MOSCOW, June 4 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian journalist community must unite to effectively counter any outside pressure, including pressure from authorities, an annual roundtable on the freedom of the press said Sunday.
The roundtable opened Sunday on the eve of the World Newspaper Congress due to be held in Moscow on June 5-7.
"The absence of intra-corporate solidarity and mutual assistance has a very negative effect on any attempts to oppose any pressure," said Pyotr Godlevsky, the general director of Izvestia newspaper.
According to Godlevsky, functionaries in all countries, including Russia, are seeking to "restrain the freedom of the press as much as possible. "Economic levers are the main instrument of pressure on the mass media," Godlevsky said.
Godlevsky also said that journalists, editors and managers lacked necessary economic background in the field of media business to effectively counter pressure and develop their publications.
Nikolai Svanidze, a member of the Public Chamber of Russia and a TV news anchor, also supported the idea of uniting the journalist community.
He also said the journalist community should have its moral principles and professional responsibility.
