IĠM condemns threats of physical violence against SideStreet newsroom
'Bullying tactics towards journalists never acceptable' - Matthew Xuereb
The Institute of Maltese Journalists (IĠM) on Wednesday condemned the threats of physical violence levelled towards the SideStreet newsroom.
In a statement, the IĠM said a person had "barged into" the SideStreet office demanding they remove a video from their platform and threatened the editor and report present in the newsroom at the time of the incident.
"If the person felt aggrieved by the publication of the video, he should have brought his grievance to the attention of the organisation in a calm and rational way," IĠM president Matthew Xuereb said.
"The ultimate decision would rest with the organisation whether to comply with the request or not."
The Institute insisted that the "use of threatening language and bullying tactics towards journalists is never acceptable and should not be normalised."
While advocating for fair reporting, the IĠM expressed its solidarity with the editor and reporter of SideStreet.