Some governments still resist independent newspapers and try to punish journalists who publicly disagree with official views. Government control over the news media may not adversely affect coverage of family planning. It may even improve coverage if there is a national family planning program or population policy that the government wishes to promote. If family planning is not a priority for the government, however, government control over the news media may mean little or no news at all about it. Whatever the political environment, the more interesting and newsworthy the family planning story, the more likely that the news media will cover it.
Most journalists face interest groups who seek to influence what they report and how they report it.
Groups opposed to family planning can be influential among journalists, particularly if their voices are not matched by those of family planning advocates providing factual information openly and regularly. To help journalists remain independent of interest groups, provide them with credible, objective sources of information so that they know the facts and can report your point of view as well as the opposition's points of view. In many developing countries the news media often lack the basic tools, access to good transportation, and so on. Video cameras, batteries, tapes, and films may be in short supply. Television news reporters, for example, may have to wait for a camera to return from an assignment before they are able to go on another one.