Journalism at Risk
Raising a Banner celebrationForty years ago, a black journalist answered the call
The Banner is celebrating is 40th anniversary tonight at Boston's Seaport Hotel, and Melvin Miller has been at the helm since the beginning. (Globe Staff Photo / Janet Knott)
The Banner was first published on Sept. 25, 1965, as a 10-page broadsheet. It became a tabloid in 1968. (Globe Staff Photo / Janet Knott)
By Adrienne P. Samuels, Globe Staff October 29, 2005
It was 1965 -- the height of the civil rights movement, and his father definitely disapproved. Why would a black man, a graduate of Harvard College and Columbia Law School, leave his job as a federal prosecutor in Boston to start a weekly newspaper?
For Melvin Miller, then 31, the answer was simple. He didn't want to. He heard the call.
Now, 40 years later, the 30,000-circulation Boston Banner (known outside the Hub as the Bay State Banner) is celebrating a legacy of providing coverage of the black community in a city that at times has been hostile to black people and black business. The paper is holding a 40th anniversary gala tonight at Boston's Seaport Hotel.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/10/29/raising_a_banner_celebration/
Outside View: The plague of interviews
By DAOUD KUTTABOustside View Commentator
RAMALLAH, West Bank, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- It has always been a problem for journalists: how to carry on the profession of journalism without being accused of sympathizing with the person you are covering. All journalists who cover a conflict can't help but have some sympathy for their subjects. Internationally famous New York Times columnist Tom Friedman once told me that a good journalist always shows his subject that he is genuinely interested in what he is saying. You have to give the person you are interviewing the feeling you are hanging on every word he or she is saying, he explained.
Professional journalists, of course, have a responsibility to reflect what their subjects are saying and not what they themselves are thinking. Likewise, journalists covering a murder trial are not killers, and those interviewing thieves are not criminals. We are simply messengers and therefore we should not be judged by the message, even if it is a very ugly one.
http://www.upi.com/InternationalIntelligence/view.php?StoryID=20051026-023842-3416r
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/10/28/news/nepal.php
Michael Moore, Beppe Grillo: Committed to Satire The American director and Italian comedian share much in common
Plutarch was a Greek historian, philosopher and essayist who lived in the first century
A.D. Having worked as a magistrate and diplomat, he had the chance to travel
extensively, and he went to Italy a few times.
His biographic work about the lives of important Greek and Roman characters - "Parallel
Lives" -- showed common virtues and flaws of people distant from one another in space
and time.
It's always interesting to see how history repeats itself, and how similar some people
may be, even if they live far from each other and have different occupations.
We live in an age in which there is a systematic attempt to control information, by
governments, lobbies and pressure groups. Information is power, as George Orwell said in
his book "1984," and to control power, information has to be controlled first.
Among a crowd of opinion-makers, spin doctors, entertainers, TV show hosts and
journalists who are "embedded" in the mainstream and pay lip service to the "man" in
charge, there are still some people whose voice is "extra chorum" -- outside the
mainstream.
Michael Moore ©2005 Wikipedia Michael Moore is one of them.
Moore was born in Michigan in the 1950s. He spent his young age in Flint, at that time a
flourishing city thanks to the General Motors automobile factory, and his parents were
both employed there.
He studied journalism at University of Flint, and founded the newspaper The Michigan
Voice at the age of 22.
A multi-talented man, he has become a music video director and also a film director. His
"Bowling for Columbine," about the problems arising from the constitutional right of
carrying a firearm in America, won him an Oscar in 2003.
"Fahrenheit 9/11" is his most striking success in recent years. A sequel titled
"Fahrenheit 9/11 and 1/2" is in the pre-production stage, and is supposedly due in 2007.
His style is direct and sometimes crude: he tends to present facts and figures in his
movies and TV shows with a certain degree of irony, but always in a direct and essential
way.
His mission has been identifying and exposing the "sick" sides of American society, such
as the healthcare system, corrupt political circles, the corporate world and
environmental policies. He presents a shocking and sometimes cynical picture of what the
United States is today.
Many people can still remember the impression raised by "Fahrenheit 9/11": all over the
world audiences came out from theaters in a glacially astonished silence.
Moore is an American, and as such he thinks it's his duty to stand up for the rights of
his fellow citizens who live in a society where the government lies to them and social
justice is a luxury reserved for a narrow circle of privileged people.
Although he has a large crowd of supporters and people who appreciate his style and his
courage, there are also many who think he's a bluff, and that he's only interested in
making money.
Whatever the truth is, he represents a critical voice in a world that seems to have lost
a substantial sense of criticism towards the people who direct our lives.
About 4,500 miles east of Flint there is an Italian city named Genoa. It is a seaside
city -- dirty, yet charming. It is also the home to the most popular of Italian
entertainers, Beppe Grillo.
Italian comedian Beppe Grillo ©2005 Wikipedia Grillo was born near Genoa in the late 1940s, and he became a comedian by chance -- at a
trial. During the 1980s he performed on several TV shows, which gave him a big name and
great success.
But, as well as Michael Moore, Beppe Grillo had a "bad habit" to stand up for people's
rights and to speak out against the injustices perpetrated in Italy.
In 1987, after a critique of the Italian Prime Minister, he got banned from national
television.
Nowadays, he performs nearly every year in theaters with one-man-shows focusing on
political and environmental topics, from the corruption inside Italian politics, to the
financial and environmental scandals that have shocked Italy in the last few years.
Needless to say, every show gathers large crowds of people who are eager to listen to
his words, looking forward to joining him in the criticism of Italian politicians or
entrepreneurs.
He often warns his audiences that he's just a comedian, so people shouldn't regard him
as a new messiah. Yet many people trust him more than the official media in Italy, and
his Web site is visited by thousands of people every day.
His style reminds me of Moore's: ironic, direct and sometimes vulgar, he's always
irreverent towards power, whoever it belongs to.
Last October he appeared in a Time Magazine article about the 2005 European heroes,
entitled: "Seriously Funny -- Comedian Beppe Grillo may be banned from TV, but he hasn't
let that stifle his unique political humor."
This mention is due, in particular, to the financial ruin of the Italian food company
Parmalat, foreseen by Grillo two years before the scandal arose.
It's quite stunning that a comedian is better informed about what's going on than the
magistrates and the authorities, isn't it?
Now the comedian from Genoa is committed to a number of projects regarding politics
(Project "Parliament Clean") and the promotion of a better awareness of Italian
diseases.
There is no doubt that his statements, as well as his shows, are annoying and
disturbing, especially for people who are the object of his satire and who regularly sue
him.
Nevertheless, like Michael Moore, he is a critical voice in a country whose media
independence index has fallen to 79th place, between Bulgaria and Mongolia (source:
Freedom House -- 2005 press freedom survey).
