Category Archives: Politics

Guardian: Jeremy Hunt stakes his reputation on local television

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Bids for expressions of interest for Jeremy Hunt’s proposed new national channel, dubbed ‘Channel 6’, are due tomorrow. The Guardian reports that community purists fear just another national channel while others are sceptical of plan’s commercial viability.

Hunt’s approach on this journey has been distinctive. The culture secretary has ignored the naysayers, ridden roughshod over the equivocal advice he has received from Lazard banker Nicholas Shott, and is relying on the bidders to make the idea work. Judging by the initial levels of interest, Hunt is doing well, although it is still early days. Tomorrow’s call for expressions of interest is limited to bidders providing a 10-page business plan – little more, critics say, than a beauty parade of half-baked ideas.

Full story on Guardian.co.uk at this link

 

Washington Post: Al Jazeera saw the Arab revolutions coming, why didn’t the West?

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The Washington Post has an article by the director general of the Al Jazeera network, Wadah Khanfar, who says the uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa were no surprise for Al Jazeera due to the network’s focus on grass roots journalism.

These unfolding transformations have been less of a surprise for us at al-Jazeera. Since our launch nearly 15 years ago, we have chosen to keep close to the Arab street, gauging its pulse and reflecting its aspirations. It was clear to us that a revolution was in the making, and it was happening far from the gaze of a tame and superficial establishment media that allied itself with the powerful center – on the assumption that the center is always safer and more important. Many media outlets in the region failed to recognize what was happening among the Arab grass roots. Keen to conduct interviews with high-level officials and ever willing to cover repetitious news conferences, they remained oblivious to what was happening on the ground.

Full post on the WashingtonPost.com at this link.

Jon Slattery: Tower Hamlets scraps press table but fights to save East End Life paper

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Jon Slattery reports that the Tory group leader at Tower Hamlets claims the council has removed the press table from its council chamber and is ‘fighting to the death’ to preserve its controversial newspaper, East End Life.

The future of East End Life is currently “under review” and a new code being proposed by Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles would ban local authority newspapers being published more often than four times a year.

Full post on Jon Slattery’s blog at this link.

 

Libya could relax ban on foreign journalists on Friday

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Libya is reportedly planning to allow some Western journalists to report from the capital, Tripoli, tomorrow, but has warned those who have already entered without proper government accreditation that they face immediate arrest and will be considered al-Qaeda collaborators.

Foreign media have been trying to gain access for the past week to cover the violent protests that have gripped the country, as protestors call for the end of Colonel Gaddafi’s 42-year rule.

Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya have been relying on user-generated content sent in from around the country to keep on top of the story. The Independent’s Robert Fisk managed to file a report from Tripoli following a brief visit there.

Gaddafi’s son said in an interview with Libyan state television that some journalists would be allowed into the capital Tripoli on Friday. The Washington Post says Libya will do this “so [journalists] can corroborate the government’s claim that the country remains under Gaddafi’s control”.

According to the US state department, Libyan officials say they will grant access to CNN, BBC Arabic and Al-Arabiya.

It said, however, that any reporters who have entered without government permission to cover the violent unrest sweeping the country risked “immediate arrest on the full range of possible immigration charges” and considered al-Qaeda “collaborators”.

The warning to news organisations from the US state department says: “Be advised, entering Libya to report on the events unfolding there is additionally hazardous with the government labeling unauthorized media as terrorist collaborators and claiming they will be arrested if caught.”

The government appears to have lost control of parts of eastern Libya, including the second biggest city Benghazi. As a result, some reporters have managed to get into the country by crossing the border from Egypt.

The Daily Mail says crowds in Benghazi “cheered as international journalists drove through the city – and the only shooting that could be heard was celebratory gunfire”.

CNN’s Ben Wedeman tweeted from the city yesterday: “As first western TV crew to make it to Benghazi we were greeted like liberators, pelted with candy, cheers and thanks. Very humbling.”

The Guardian’s Martin Chulov is there and has been posting updates on Audioboo. ITV News also has a team in the east of the country.

Canada encourages MPs to tweet from parliament

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The Canadian House of Commons has issued MPs with Blackberry devices and encouraged them to tweet and post messages on Facebook during their parliamentary work.

According to the Canadian Press newswire, about half of Canada’s MPs are already avid social media users and others are setting up new accounts as elections near.

It is expected that the move will improve public access to information and encourage debate.

International media centre set up in Bahrain to aid protest coverage

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An international media centre has been set up today at the Information Affairs Authority in Bahrain, to help journalists cover the protests within the country.

It is understood that facilities at the media centre will include access to interview areas, journalist work stations with high speed wireless internet access, digital storage and a press conference room, to be attended by members of the government and official spokesmen. Journalists must register to attend the media centre by emailing the following details to elloydowen [at] bell-pottinger.co.uk.

  • Name
  • Organisation
  • Photo
  • Passport details
  • Email address
  • Contact number

Journalism.co.uk reported last week that the Committee to Protect Journalists was claiming that journalists attempting to cover the protest action were facing escalating attacks and restrictions in Bahrain, with a BBC producer being held for 15 hours at Bahrain International Airport, before being let into the country without any equipment.

