THERE WILL BE INK - Initiative for Policy Dialogue

mining company active in Ghana. These stories might highlight Newmont’s support for malariaprevention (“Newmont Sponsors Malaria Prevention” 122 ), for example, or its funding of aneducation seminar for children on the benefits of mining (“Children Briefed On Importance OfMining” 123 ) and its support of local environmental clubs (“Newmont Supports Formation ofEnvironmental Clubs” 124 ).The stories themselves read like press releases, with perhaps a couple of quotes from a companyspokesperson, and a general description of the event or announcement. Promotional stories providebusinesses like Newmont with a positive media image. A recent article in The Ghanaian Chronicleabout Newmont’s funding of some classrooms reveals how sycophantic such coverage can be:“Newmont, one of the most prolific and magnificent mining companies in the world, wasestablished in 1921, and came to Ghana in August 2002” (“Newmont Akyem to Support FourCommunities” 125 ).More common in Ghana’s print media are news stories that cover official mining companyannouncements and initiatives. These stories, again, read like press releases, are usually singlesourced(a company’s written statement or a quote from a company representative), and generallyoffer positive coverage of the company (i.e., “Newmont Appoints Regional Vice President” 126 ).Print coverage of the mining industry in Ghana is not all positive, however, and many storiespublished are critical of the impact that mining is having on Ghanaian communities. These storiestend to focus on allegations made by civil society organizations concerning the environmentaldamage caused by a project (“Mining Coalition Objects to Surface Mining in Forest Reserves” 127 ),calls for better distribution of national wealth (“Wacam Calls for Better Royalties On Mining” 128 ), ora company’s poor or discriminatory treatment of its workers (“Newmont Denies Banning WomenFrom Getting Pregnant” 129 ). However, like the positive stories about the extractive industries, thesecritical stories tend to be minimally sourced, and do not usually attempt to investigate the allegationsor offer the accused an opportunity to respond. As a result, it’s difficult to get a balanced andnuanced picture of the mining industry in Ghana from media coverage.Notably, however, numerous Ghanaian newspapers appear to publish both types of stories aboutthe extractives, both negative and positive, suggesting that there is space within the same papers topresent different perspectives so that media coverage of the extractive isn’t totally imbalanced.Coverage of the oil discoveries in Ghana and plans for extraction is generally positive and optimistic,focusing on the discovery’s potential for wealth creation and economic development. However,122 “Newmont Sponsors Malaria Prevention,” Accra Mail, 17 May 2008.123 Kingsley E. Hope, “Children Briefed On Importance Of Mining,” The Ghanaian Times, 27 April 2006.http://www.newtimesonline.com/content/view/2575/245/.124 Michael Boateng, “Newmont Supports Formation of Environmental Clubs,” Ghanaian Chronicle, 6 March 2008.125 Isaac Akweetey, “Newmont Akyem to Support Four Communities,” The Ghanaian Chronicle, 7 April 2009:http://allafrica.com/stories/200904070624.html.126 “Newmont Appoints Regional Vice President,” The Ghanaian Times, 17 May 2008. Accessed 8 December 2008:http://www.newtimesonline.com/content/view/15822/147/.127 “Mining coalition objects to surface mining in forest reserves,” Ghana News Agency, 13 July 2008:http://gbcghana.com/news/21300detail.html.128 Daniel Nonor, “Wacam Calls for Better Royalties On Mining,” The Ghanaian Chronicle, 7 May 2008.129 Michael Boateng, “Newmont Denies Banning Women From Getting Pregnant,” The Ghanaian Chronicle, 7 January2008: http://allafrica.com/stories/200801071259.html.– 42 –