiatives, to eliminate shortcomings and problems in the life of society, to combat such vices as bureaucracy and corruption.

That is why priority is given to the training of highly qualified, dedicated to the Motherland journalistic personnel with a broad outlook, proficient in foreign languages and information technologies. This is also evidenced by the fact that today hundreds of specialists in the field of journalism are trained by the University of Journalism and Mass Communications of Uzbekistan, the National University of Uzbekistan, the State University of World Languages of Uzbekistan, Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies, Karakalpak State University and Bukhara State University.

In these higher educational institutions, students learn from experienced professors and teachers the secrets of mastery in more than twenty areas, such as print media and publishing, audiovisual journalism, Internet journalism and management, theory and practice of media, military and sports journalism, digital media, international relations.

We have set ourselves the task of creating a new journalism of a New Uzbekistan, and life itself requires us to comprehensively study not only the national traditions that have developed in the field, but also the experience of developed countries, strengthen cooperation with leading foreign universities in the field of mass media, reputable international organizations and media companies.

In this regard, the consistent development of mass media will continue to be the focus of our attention. I am sure that the National Report, which is currently being prepared by the Union of Journalists of Uzbekistan, will be of great practical importance in determining and implementing the tasks facing us in this area.

Taking this opportunity, I would like to emphasize once again that our state and society are ready to provide the necessary support in improving the working and living conditions of media workers, stimulating their difficult and responsible activities, strengthening the material, technical and personnel potential of the sphere.

Congratulating you on a great professional holiday, as well as the upcoming bright holiday of Kurban Hayit, I wish you all good health, new creative successes, happiness and well-being to your families.

 

Shavkat Mirziyoyev,

President of the Republic of Uzbekistan