It would be interesting to see what would happen if Moore and Grillo met and worked on a
common project: maybe, someone would start trembling.
http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?
article_class=5&no=257396&rel_no=1
Reporters Without Borders book highlights jailed journalists
Nov 07, 2005
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) will release a book on November 17 paying tribute to
imprisoned journalists and celebrating the organization’s 20th year of promoting press
freedom.
Every year, RSF releases a book of photography on Jailed Journalist Support Day in
November and World Press Freedom Day, on May 3. RSF says that the books bring in about
half of the organization’s annual budget.
The latest book, features photography taken by the late Jean-Philippe Charbonnier and
tributes to 20 jailed journalists. To purchase a book for EU€8, contact RSF at
presse@rsf.org or visit (in French) http://www.rsf.org/.
http://www.ijnet.org/FE_Article/newsarticle.asp?UILang=1&CId=303920&CIdLang=1
Kyrgyz Prosecutor Attacks Media
“Distortions”Tough talk from general prosecutor Kambaraly Kongantiev has sparked fears of censorship.
By Astra Sadybakasova in Bishkek (RCA No. 423, 25-Nov-05)
Journalists and human rights activists fear freedom of speech is under threat in
Kyrgyzstan after a call from country’s new chief prosecutor for a media crackdown.
Prosecutor Kambaraly Kongantiev told a meeting of the Kyrgyz Security Council attended
by President Kurmanbek Bakiev that the government should move against media outlets
“which inflame passions and destabilise the situation in the country”.
“In their search for sensations, journalists distort the facts, and cause a stir and
completely unjustified passions in society,” said Kongantiev at the November 21 meeting.
“This puts emotional pressure on people’s psyche.”
http://www.iwpr.net/?p=rca&s=f&o=258305&apc_state=henh
Dear Left Hook Readers,
November is almost over and we still have a long way to go to hit our second anniversary fund drive goal- if we don't meet it by the end of this month, we'll have to severely curtail and scale back our work here.
Left Hook started out as and remains the only independent leftist youth journal in this country. And by leftist, we don't mean the kind of "pander to the conservatives" politics you see from the Democratic Party and its hangers-on.
From the very beginning - far before it became popular - we took a principled stand against the war in Iraq, predicting the emergence of serious resistance early as November 2003. We've been publicizing and projecting the anti-war movement from the front lines, publishing countless ground reports, highlighting cases of abuse, interviewing student anti-war activists and veterans of the Iraq war, and demolishing pro-war arguments.
Young writers here have taken up a much wider range of important issues as well: from the oppression of Palestinians to the drastic costs of higher education in America, from the administration's malice in Katrina to the larger role of capitalism and neoliberalism in producing such tragedies, it's all been covered here in political analysis, cultural commentary, interviews, ground reports, and more.
And our material here is fresh, original, and from a unique youth perspective: not the same standard fare stuff reprinted and recycled all over the internet.
Of course, you already know all that - otherwise you wouldn't be reading this space right now, where we receive hundreds of visitors daily thanks to word of mouth and larger sites constantly linking to our material.
But you undoubtedly also know that, as a small, independent leftist site, we cannot continue without the financial support of our readers - that means you! There's just two of us students here at the helm, and though the cost of Ramen noodles remains relatively stable, we have to maintain our (pretty modest) funding goals to keep bringing you the quality and content you've been regularly enjoying here.
So please help keep Left Hook alive and donate today! Be it $10 or $100 - every bit that you chip in helps. Thank you.
Sincerely, The Editors Derek Seidman and M. Junaid Alam
http://lefthook.org/Politics/Fanelli110605.html
Searching for Judith Miller's Credibility: No Smoking Gun Here
Brian Fanelli
Though New York Times reporter Judith Miller could be considered a hero of journalism for refusing to reveal her sources concerning the CIA leak case, her prewar reporting was erroneous, and some of her statements about the leak incident make her seem like a loyalist to the administration. Miller is an aggressive, prize-winning journalist, but her reporting about Saddam Hussein's weapons capabilities before the war in Iraq began was wrong. Because Miller trusted poor sources, her credibility was tarnished and her reporting was untruthful. Recently, Miller's paper published a lengthy article about its prewar reporting and the CIA leak investigation. In the piece, the editors and journalists at the New York Times admitted that Miller's prewar reporting was misleading.
http://lefthook.org/Politics/Fanelli110605.html
Chinese media open up in aftermath of chemical spill
By Richard McGregor Published: November 26 2005 02:00 Last updated: November 26 2005 02:00
The Chinese media was initially slow to grasp the ramifications of the blast at a
chemicals plant this month in Jilin, a city in north-east China on the Songhua river.
The blast itself, which killed five workers, was never a secret, sending spectacular
fireballs and smoke into the sky, but the contamination of the Songhua river that
happened with it was kept under wraps.
The day after the blast, the Jilin government said the surrounding environment had not
been contaminated, while at the same time trying quietly to solve the issue by releasing
water from a nearby reservoir into the river to dilute the effects of any spillage of
toxins.
The government did not announce that the Songhua river, the main water source for the
metropolitan area of Harbin, a city of 9m downstream from Jilin, had been polluted until
about a week after the explosion, a delay defended by a senior government official this
week.
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/bd7f1e00-5e42-11da-a9e8-0000779e2340.html
Journalist freed without charge after four years in jail
New York, November 21, 2005— The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release
of Eritrean journalist Dawit Isaac, who had been jailed without charge since a
government crackdown closed the entire independent press in September 2001. Isaac has
dual Eritrean and Swedish citizenship. Fourteen journalists remain in Eritrea's secret
jails or otherwise deprived of their liberty, according to CPJ research.
"We are delighted that Isaac has been released after all these years of detention
without trial," said Ann Cooper, CPJ Executive Director. "But Eritrea remains Africa's
worst jailer of journalists. We will not forget the fourteen other journalists who have
been imprisoned without charge or forced into extended military service."
http://www.cpj.org/news/2005/Eritrea21nov05na.html
NIGER: Journalist jailed for defamation
New York, November 21, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is outraged that a
journalist accused of defaming a government official has been placed in "preventive
detention." Salifou Soumaila Abdoulkarim, director of the private weekly Le Visionnaire,
was arrested November 12 after State Treasurer Siddo Elhadj filed a defamation suit,
local sources said.
"It is outrageous that Salifou Soumaila Abdoulkarim is being treated like a dangerous
criminal for reporting on a matter of clear public interest," said Ann Cooper, Executive
Director of CPJ. "Authorities in Niger must release him immediately, and should move
towards decriminalizing press offenses."
