Editor-in-Chief of the Stabroek News, David de Caires, has accused the Government Information Agency (GINA) of withdrawing Government advertisements from his newspaper on a political directive from the Office of the President.
De Caires stated that this decision by the Government to withdraw ads constituted an apparent reversal of its policy of respect for freedom of expression, and constituted an attack on the free press.
However, Director of GINA, Dr Prem Misir, says that the decision was made at the level of GINA, and has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with economics, since placing ads with Stabroek News no longer makes financial sense.
Dr Misir said that the public's response from placing advertisements with the Stabroek News has not been good. This forced GINA to make the decision to reduce the amount of advertising done with the newspaper and place them where financial feasibility was assured.
He stated that de Caries and the Stabroek News have no monopoly on acquiring advertisements.
“It's a simple matter of dollars and cents. We were trying to continue to advertise with Stabroek News, but the responses simply have not been good from adverts placed there…
“And this is not a new situation. Over the years, the response had never been that great, but we were trying to spread the ads evenly …
“However, due to the tightness of resources now, a decision had to be made. Stabroek News no longer has the largest circulation, and is not the largest private newspaper in Guyana.
“It makes better business sense to place ads with the Kaieteur News, which has the widest circulation and will guarantee a better feedback,” Dr Misir said.
He said that the Kaieteur News is the largest private newspaper in the country, and therefore attracts a disproportionately greater number of Government advertisements.
The release further said that an added advantage with releasing numerous advertisements to Kaieteur New has to do with its wider dissemination, not only nationally but also internationally within the Guyanese Diaspora in New York City.
“When Kaieteur News was in its embryonic stage and rarely received Government's advertisements, Stabroek News never declared on behalf of Kaieteur News that press freedom was violated,” the release noted.
In a release issue yesterday, de Caries posited that GINA has withdrawn advertisements from Stabroek News on the instructions of Dr Nanda Gopaul, Permanent Secretary in the Office of the President.
He said that since the beginning of November 2006, his Advertising Manager, Ms Cumbermack, reported a significant reduction in the booking of advertisements from this agency, which handles all the advertisements of Government Ministries.
She later advised that, except for advertisements from the Guyana Revenue Authority dealing with the impending Value Added Tax, no other bookings were being received from GINA.
In a release issued last evening, GINA reiterated that the basis for the placement of advertisements in the media is linked to the public's response to such advertisements.
“Huge responses to our advertisements emanate from Kaieteur News and the Guyana Chronicle. And we are constantly seeking to maximise the impact of our advertisements in the interest of efficiency.
“The issue that Stabroek News is raising is not about press freedom. The issue of placing advertisements for the Government pertains to economics and impact maximisation of its advertisements.”