Al Jazeera gives the public a chance to ask the questions for Cameron interview

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A series of monthly interviews with leaders across the world that gives the public the chance to ask the questions will feature David Cameron on 25 February.

World View, an Al Jazeera series, asks for questions to be sent in either by video or text.

More information on Al Jazeera’s YouTube channel at this link.

Journalisted Weekly: (Ex) President Mubarak, Big Society, and The King’s Speech

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Journalisted is an independent, not-for-profit website built to make it easier for you, the public, to find out more about journalists and what they write about.

It is run by the Media Standards Trust, a registered charity set up to foster high standards in news on behalf of the public, and funded by donations from charitable foundations.

Each week Journalisted produces a summary of the most covered news stories, most active journalists and those topics falling off the news agenda, using its database of UK journalists and news sources.

for the week ending Sunday 13 February

  • Hosni Mubarak’s resignation in Egypt dominated the news
  • Cameron’s Big Society under fire and The King’s Speech at the Baftas kept things British
  • A suicide bomber in school uniform and alleged torture in Egypt received little coverage

News about the joint Media Standards Trust/Cardiff University local news project, including an ITV Wales programme, available on our website

The Media Standards Trust’s unofficial database of PCC complaints is available for browsing at www.complaints.pccwatch.co.uk

For the latest instalment of Tobias Grubbe, journalisted’s 18th century jobbing journalist, go to journalisted.com/tobias-grubbe

Covered lots

  • Hosni Mubarak, resigning from the Egyptian presidency after 30 years in power and 18 days of popular protests, 629 articles
  • PM David Cameron preparing to defend his Big Society policy in face of renewed criticism, 125 articles
  • British film The King’s Speech, sweeping the board at the Baftas as predicted, 118 articles

Covered little

Political ups and downs (top ten by number of articles)

Celebrity vs serious

Who wrote a lot about…’Mubarak’

Chris McGreal – 16 articles (The Guardian), Andrew England – 9 articles (Financial Times), Donald MacIntyre – 9 articles (The Independent), Sadie Gray – 8 articles (The Times), Heba Saleh – 8 articles (Financial Times), Roula Khalaf – 8 articles (Financial Times), Martin Fletcher – 8 articles (The Times), Jack Shenker – 8 articles (The Guardian), Adrian Blomfield – 8 articles (The Telegraph), James Hider – 7 articles (The Times)

Long form journalism

Politico: Amid WikiLeaks battle, Clinton to assert US support for internet freedom

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Hilary Clinton is due to give a speech on internet freedom later today. In the wake of Egypt’s shutting off of internet access during recent protests, and in the midst of her department’s ongoing battle with WikiLeaks, it has the potential to be interesting.

Politico has published extracts from the speech Clinton is expected to give. Certain parts closely resemble previous attempts by the US administration to carefully chastise China for its severe curtailments of internet freedom:

History has shown us that repression often sows the seeds for revolution down the road. Those who clamp down on internet freedom may be able to hold back the full impact of their people’s yearnings for a while, but not forever… Leaders worldwide have a choice to make. They can let the internet in their countries flourish, and take the risk that the freedoms it enables will lead to a greater demand for political rights. Or they can constrict the Internet, choke the freedoms it naturally sustains—and risk losing all the economic and social benefits that come from a networked society…

While others are clearly there to speak to the problem of WikiLeaks, and clarify the pro-freedom stance of an administration currently attempting to subpoena private information from Twitter accounts belonging to members and affiliates of the whistleblowers’ site.

Our allegiance to the rule of law does not dissipate in cyberspace. Neither does our commitment to protecting civil liberties and human rights. The United States is equally determined to track and stop terrorism and criminal activity online and offline, and in both spheres we pursue these goals in accordance with our values… Liberty and security. Transparency and confidentiality. Freedom of expression and tolerance. There are times when these principles will raise tensions and pose challenges, but we do not have to choose among them. And we shouldn’t. Together they comprise the foundation of a free and open Internet…

See more on Politico at this link.

Moscow Times: Harding’s chilling effect

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Following the brouhaha over Guardian Moscow correspondent Luke Harding’s deportation from Russia (and subsequent overtures of friendship from the country and explanations that it was all a big mistake), the Moscow Times takes a sharp look at some of the likely reasons behind Russia’s actions. (Other than the explanation from a spokesman for Russia’s foreign ministry that “This is a technical matter and I do not think that it deserves so much commotion”).

The piece also looks at some of the other cases of foreign journalists being refused entry to the country, more than 40 between 2000 and 2007 according to the Moscow-based Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations.

When Harding was denied entry after trying to pass through passport control with a valid visa, an airport security official told him, “For you, Russia is closed.” mostbet-aze45 – the future of online sports betting

Very well put. Russia truly is a closed society — and not only for Harding.

Full story on the Moscow Times at this link.