Elhadj brought the suit over an article in Le Visionnaire which accused him of
embezzling 17 billion CFA francs (US$30 million) in government funds. A prosecutor
ordered that Abdoulkarim be held in preventive detention at police headquarters in the
capital Niamey. He was transferred to prison on November 17. He is scheduled to have his
first hearing before a judge on Tuesday.
http://www.cpj.org/news/2005/Niger21nov05na.html
Bush Takes Up Issues With ChinaBut Iraq still dominates president's Asian tour
By JOSEPH KAHN& DAVID E. SANGER& THE NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICEPublished on 11/20/2005
Beijing— Fresh from another impassioned defense of his war leadership, President Bush
arrived here on Saturday evening to defuse a host of tensions with China, even as many
in Beijing argue that he will be able to apply little true pressure on the world's
fastest-rising power.
...The state-controlled media in China also ignored Bush's speech in Kyoto, Japan, on
Wednesday, in which he cited Taiwan's vibrant democracy as a model for the mainland and
argued that China was discovering “that once the door to freedom is opened even a crack,
it cannot be closed.”
http://www.theday.com/eng/web/news/re.aspx?re=e649db58-443f-4944-a7e7-c3a06a6a09db
Journalist of Eritrean origin jailed for demanding press freedom released
Eritrea, which gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993 after a 30-year guerrilla war,
has previously ignored Swedish requests for Isaak's release, and it was unclear why
authorities decided to set him free. A Swedish journalist of Eritrean origin was unexpectedly released from a prison in his
native country Saturday, after being jailed for four years for demanding press freedom
in Eritrea, a family friend said.
Dawit Isaak, 41, was "feeling really well" after his release, said Leif Obrink, a close
friend of Isaak's family who has led an organization in Sweden fighting for his release.
Obrink said Isaak called him at his home in Lerum in southern Sweden on Saturday morning
after he was set free.
"This is incredible, it is so fantastic," Obrink said. "He was very happy."
http://www.eitb24.com/noticia_en.php?id=106253
When truth is a crime
OUR OPINION: JOURNALISTS ARE A SPECIAL TARGET OF DICTATORSHIPS
Here is a statistic that should bring shame to Fidel Castro and the cronies who prop up
the aging tyrant: Nearly one out of every five imprisoned journalists around the world
is held in a Cuban prison. The dictatorship knows no shame, of course, but today, as the
world observes Jailed Journalists Day, it is fitting to remember that among the many men
and women unjustly condemned to prison in Cuba are nearly two dozen journalists.
Globally, according to the group Reporters Without Borders, 112 journalists are being
held in jail for discussing taboo issues, refusing to accept censorship and calling for
democracy. China leads the way in this disgraceful category with 31 journalists behind
bars. Cuba, with a population one hundred times smaller than China's, is second with 23.
Most were condemned to long prison sentences by kangaroo courts after the March 2003
crackdown.
Even though many suffer from failing health and none should be in prison at all, the
Castro regime has apparently singled out the journalists for special punishment and
humiliation.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/13187500.htm
Announcement: 16th Jailed Journalists’ Support Day
Submitted by editor4 on November 15, 2005 - 3:57pm.Source: Reporters Without Borders
We were exceptionally active when journalists were being held hostage in Iraq, and our
challenges may seem less urgent now. But that is not the case. A total of 186 media
people (112 journalists, 3 assistants and 71 cyber-dissidents) are imprisoned in 23
countries.
What crimes have they committed? They have revealed sensitive issue, called for
democracy and greater respect for individual freedoms, refused to give in to censorship
or to an enforced line of thought. In short, they simply tried to do their jobs.
In an appeal for solidarity with imprisoned journalists, Reporters Without Borders is
organizing the 16th consecutive annual day of action. We are urging the worldwide news
media— throughout the world-– to acknowledge the fate of those who have to struggle
every day for the right to report the news.
http://mediachannel.org/blog/node/1893
The Journalist who went to jail for a crocodile
An Iranian cartoonist tells of the harrowing experience of press censorship in his
country as Reporters Without Borders kicks off a campaign to highlight the plight of
jailed journalists around the world.It was a phone call every journalist in Iran dreads. It came from none other than Saeed
Mortazavid, a man whose name strikes terror in the hearts of journalists in Iran. In
Canada, he is best known as the prosecutor in the Zahra Kazemi case.
But Nikahang Kowsar, 36, a cartoonist for several reformist papers in Iran, wasn't
really surprised when he received the call in 2000. Speaking by phone from Toronto
recently, he recalls that prior to receiving the phone call, he had drawn a cartoon that
was deemed insulting to Islam. It was a simple drawing of a crocodile strangling a
journalist. The purpose of the cartoon was to highlight the censorship and repressive
conditions Iranian authorities placed on freedom of expression.
But Mr. Kowsar's other 'mistake' was to give the crocodile a name that rhymed with that
of a powerful hard-line cleric. Immediately after the cartoon was published, religious
students in the Iranian holy city of Qom, angry at his 'insulting' depiction of a
religious leader, demonstrated for three days, calling for his arrest and death. He also
received several death threats following the demonstration.
http://www.embassymag.ca/html/index.php display=story&full_path=/2005/november/16/cartoon/
Announcement: 16th Jailed Journalists’ Support Day
Submitted by editor4 on November 15, 2005 - 3:57pm.Source: Reporters Without Borders
We were exceptionally active when journalists were being held hostage in Iraq, and our
challenges may seem less urgent now. But that is not the case. A total of 186 media
people (112 journalists, 3 assistants and 71 cyber-dissidents) are imprisoned in 23
countries.
What crimes have they committed? They have revealed sensitive issue, called for
democracy and greater respect for individual freedoms, refused to give in to censorship
or to an enforced line of thought. In short, they simply tried to do their jobs.
In an appeal for solidarity with imprisoned journalists, Reporters Without Borders is
organizing the 16th consecutive annual day of action. We are urging the worldwide news
media— throughout the world-– to acknowledge the fate of those who have to struggle
every day for the right to report the news.
http://mediachannel.org/blog/node/1893
WORLD: Enemies of media to share UN spotlightKing Gyanendra of Nepal and President of Tunisia to attend UN meeting organized to make information more accessible for journalists
DawnMonday, November 14, 2005
By Marty Logan
Kathmandu --- At least two enemies of media freedom will share the spotlight at this
week’s United Nations meeting dedicated to making the information age accessible to all
people of the world. Nepal’s King Gyanendra will attend the World Summit on the
Information Society (WSIS) in the Capital Tunisia at the invitation of President Zine
al-Abidine Ben Ali.
The monarch left Kathmandu on Friday just as the Supreme Court ruled against challenges
to a media ordinance that tightens restrictions on journalists already squeezed by the
state following the king’s takeover of the government Feb. 1. Protests soon followed the
court’s decision, including an hour-long sit-in by 500 lawyers at the Supreme Court on
Sunday. "Who are these people who are taking away the rights given us by parliament?"
asked Nepal Bar Association President Shambhu Thapa, reported The Kathmandu Post.
http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=33463
Court uproar as jailed robbers lose appeal
MANAMA
MANAMA: Bahrain's High Criminal Court was in uproar yesterday after judges upheld a 10-
year jail sentence for three Bahraini robbers. Tempers flared when the verdict was
delivered. The defendants' mothers began wailing and insulting lawyers and journalists.
