<\/p>\n
In 2024, the Cabinet of the National Democratic Congress took a deliberate and vindictive decision to\u00a0pull all government advertisements from REAL FM<\/b>, a nationally reaching station\u00a0located on Main Street, Sauteurs, St. Patrick<\/b>. The reason? REAL FM dared to do what real journalism demands;\u00a0it criticized the government<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n This act of political punishment, later admitted publicly by Minister Tevin Andrews, has plunged the station into a prolonged financial crisis; one that continues to cripple its operations in 2025.<\/span><\/p>\n And what was the response?<\/span><\/p>\n Nothing.<\/span><\/b> The silence was not just deafening; it was disgraceful.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n But today, that same silence has turned into loud condemnation. Suddenly, the same Kem Jones who lobbied for the economic suffocation of REAL FM is calling for similar treatment against\u00a0We FM<\/i>, an urban-based station. And now, magically, the Media Workers Association finds its voice. Suddenly, there is urgency. Suddenly, there is outrage.<\/span><\/p>\n So we ask plainly: REAL FM, rooted in St. Patrick but heard across the nation, has carried the hopes, struggles, and dreams of Grenadians often forgotten by the center of power. But when this station was targeted, no collective voice rose in its defense.<\/span><\/p>\n Where were the protests? Instead, a cruel and historical stigma reared its head;\u00a0the Country Town Stigma<\/b>; an ugly prejudice that treats rural districts as second-class, as peripheral, as dispensable.<\/span><\/p>\n Enough is enough.<\/span><\/p>\n REAL FM is not just \u201csome station in Sauteurs.\u201d It is a vital artery of national discourse. And the decision to starve it of government support; simply for doing its job;\u00a0 <\/span>is\u00a0state-sponsored sabotage<\/b>, nothing less.<\/span><\/p>\n So today we ask:<\/span><\/p>\n Where are the representatives of St. Patrick?<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n Where is\u00a0Joseph Andall<\/b>, MP for St. Patrick West? Do they not hear the silence strangling a station in their own parish?<\/span><\/b> If you are truly representatives of the people, then defend the people\u2019s platform.<\/span><\/p>\n We call on\u00a0social Grenada<\/b>; the ordinary citizens who know injustice when they see it;\u00a0 <\/span>to\u00a0speak up<\/b>. Press freedom cannot be selective.<\/span><\/b> When the state punishes one media house, it threatens them all. And when media associations pick and choose whose struggle is worthy, they lose all moral authority.<\/span><\/p>\n REAL FM has stood with the people; in good times and crisis, through storms and elections. The question is:\u00a0Will the people now stand with REAL FM?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n To the Media Workers Association:<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n You have failed a fellow media house. You do not get to champion freedom only when the fight is convenient. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n This is a call to conscience.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n Let the record show:<\/span><\/p>\n \u00b7\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/span>That\u00a0REAL FM was targeted for truth-telling<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00b7\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/span>That\u00a0St. Patrick’s elected leaders remained mute<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00b7\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/span>That\u00a0Grenada\u2019s media fraternity turned a blind eye<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00b7\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/span>And that the people, if they remain silent too, will only empower the next act of political censorship.<\/span><\/p>\n Let us be clear: Let Grenada mean\u00a0all of Grenada<\/b>; not just the part with high-rises and roundabouts.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSpeak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute.\u201d<\/span><\/i> \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In 2024, the Cabinet of the National Democratic Congress took a deliberate and vindictive decision to\u00a0pull all government advertisements from REAL FM, a nationally reaching station\u00a0located on Main Street, Sauteurs, St. Patrick. The reason? REAL […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13280,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[42,39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-commentary","category-local-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?fit=500%2C500&ssl=1","rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?fit=500%2C500&ssl=1",500,500,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png",500,500,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png",500,500,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?fit=300%2C300&ssl=1",300,300,true],"large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?fit=500%2C500&ssl=1",500,500,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?fit=500%2C500&ssl=1",500,500,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?fit=500%2C500&ssl=1",500,500,true],"mh-magazine-slider":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?resize=500%2C438&ssl=1",500,438,true],"mh-magazine-content":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?resize=500%2C381&ssl=1",500,381,true],"mh-magazine-large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?resize=500%2C500&ssl=1",500,500,true],"mh-magazine-medium":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?resize=326%2C245&ssl=1",326,245,true],"mh-magazine-small":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/drealfmgrenada.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/When-Silence-Becomes-Betrayal_20250630_200313_0000.png?resize=80%2C60&ssl=1",80,60,true]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"adminrfm","author_link":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/author\/adminrfm\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"Commentary<\/a> Local News<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"In 2024, the Cabinet of the National Democratic Congress took a deliberate and vindictive decision to\u00a0pull all government advertisements from REAL FM, a nationally reaching station\u00a0located on Main Street, Sauteurs, St. Patrick. The reason? REAL [...]","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13279"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13279\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13281,"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13279\/revisions\/13281"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13280"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drealfmgrenada.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nNot a word from the Media Workers Association.
\nNot a peep from so-called press freedom advocates.
\nNot even a concerned murmur from those who boast of defending democracy and free expression.<\/span><\/p>\n
\nIs media freedom only worth defending when the station is based in the capital?<\/b>
\nIs silence the standard when rural voices are under attack?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n
\nWhere were the statements?
\nWhere were the alliances?<\/span><\/p>\n
\nWhere is\u00a0Denis Cornwall<\/b>, MP for St. Patrick East?<\/span><\/p>\n
\nWill they sit quietly while one of the most critical community voices in the north is punished for daring to speak out?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n
\nWe call on\u00a0civil society organizations<\/b>,\u00a0activist groups<\/b>, and the\u00a0Grenada Council of Churches<\/b>\u00a0to\u00a0raise their voice<\/b>, not just for media houses in the city, but for those in the countryside too.<\/span><\/p>\n
\nJustice cannot be urban.<\/b>
\nSolidarity cannot skip postcodes.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n
\nYou have abandoned a national voice because of its address.
\nAnd now, your selective outrage betrays your true posture.<\/span><\/p>\n
\nYou either defend all media; or you defend none.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n
\nAll Media Houses Matter; not just the ones near the Carenage.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n
\nProverbs 31:8<\/span><\/p>\n