AKEED, Anwar Ziadat

"Ain al Rai," a column that focuses on quick news in Al Rai daily newspaper, published the following item: "An official study has estimated the number of scavengers in Amman at 1,700, of which 12% do this work on a permanent basis. The study showed that the number of scavengers has decreased because of the sharp drop in the value of the carton that is sold for recycling. The study observed that scavengers sometimes cause problems through scattering and burning garbage and causing damage to waste containers."

Al Rai"s column and similar columns in other newspapers, such as "Kawalees Al Ghad," "Sinnarat Al Dustour," and Khafaya al Sabeel," present short news items, which are closer to press leaks. Usually, these items do not meet the full conditions of a news story. This is understood and acceptable within the context in which these columns identify themselves as they are quick and short stories that have large readership. They have become a tradition in the local dailies.

However, the short item that was published this time and that offered quick statistics about the number of scavengers in Amman has turned into a prominent story on electronic sites. At least 10 sites republished it with the same details, with some editing occasionally. It was carried under different headlines, such as:

1,700 Scavengers in Amman

This Is Number of Scavengers in Amman

Jordan: 1,700 Scavengers in Amman

Official Study Reveals Number of Scavengers in Amman

The Jordanian Media Credibility Monitor (AKEED) contacted fellow editors in Al Rai, who confirmed that they obtained the information from the newspaper"s own sources at the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM). AKEED called Mazin Farrajin, director of the GAM Media Center, who said: "GAM has not announced or issued any study on scavengers. In fact, GAM has not conducted a study on this subject in the first place." He added: "We do not know the source of this information."

While following the republication of this story, it was evident that a number of sites made a clear reference to the source, which is Al Rai newspaper, while other sites attributed the story to a Jordanian newspaper without naming it. This does not agree with the standards of the profession. Other sites completely ignored the source or attributed the story to their own sources.  

All the sites that handled this information have failed to conduct the necessary verification of the credibility of the published material and have not looked for the source of the study and the party that carried it out and for which entity.

It should be noted that the phenomenon of scavengers features prominently in the media, especially through a large number of pictures, besides a variety of news items published every now and then. This means that media outlets must heed the sensitivity of the information that they offer on this phenomenon.