The three ambushed an Asian driving from the bank to Al A'ali Company and snatched an
envelope containing workers' wages, the Court of Appeal heard.
Police later revealed that the trio chased the Asian in two stolen cars and crashed into
his car, causing him internal bleeding and disc fractures.
The High Criminal Court initially indicted them and handed them a 10-year prison
sentence.
The mothers claimed that the company and the injured Indian had dropped the complaint
against their sons but their plea fell on deaf ears as the General Prosecution decided
to sue them.
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=127010&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=28241
Sedition provisions won't threaten media freedom: Govt
Monday, 14 November 2005. 16:37 (AEDT)Monday, 14 November 2005. 15:37 (ACST)Monday, 14
November 2005. 15:37 (AEST)Monday, 14 November 2005. 16:37 (ACDT)Monday, 14 November
2005. 13:37 (AWST)The Govt says the work of journalists will not be affected by the
sedition provisions. (File photographs)ABCA Senate committee hearing has been told that sedition clauses in the Federal
Government's anti-terrorism legislation will not restrict journalists from going about
their jobs.
Senators have questioned Geoff McDonald, from the Federal Attorney-General's department,
about the Government's new anti-terrorism bill.
Greens Senator Bob Brown says the sedition clauses contained in the bill are an enormous
threat to media freedom but Mr McDonald says journalists are not in danger.
He says people will only be charged with sedition if they urge others to use force and
violence.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/items/200511/1506089.htm?queensland
NEPAL: Court verdict opens door to permanent censorship, says CPJCPJ executive director says journalists are now "at the mercy of the King"; SAFMA expresses solidarity with the Nepalese media
Nepal NewsSaturday, November 12, 2005
AsiaMedia Editor's Note: Reports are unclear as to whether the lifting of the state of
emergency on April 30 allows for press freedom, and thus Nepalnews may still be
operating under the directives of King Gyanendra.
A New York–based press freedom monitoring group has said Nepali Supreme Court's verdict
of Friday could open doors to permanent censorship in the Himalayan kingdom.
"King Gyanendra promised that his draconian measures against the press would be
temporary. But this latest decision opens the door to permanent censorship," said Ann
Cooper, executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). "If the
Supreme Court does not protect the basic right to freedom of expression enshrined in
Nepal's constitution, then journalists are at the mercy of the King," she said.
http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=33320
Australian held in CameroonFrom: AAP
November 13, 2005 Held ... Andrew Mueller pictured in 1999 / file AUSTRALIAN journalist Andrew Mueller has
been detained in North-Western Cameroon by paramilitary police.
Freelance journalist Andrew Mueller, 36, said he had been detained in the small town of
Kumbo in English-speaking north-western Cameroon along with two officials of the
separatist Anglophone Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC)."Nobody told me anything at the time of my arrest and up to now, as I am talking to you,
I have not been officially charged," he said via telephone.
Mr Mueller, who is based in London, said he was detained on Friday in the company of
SCNC national vice-chairman Nfor Ngala Nfor and local representative Stephen Kongnso as
he was about to cover a meeting of the organisation.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,17231660-2,00.html
Court verdict opens door to permanent censorship: CPJ
Executive Director of CPJ Ann Cooper (Photo source: thedailystar.net)
A New York –based press freedom monitoring group has said Nepali Supreme Court’s verdict
of Friday could open doors to permanent censorship in the Himalayan kingdom.
“King Gyanendra promised that his draconian measures against the press would be
temporary. But this latest decision opens the door to permanent censorship,” said Ann
Cooper, executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). “If the
Supreme Court does not protect the basic right to freedom of expression enshrined in
Nepal’s constitution, then journalists are at the mercy of the King,” she said.
The press has been under attack from the government since King Gyanendra seized absolute
power in on February 1. Emergency measures instituted at the time shut down the
independent press and stopped private FM radio stations from broadcasting news, a
primary source of information for many Nepalese. At the time, the king promised
international allies and donors that actions against the press were temporary measures
intended to aid in the fight against a Maoist insurgency, the statement said.
On Friday, a special bench of the Supreme Court led by Chief Justice Dilip Kumar Poudel
refused to block the media ordinance introduced by the government last month.
Private lawyers, nine professional groups and Kantipur F. M.—a leading private sector
radio station—had filed separate petitions at the apex court challenging the
constitutionality of the new media law.
Besides the news broadcast ban, the ordinance limits the print media’s ability to report
critically on government, the royal family, and security forces. It codifies a
prohibition on news content that “causes hatred or disrespect” to the king and members
of the royal family. It also bans news “promoting terrorists, terrorism and destructive
activities” and increases the penalty for defamation. Journalists can now be jailed for
up to two years on defamation cases. nepalnews.com by Nov 12 05
http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/2005/nov/nov12/news08.php
As summit nears, CPJ calls on Tunisia to free journalists
November 11, 2005
TO: His His Excellency Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali President of the Republic of TunisiaPresidential Palace Carthage, Tunisia
Via facsimile: 011 (216) 71 744-721
Your Excellency:
As international leaders prepare to gather in Tunis for a summit on the Internet, the
Committee to Protect Journalists strongly protests the imprisonment of journalists
Hamadi Jebali and Mohamed Abbou, who have been jailed solely for expressing their views.
http://by104fd.bay104.hotmail.msn.com/cgi-bin/getmsg?msg=97B99055-1186-4DAC-AADF
Reporters In The Spotlight Get The Golden Rule Lesson
For most ordinary folks – by “ordinary,” I mean non-journalists – it must be seem like
an obvious point when they hear someone complaining about the way the media treats
individuals. Who hasn’t felt a wave of revulsion when they see some local reporter shove
a microphone in the face of a man or woman and asking something like, “You’ve just lost
your entire family in this fire, how does that make you feel?” Okay, maybe that’s an
exaggeration, but not a real big one.
The press also gets beaten on by anyone who’s been caught in a “feeding frenzy.” One day
you’re out jogging by yourself and decide to skip town before your wedding, a few days
later you can’t walk by a window in your own home without some photographer’s telephoto
lens capturing your silhouette through your drawn shades. Anyone who’s driven by the
site of a news event knows that entire villages pop up, sometimes complete with
satellite trucks, trailers and vendors.
http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2005/11/11/publiceye/entry1040445.shtml
NEPAL: CPJ disturbed by court’s failure to check repression of the media
New York, November 11, 2005 —Nepal’s Supreme Court today rejected media petitions for
the suspension of a draconian new law that bans FM radio news broadcasts and curbs
critical newspaper coverage. The Supreme Court is expected to issue a final ruling on
the constitutionality of the law, which the government issued in October, in the next
few weeks, according to local sources.
