Irish national broadcaster certified as global source of trusted journalism

RTÉ News has received certification marking it as a global source of trusted journalism. 

Developed by Reporters Without Borders, the Journalism Trust Initiative (JTI) aims to promote trustworthy journalism and news sources to help in the battle against disinformation. 

RTÉ News is one of a dozen JTI-certified media organisations globally, alongside French national public service broadcaster France TV, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 

According to the director of RTÉ News & Current Affairs, Jon Williams, the JTI aims to make it easier for audiences to identify trustworthy journalism. 

He called it "a benchmark of quality and independence, awarded by independent auditors". 

He said, "In the same way that when you see the Q Mark Irish flag on a product, you know it’s been produced in Ireland, the JTI standard means you know you can trust a news organisation’s journalism." 

Certification consists of a self-assessment by the media outlet, the disclosure of results to the public as a Trust Report, and an external audit involving an independent evaluation. 

The JTI is supported by the European Broadcasting Union in collaboration with over 130 organisations and individuals in the media industry, academia and the media development sector, among others. 

It has been formally adopted by the National Standards Authority of Ireland.