The Tribune

ON THE wall of the newsroom in The Tribune’s office on Shirley Street is a large sign – across which is emblazoned our motto.

It is the same motto as can be found at the top of this very page.

“Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master” – from the original Latin of Nullius Addictus Jurare in Verba Magistri.

The reason it is written in every edition of The Tribune is the same reason it is written in large letters across our newsroom wall – it is because it is the guiding light of this newspaper.

It is a motto that predates us all – going all the way back to when Leon Dupuch started the newspaper in 1903. More than a motto, it is a responsibility, handed down from generation to generation in the leadership of The Tribune.

Sir Etienne Dupuch embraced such a belief fearlessly – determined that neither he nor The Tribune should ever become the story, that it should report the news without fear or favour.

When this column speaks, it is with the voice of The Tribune. It is the newspaper itself. It prevents petty political attacks, where the old trick of discrediting the messenger is used – seen even in this past week with the Prime Minister criticising the executive editor of the Guardian personally despite the story being correct.

It is the job of journalists to report the story, fairly, and come what may.

That has cost The Tribune in the past. We have had work permits denied, we have had business pulled – but we just tightened our belts and moved on; no matter what happened, we didn’t buckle.

This newspaper has stood up for civil rights. It has called for an end to discrimination.

Crucially, we have done good for the country, and we have been honest citizens.

We can do a lot of good if we tell the stories as they are. Keep it straight and let the public make up their own mind.

A young Sir Etienne picked up a number of copies of The Tribune and took them out to sell. His paper route went down East Street to Ross Corner and across to Farm Road (Market Street south).

What did this mean to Sir Etienne and his father? It meant that this was a newspaper for all Bahamians, no bar because of colour, class or religion.

Over the years, The Tribune has seen all manner of threats. Demonstrations outside our door, a notorious drug trafficker bursting in and demanding to know why the newspaper was writing about him, legal missives from the rich and powerful who would rather not have their business written in public, even when the laws of the land were being broken.

That is why the company’s motto is so important. Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master. None.

Throughout its existence, The Tribune has been subject to allegations of bias. Before the PLP came to power, The Tribune was called “the black newspaper”. When the PLP was in power, The Tribune suddenly became “the white newspaper”. Neither was true. The Tribune simply kept reporting regardless.

Throughout, The Tribune stood for justice and fairplay, regardless of the colour of a man’s skin.

Questions are being asked now that Tribune president Robert Dupuch-Carron has said that, if selected, he would be open to standing as a candidate for the PLP for the seat in MICAL for the next election. If that happens, The Tribune wishes him well.

But let us be totally clear, The Tribune will continue to report on the activities of both the PLP and FNM, and their candidates, holding each and every one of them to account for their actions, no matter who they are or which party they support. The Tribune backs no horse in the race to the next election.

Our motto remains the same. The sign on the wall remains intact. The independence of The Tribune remains sacrosanct.

No master means just that, and The Tribune will continue to champion those who have no one else to turn to, will continue to hold governments of whatever stripe to account and continue to keep it straight.

The Tribune is here to serve you, the readers, and that will always be our goal.