Nine media groups had filed three separate petitions seeking an interim injunction
against the government ordinance. The petitions followed a police raid on the radio
station owned by the country’s largest media group, Kantipur, on October 21. An
influential voice of the independent media, Kantipur was the first target of the
ordinance. Police seized transmitter equipment in retaliation for Kantipur FM’s news
broadcasts. Kantipur FM 96.1 suspended its news program, Kantipur Diary, today following
the Supreme Court decision.
http://www.cpj.org/news/2005/Nepal11nov05na.html
Ethiopia releases thousands jailed after unrest
10 Nov 2005 18:01:43 GMT
Source: Reuters ADDIS ABABA, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Ethiopian authorities released 2,417 people arrested
during days of unrest which left more than 40 dead and stirred fears of instability in
the region's dominant power, state television said on Thursday.
The report said the detainees had been released from three prisons in Addis Ababa, Zuwai
and Debessa. They had been jailed but found not to have been involved in the violence.
The move came after police released 285 detainees on Wednesday for similar reasons.
Human rights groups say thousands of people were rounded up by authorities after police
confronted demonstrators apparently heeding a call by the biggest opposition party, the
Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), for protests against May polls it says the
government manipulated.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L10764211.htm
Appeal Court Delays Paul Kamara's Case
Concord Times (Freetown)
November 10, 2005 Posted to the web November 10, 2005
Mohamed MassaquoiFreetown
The Appeal Court Wednesday adjourned the appeal case of the jailed editor of For di
People newspaper, Paul Kamara.
The adjournment was made till next week Wednesday on the grounds that the court has to
put some documentation in place before the commencement of the trial.
The jailed editor who was chatting with colleague journalists at the Guma Building where
the sitting was to take place said he was "shocked" to learn that the Appeal Court
Judges would start hearing his appeal next Wednesday.
Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Frederick Carew had pronounced the appeal
would commence today, Wednesday.
Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) President, Ibrahim Ben Kargbo told
Concord Times he was dismayed at the feet dragging. He said he was not personally at the
hearing but Kamara told him on telephone that his matter was adjourned to enable the
court put some "documentation in place" before the trail commences proper.
Efforts to contact the Attorney General and Minster of Justice's office proved
unsuccessful.
Kamara was sentenced for two years for libeling President Kabbah and the editor has
filed an appeal challenging his sentence. His health is said to be deteriorating as a
result of his incarceration at the Pademba Road prisons.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200511100435.html
Journalists ''Blur the Line''
Darnton blamed journalists for blurring the line between fact and fiction. Photo by
Douglas Godio. Enlarge By Scott Gargan, Distribution Manager
John Darnton, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and best selling author, criticized
reporters who blur the line between fact and fiction on Nov. 9 during a lecture at
McKenna Theatre on the SUNY New Paltz campus.
Speaking to a crowd of about 200 students, faculty and other guests, Darnton said, ''We
live in a time when many newspapers, magazines and TV news broadcasts are held in ''ill
repute'' one reason is obvious: the destruction wrought by a small handful of liars,
fabricators, fabulists and plagiarizers.''
http://oracle.newpaltz.edu/article.cfm?id=2080
TMG CALLS FOR RELEASE OF JAILED JOURNALISTS, DISSIDENTS
The IFEX Tunisia Monitoring Group (TMG) has called on Tunisia's president, Zine El
Abidine Ben Ali, to order the release of all prisoners held for free expression "crimes"
in advance of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), which opens on
Wednesday in Tunis.
The group says Tunisia continues to crack down on dissidents, human rights defenders and
journalists who criticise the government. In the latest development, authorities have
cut off the telephone lines and blocked the email accounts of eight prominent dissidents
who have been waging a hunger strike for the past 17 days to protest human rights
violations.
"This action is inhumane and a provocation," says the TMG. "It sends a message that the
authorities are not ready to respect the fundamental aim of the Summit, which is to
build an inclusive, pluralist and freecommunications environment for the information age."
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/70325/
Journalist Sources Must Be Shielded
Judith Miller's Attorney Explains the Importance of Confidentiality
http://www.spokesman-recorder.com/News/Article/Article.asp?NewsID=63311&sID=13
Jailed Belgian priest and ex-editor is innocent and must be freed, says Reporters Without Borders
Download the complete report
Reporters Without Borders called today for the immediate release of a Belgian Catholic
priest and former editor, Father Guy Theunis, from a prison in Rwanda where he is being
held for supposed complicity in genocide.
The worldwide press freedom organisation said in a report by a fact-finding mission it
sent to Rwanda that Theunis was “innocent” and that the accusations against him had been
“trumped up at the last minute” by “a handful of people driven by personal or political
motives.”
It said the evidence against Theunis, former editor of the magazine Dialogue who has
been in Kigali’s central prison for since 6 September, presented “before, during and
since” he appeared before a grassroots gacaca court on 11 September, was “baseless.”
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=15555
IFEX MEMBERS SPEARHEAD LAUNCH OF AFRICAN FREE EXPRESSION NETWORK
IFEX members in Africa are at the forefront of a new initiative aimed at improving the
environment for freedom of expression and press freedom, and strengthening collaboration
among free expression organisations on the continent.
The Network of African Freedom of Expression Organisations (NAFEO) unites 33 African and
international organisations under one umbrella to campaign against criminal defamation
laws, promote access to information and media pluralism, and monitor attacks on
journalists and media outlets.
Launched at a conference in Accra, Ghana, which took place from 28 to 30 October 2005,
the new network will put in place a rapid response mechanism to deal with crises that
seriously affect free expression in Africa.
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/70299/
Asia-Pacific News
Survey: China`s journalists want to quit
Nov 8, 2005, 17:49 GMT
BEIJING, China (UPI) -- Most news reporters in China want to change their jobs, a survey
by an Internet-based job agency has found.
The survey, conducted by online recruiter Zhaopin.com, found that 80 percent of
reporters would like to change their profession. They cited low salaries, averaging less
than 3,000 yuan ($370) per month, and 'other reasons,' China Daily reported Tuesday.
The survey questioned 500 people, two-thirds of whom work in the media field. Around
750,000 people work in China`s media industry, the newspaper said.
'A reporter`s glory days appear to be over,' concluded the report, saying the job had
become less desirable, more risky and unstable.
http://news.monstersandcritics.com/asiapacific/article_1060599.php/Survey_China%
60s journalists want to quit
Journalist and his assistant jailed
(MFWA/IFEX) - Moulaye Najim, a journalist with "Points Chauds" newspaper, and Abdel Ould
Sejad, his assistant, were jailed on October 19, 2005 for allegedly publishing
pornographic pictures taken at Nouakchott Civilian Prison. Najim has since been
released, but Sejad remains in jail.
The State Prosecutor said the charge against Najim and Sejad is provided for under
Section 231 of the Penal Code and Section 05 of the law on broadcast media productions.
