Tatoli marks 10 years as PM Gusmão calls for better training and investigative reporting

DILI, 27 July 2026 (TATOLI) — Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão on Monday urged the Tatoli News Agency to strengthen journalist training and invest more in investigative reporting, saying rigorous, fact-based journalism is essential to providing credible information and helping the public better understand national and international developments.

The Prime Minister made the call during Tatoli’s 10th anniversary celebration in Dili, where he also inaugurated the agency’s new two-storey building. The US$165,000 facility will house Tatoli’s multimedia newsroom and a Journalism Training Centre.

Addressing Tatoli’s management and staff, Xanana said the state-owned news agency should continue developing its human resources to improve the quality of journalism.

“As a public institution, what I ask of Tatoli, its President, the Board of Directors and all employees is to continue preparing and training journalists to produce higher-quality news,” he said.

The Prime Minister stressed that journalism should go beyond simply reporting events and instead be grounded in verified facts, analysis and thorough investigation.

“It is not enough merely to publish news. If we want to present Timor-Leste to the world, we must provide information supported by analysis, investigation and the search for the truth,” he said.

Xanana encouraged Tatoli to make full use of its new Journalism Training Centre by investing in professional development and producing more in-depth editorial and investigative content on issues of national importance.

“Continue investing in your professional development. Make full use of the Journalism Training Centre. The quality of the information you publish every day must continue to improve. Produce editorials on issues of national importance and develop journalists with expertise in different fields. That will strengthen your professional capacity and show the public that Tatoli does more than report events — it also helps people understand them,” he said.

He also called for greater specialisation in reporting, particularly in areas such as economics, politics and security, while cautioning journalists against relying solely on information circulating on social media.

According to Xanana, rapid technological change and the growth of digital platforms have created new challenges for journalism, including the spread of online fraud. He noted that Timor-Leste has been identified in United Nations reports concerning online scam operations.

The Prime Minister said maintaining public trust requires continuous improvements in journalistic standards.

“As you begin your second decade, assess what still needs to be done and continue improving, so that whenever people seek reliable news, they turn to Tatoli,” he said.

He also congratulated the agency on its 10th anniversary and urged all media organisations in Timor-Leste to remain impartial, publish accurate information and uphold public confidence.

Xanana further encouraged the media to closely monitor regional and international developments, particularly within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), to help the public better understand evolving geopolitical and regional dynamics.

Tatoli Board President Noémio Falcão said the agency remains committed to becoming a modern, innovative, sustainable and respected news organisation, both in Timor-Leste and across the ASEAN region and the wider international community.

“It is with great satisfaction that we gather today to celebrate this historic milestone, marking a decade of Tatoli’s existence,” he said.

Falcão described the anniversary as an opportunity to reflect on the agency’s achievements over the past decade, learn from its challenges and strengthen its long-term strategic vision.

He said Tatoli had evolved from a news agency with limited resources into a credible official source of information serving audiences at home and abroad, while promoting government transparency and supporting citizens’ right to accurate and reliable information.

Falcão also warned that the rapid spread of misinformation and disinformation poses a growing threat to democracy, making fact-based journalism more important than ever.

“The Prime Minister himself, as a veteran journalist, has consistently highlighted the importance of investigative journalism. As a state media institution, Tatoli has a moral responsibility to defend the truth and uphold the principles of professional ethics,” he said.

He added that journalism and the media are essential pillars of a functioning democracy and that the work of every journalist contributes strategically to Timor-Leste’s national development.

Despite the challenges of the past decade, Falcão said Tatoli had made significant progress in strengthening investigative journalism, expanding its multimedia news services, deepening partnerships with international news agencies, improving journalist training, adapting to the digital era and broadening public access to official government information.

TATOLI