Stories relating to crime and violence will not be published on the front page of The Jamaica Gleaner and The Sunday Gleaner for the month of December.
This move follows feedback from readers and a series of content surveys conducted by the newspaper, according to Editor-in-Chief Garfield Grandison.
"Through this decision we hope to stimulate public debate on the media's coverage of crime and violence," said Mr. Grandison. "As a media, do we glorify dons or gangsters? Do we need to work to change the image of dons as models of social success? We want our readers to join the debate and put their suggestions on the table for our consideration."
Mr. Grandison said that a team of editors and reporters will review suggestions from the public, and seek to revamp the newspaper's coverage over the next three to six months. He emphasised that this project is not an attempt to reduce the newspaper's coverage of crime and violence, the number one concern of Jamaicans, according to a recent Gleaner-commissioned poll conducted by Market Research Services Ltd.
"Our coverage will remain comprehensive," Mr. Grandison pointed out. The Gleaner, he argued, will attempt to give readers a different coverage of crime in Jamaica.
We would like your views on the media's coverage of crime and violence. Join the debate. Send your comments to: editor@gleanerjm.com; fax: 922-6223 or write to The Editor, the Gleaner Company Ltd., P.O. Box 40, 7 North Street, Kingston.