These sections impose prison terms of one to three years on "anyone who broadcasts or
publish images showing total human nudity which are unacceptable."
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/70290/
CHINA: Bush urged to lobby China on release of its dissidentsReporters Without Borders asks President Bush to use visit to China to lobby for prisoners
Taipei TimesSunday, November 6, 2005
Washingotn --- A press freedom group on Friday asked US President George W. Bush to
intercede on behalf of China's jailed journalists and dissidents.
Robert Menard, secretary general of Paris-based Reporters Without Borders, encouraged
Bush to use his visit to China -- scheduled for later this month -- to lobby for the
release of prisoners of conscience or at least an improvement in their prison
conditions.
http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=32945
Russian remodelling of a cosmopolitan theme
Simon Kuper 11/8/2005 It must be nice for Derk Sauer to get out alone for once. The diminutive Dutchman, a
media mogul in Russia, has been going around Moscow with some of Mikhail Gorbachev's
former bodyguards for four years since someone shot the editor of Russian Playboy, one
of his magazines. But this morning in Amsterdam, his home town, he shows up
unaccompanied at breakfast in Hotel Europe.The chandeliered dining room befits Mr Sauer's new status. The Maoist-turned-war
correspondent is founder and chief executive of the Russian publisher Independent Media.
Earlier this year the Finnish media group SanomaWSOY bought it for euro142m ($172m). It
was Mr Sauer's reward for becoming the first foreigner to crack Russia's media market.
http://financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=11/8/2005§ion_id=4&newsid=6014&spcl=no
IDF soldier who attacked Channel 2 TV film crew jailed for 28 days
By Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondent An Israel Defense Forces soldier who attacked a Channel 2 TV film crew was sentenced to Sunday to 28 days in jail. The soldier's platoon commander, who ignored the attack, was suspended from his post until the end of an investigation into the affair.
The incident took place Sunday afternoon adjacent to the West Bank settlement of Beit El, located near to Ramallah.
A patrol manned by soldiers from the Duchifat infantry battalion stopped its jeep alongside the Channel 2 crew, headed by reporter Dana Weiss, which was editing footage for a story it was preparing.
http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/642487.html
Ethiopia's capital calm as special forces patrol after a week of bloody clashes print email this story
By ASSOCIATED PRESS November 5, 2005
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia - Special forces patrolled the streets of Ethiopia's capital, which was calm Saturday after a week of bloody clashes between demonstrators and police left at least 44 people dead and thousands in police custody.
In a town outside Addis Ababa, sporadic gunfire broke out Saturday, a human rights group said. Late Friday, Diplomats said shooting erupted in one neighborhood in the capital, where the violence started Tuesday after protests Monday over the disputed May 15 elections.
http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/34670.html
K Shivram is dead Express News Service
Ahmedabad, November 5: K Shivram, a former assistant editor with The Indian Express, died here today. He was 81.
Shivram is survived by his wife Amni, who also worked as a journalist, son Bijoy Anand, and daughter Neethi Rani. Born in Kerala on April 5, 1924, Shivram participated in the freedom struggle as a college student. He was arrested and jailed during the Quit India Movement of 1942.
He started his career as a journalist with the Free Press Journal in 1944, and later joined The Indian Express.
He was associated with the Ahmedabad edition of The Indian Express since its launch in 1968, until his retirement as assistant editor in 1979.
Later, he worked with the Nehru Foundation for Development and the Centre for Environment Education. He was on the visiting faculty of several journalism schools. He served as president of the Gujarat Journalists Union and on the national committee of Indian Federation of Working Journalists.
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=155720
Jailed journalist denied bail; court withdraws controversial order restricting journalists' access to court proceedings
(SEAPA/IFEX) - The following is a SEAPA alert with information provided for by the Cambodian Association for Protection of Journalists (CAPJ):
On 3 November 2005, Cambodia's court of appeal refused to grant bail to a radio journalist charged with defaming the government during a program about his country's border disputes with Vietnam.
Saly Theara told the courtroom that allowing the suspect to stay out of detention would harm the entire investigation of the case, which has just begun.
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/70228/
Two journalists held as anti-government protests spread
ETHIOPIA: Two journalists held as anti-government protests spread
New York, November 4, 2005 - Ethiopian authorities have jailed at least two journalists and increased censorship of media coverage of anti-government protests, which today spread north of the capital Addis Ababa. Local sources told the Committee to Protect Journalists that police arrested two editors and a reporter from the independent Amharic-language weekly Hadar on Wednesday. Many other journalists have gone into hiding. Much of the independent press has stopped publishing on orders from the police, according to local sources.
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/70241/
IFEX TMG calls on Tunisian government to stop crackdown on rights defenders and journalists prior to UN WSIS
On 7 November, members of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) Tunisia Monitoring Group (TMG) will call on Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to intervene to end the persecution of journalists and Internet users in advance of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). In particular, the group is concerned over the official response to the continuing hunger strike by human rights defenders and journalists and says the date of 7 November, the anniversary of the day President Ben Ali took power, is traditionally marked with the release of prisoners. This is the moment, says the TMG, for an end to the hunger strike, for the release of the jailed journalist Hamadi Jabali and the human rights lawyer Mohammed Abbou, among other political prisoners, and for Tunisia to respond to international concerns over violations of basic freedoms in the country.
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/70233/
Alternative defense strategies for the Vice President's team
"When it says Libby Libby Libby on the label label label, it means testimony given is mostly fable fable fable." The team in charge of Scooter Libby's defense has already tipped its hand as to the Vice Presidential Chief of Staff's legal strategy in the Valerie Plame case. Apparently he's going to stick with the "I'm a busy guy" defense. We've all seen it before. They trot out a stack of papers as big as a phone book, and call his phone logs "Defense Exhibit A."
http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?ItemID=19828
US says Iran damages jailed journalist's health
Thu Nov 3, 2005 7:22 PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States accused Iran on Thursday of mistreating a jailed journalist so badly his health was at serious risk, in a case that has drawn worldwide condemnation of the Islamic republic.
Washington, which is locked in a dispute with Iran over Tehran's suspected pursuit of a nuclear bomb and persistently complains about its human rights record, said Akbar Ganji's wife and nongovernmental groups reported his deteriorating health.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-11-04T002200Z_01_FOR401299_RTRUKOC_0_US-RIGHTS-IRAN-JOURNALIST.xml
A fall of chill air and chilling tales
By Christopher CaenPublished: Wednesday, November 2, 2005 8:46 PM PST And just like that it is the fall, arriving with suddenly clarity, freezing mornings and fingers of fog that hang over the Bay until they decide to charge the Marina like a barbarian horde. Raining at night, clear and cold in the morning, hot and sweaty in the afternoon. If you don’t like the weather in San Francisco the old saying goes, wait 10 minutes. It seems this year has gone in a hop and a skip and Halloween was upon us before we even knew what happened.
http://www.sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/11/03/columnists/christopher_caen/20051103_co03_caen.txt
Curbs on ideas pose a threatMatthew
WestwoodNovember 04, 2005UNTIL a few weeks ago, we didn't hear much about sedition; it's an antique name for an anachronistic crime. The offence predates modern democratic societies and was used to silence political opposition, with artists and writers through history at risk of prosecution.
In 17th-century France, Moliere's satirical play Tartuffe was banned by Louis XIV on grounds of sedition. In Britain, novelist Daniel Defoe was fined and imprisoned for his satire The Shortest Way With Dissenters, published in 1702. And poet William Blake was charged with sedition for shouting "Damn the king and damn his soldiers" when he discovered a drunken trooper pissing in his garden.
In more recent times, charges of sedition have been rare and convictions virtually nil, at least in the West. In 1991, Salman Rushdie successfully fought off a private prosecution over The Satanic Verses.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17131672%255E16947,00.html
World journalists urge for press freedom in Nepal
KATHMANDU, Nov 3 - Some 70 senior journalists from 24 nations Wednesday called on the Nepalese government to take immediate steps to restore freedom of speech in the country."The ongoing government crackdown on the Nepalese media is a cause for great concern for journalists committed to freedom and democracy in the Asia-Pacific region," they said in a statement.
The forum members, mostly from Asian nations and countries like the United States, Russia, Australia, Germany and South Africa, adopted the statement during a plenary session of the Asian Journalists Association conference in Cheju Island, Korea on Nov 2, the Korea Times daily reported.
http://www.kantipuronline.com/kolnews.php?&nid=56164
CHINA: Lawyer of jailed activist to sue journalists for libel
Pu Zhiqiang says Xinhua and Liberation Daily reporters co-authored libellous article that called him a disqualified lawyer
South China Morning PostWednesday, November 2, 2005
Shanghai --- Lawyer Pu Zhiqiang yesterday said he will sue two journalists for libel after they published reports that he claimed defamed his client, prominent jailed property activist Zheng Enchong.
Mr Pu, from the Beijing Huaiyi Law firm, accused Xinhua's Yang Jinzhi and the Liberation Daily's Chen Bin of co-authoring a libellous story about Zheng, a lawyer.
The article, published on October 29, 2003, in the Liberation Daily and Wen Hui Bao, was fabricated and defamatory, a statement said.
http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article-eastasia.asp?parentid=32655
Col. Besigye Blocked From Seeing Jailed Brother
November 3, 2005 Posted to the web November 2, 2005
Hussein BogereLuzira
Forum for Democratic Change President Kizza Besigye was yesterday barred from visiting his brother James Musasizi and other detainees accused of belonging to the shadowy People's Redemption Army suspects incarcerated in Luzira Upper Prison.
Musasizi's wife and his lawyer Yusuf Nsibambi were also stopped.
Dr Besigye and five FDC officials had gone through the necessary security checks right from the main gate and had received due clearance.
However, a telephone order from the Deputy Commissioner of Prisons, Mr James Mwanje, stopped the party from advancing.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200511020644.html
An ovation for journalists? (2)
By Adaeze Okwonkwo
Babangida’s quest of “oppression kill the press” was not yet met. The April 22 1990 attempted coup of Major Gideon Gwaza Orkar jerked several journalists in the likes of Chris Momah of The Punch and their premises sealed up by security agents. Neither was broadcast media spared in this flax: Kola Yusuz and Kola Alaba both of Radio Kwara were arrested for carrying out their normal daily routine of logging on to 7 O’clock news on the fateful day (coup day). Several other journalists were arrested and detained as if they were plotters of the coup themselves.
http://www.independentng.com/editorial/ednov020503.htm
Karzai under pressure over editor`s jailing
Wednesday November 02, 2005 (1139 PST)
KABUL, November 02(Online): - Afghan President Hamid Karzai was under growing pressure on Tuesday to intervene in the case of an editor jailed for two years for blasphemy after clerics accused him of questioning Islamic law. The world`s top media rights groups joined Afghan journalists in urging Karzai to intercede after a court sentenced Ali Mohaqiq Nasab, editor of the monthly magazine Haqoq-e-Zan (Women`s Rights), at the weekend.
Nasab, 50, was arrested at the beginning of the month after conservative clerics complained about his magazine to the Supreme Court, which in turn asked the public prosecutor`s office to arrest him.
http://paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=124324
Nepalese Journalists Speak Out Against Media Suppression
By Kim Ki-taeStaff ReporterThe Himalayan nation of Nepal is renowned for its scenic beauty. As famous as its natural heritage may be, however, its suppression of its media is equally notorious. Nepal's King Gyanendra imposed media restriction in February and the new law restricts accreditation of reporters and increases fines for tough media regulations.
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/200511/kt2005110119443444430.htm
Journalist who attempted suicide arrested 32-year-old had consumed pesticide after sting operation turned messy.
Express News Service Mumbai, October 31: PAWAN Bhargav (32), the freelance journalist who attempted suicide allegedly to escape the clutches of the police after a failed sting operation, ironically found himself jailed as a result.
Immediately after being discharged from Thane Civil Hospital on Monday afternoon, Bhargav was arrested by the local police for attempted suicide. He was, however, released on bail by the Thane Metropolitan Magistrate immediately after.
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=155291
Mystery Of Jailed Journalists
10/28/05
In Iraq there's a mystery involving several journalists detained by the U.S. military. One of them is an Iraqi cameraman who was working for CBS News. Richard Roth has the story.
http://guide.real.com/media/news?contentid=8702580&pageid=unagi.8084792&pageregion=C2&rnd=1133119771250&bw=247&has-player=true&version=6.0.12.1212
Knight Ridder up for sale
BY CHRISTINA HOAG
choag@herald.com
Knight Ridder, parent company of The Herald and El Nuevo Herald, is up for sale.
The company's board of directors said Monday that it is looking at selling the 32-newspaper chain, as well as other options to boost its lagging stock price.
''The company is working with Goldman, Sachs & Co., its longtime financial advisor, in this process,'' the statement said.
The announcement comes two weeks after the San Jose, Calif., company's three largest shareholders demanded that the publishing giant take drastic steps, such as selling off its newspapers, to bring its stock price up to full value.
After a tepid public response from the company's board, the biggest shareholder, Private Capital Management of Naples, last week fired off a second letter to directors, threatening that it would move to replace the board if no concrete action is taken.
Knight Ridder's statement Monday appeared to be a reponse to the investment fund's letter.
Knight Ridder said no transaction may be reached, and added that it would not make any further statements about its plans until the board approves a deal.
The company also said that the board has amended bylaws to allow shareholders to submit nominees for a new board to be elected at the next annual stockholders' meeting, scheduled for April 18.
The meeting could be postponed, the company said.
Newspapers have long suffered from circulation declines, but in recent years the pace has accelerated with competition from the Internet and 24-hour cable news. Advertising sales have also been hit by consolidation among big retailers and competition in the classified arena from Craigslist.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/13164263.htm
Iran acquittal in journalist murder upheld
November 16, 2005
TEHRAN, Iran --An appeals court has upheld the acquittal of an Iranian secret agent in the killing a Canadian-Iranian journalist, whose death in detention two years ago led to a diplomatic row between Canada and Iran, defense counsel said Wednesday.
The court upheld the acquittal of Mohammad Reza Aghdam Ahmadi, an interrogator with the Iranian intelligence ministry and the only suspect in the case, and ruled the death of Zahra Kazemi was not premeditated, said defense lawyer Qasem Shabani.
Kazemi, a Canadian photojournalist of Iranian origin, died in July 2003. She was arrested while taking photographs outside a Tehran prison during a student demonstration.
http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2005/11/16/iran_acquittal_in_journalist_murder_upheld/
Viewpoint: Hariri assassination coverage tells the whole story
Greg Felton
October 27, 2005
-- At last, the truth about Judith Miller is out. This anti-Arab White House stenographer can no longer pass herself off as a reporter, with all the ethical criteria that that word implies.
In fact, her misrepresentations about Saddam Hussein's weapons program could lead to the downfall of New York Times executive editor Bill Keller, who even told Miller in 2003 that she could no longer cover Iraq because some of her stories turned out to be wrong.
Just two years ago, Howell Raines was sacked over the Jayson Blair scandal; however, the damage Miller has done to the Times' reputation, to say nothing of the profession of journalism, is immeasurably worse. The publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. could fall:
"We know that Arthur was driving the editorials, and we were constrained from writing anything," a reporter told Editor & Publisher. "The big issue is Sulzberger," said another longtime staffer. "He is the one who turned the paper over to Miller, and he is left holding the bag."
Of course, all this could have been avoided, since Hurricane Judy had been wreaking havoc in the newsroom for years. Craig Pyes, a former contract writer for the Times who teamed up with Miller for a series on "Al Qaeda" wrote a memo to Times editors in December 2000 that told them all they would need to know.
http://www.metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20051027-080841-9955r
Government officials 'inciting attacks on journalists'
By Nasser Arrabyee, Gulf News Report
Sanaa:
Government officials are inciting attacks on journalists, said an official of the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate (YJS) yesterday.
"These repeated assaults on journalists are a result of the flagrant inciting by some government officials," Saeed Thabit, YJS deputy chairman, said.
"We are very concerned about these attacks, which is against democracy and press freedom of this country," he said.
"There is a tendency to go back to totalitarianism," said Thabit. "And those who are behind such irresponsible actions want to eliminate the fourth estate and prevent it from playing the monitoring role."
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=189888
Sailing in the same boat
By George S. Hishmeh, Special to Gulf News
It is ironic that US President George W. Bush and his Syrian counterpart, Bashar Al Assad, who are known to be single-minded but certainly not the best of friends, should find themselves this week in wobbly boats.
They have to deal with teammates whose actions, authorised or not, could lead each to ruinous results.
The Syrian president has been told last Monday by an unanimous vote of the UN Security Council to detain Syrian suspects identified in a controversial UN probe not yet an indictment into the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri.
He is also told to clarify all unresolved issues and is threatened with "further action" in case of non-compliance.
Among the alleged suspects are his younger brother and brother-in-law.
Last Friday, US vice-president Dick Cheney's chief of staff, I. Lewis Libby Jr, was indicted by a federal jury on five felony charges of lying to investigators and obstructing justice in the lengthy investigation of a CIA leak case.
This prompted the first sitting White House aide and one of the most influential officials in the Bush administration to be charged with a crime in recent history to resign immediately.
If convicted he may face up to 30 years in jail and fines amounting to $1.25 million (Dh4.59 million).
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=189863
Newspaper circulation falls 2.6 percent
NEW YORK A group that tracks the circulation of newspapers is reporting more troubles for the newspaper industry.
The Newspaper Association of America says according to its analysis from numbers provided from the Audit Bureau of Circulation, average weekday circulation at newspapers across the country fell two-point-six percent during a six-month period ending in September.
The San Francisco Chronicle, published by Hearst Corporation, posted more than a 16 percent tumble in circulation as the paper cut back on less profitable, heavily discounted and giveaway circulation subsidized by advertisers.
Newspapers are facing sluggish growth in advertising, higher newsprint prices and increasing concern among investors about their growth prospects.
San Jose-based Knight Ridder -- the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher -- is facing a revolt from two of its top shareholders, who want the company to be sold.
http://www.kron.com/Global/story.asp?S=4084126&nav=5D7l
When journalists cover themselves
Do the right thing--like the president
By Jonathan Zimmerman who teaches history and education at New York University
Published November 18, 2005
On Wednesday we discovered that Bob Woodward of The Washington Post knew about CIA agent Valerie Plame before syndicated columnist Robert Novak disclosed her identity.
And this fact was revealed by reporters inside The Washington Post! That might be the biggest scandal of all. Now that the Post and other news organizations have become such big parts of the CIA leak story, they need to refrain from reporting on their own behavior.
Why? For the same reason that the White House appointed special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald to investigate the case. You simply can't expect people who work inside an institution to report impartially about mistakes and malfeasance by their friends and co-workers.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0511180356nov18,1,3799775.story?coll=chi-opinionfront-hed
Political Fallout Follows Toxic Spill in China
Local Journalists Expose Efforts to Cover Up Contamination of Water Supplies
By Philip P. Pan
Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, November 26, 2005; Page A14
HARBIN, China, Nov. 26 -- It was dusk on Friday when the trucks finally made it to Chengxiang Road, first a big orange tanker carrying clean water for the local heating plant, then a smaller blue one with more for household use. As word spread through the grimy apartment buildings, residents in heavy coats poured onto the street with plastic buckets, porcelain basins and steel pots.
Zhang Hongdi, 42, a farmer hired to bring water into this Chinese city from a well in the rural suburbs, sat atop the blue tanker, urging the crowd to form a line and be patient. "There's enough for everyone!" he shouted, as residents peppered him with questions: Where is the water from? How much can we take? When will you come back?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/25/AR2005112501183.html
Another Time Reporter Is Asked to Testify in Leak Case
By DAVID JOHNSTON
Published: November 28, 2005
WASHINGTON, Nov. 27 - A second reporter for Time magazine has been asked to testify under oath in the C.I.A. leak case, about conversations she had in 2004 with a lawyer for Karl Rove, the senior White House adviser, the magazine reported on Sunday.
The reporter, Viveca Novak, who has written about the leak investigation, has been asked to testify by the special counsel in the case, Patrick J. Fitzgerald, about her conversations with Robert D. Luskin, a lawyer for Mr. Rove, the magazine said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/28/politics/28leak.html
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