Blacklists – 21st Century Reality

And if you believe that, following a favorite American expression, “I’ve got a bridge to Brooklyn to sell you.”

Azeri independent media organizations charge in a lawsuit filed this week (March 7) the Baku Court for Grave Crimes with blocking non-State media from access to the trial of Ali Insanov, a former government official accused with the usual corruption components – bribery, forgery, embezzlement and general abuse of power. Media watching NGOs say the Court wants to keep “critical statements” from being reported. The court says seats in the chamber are very limited. Journalists saw plenty of empty seats.

ftm background

The Ash-McKennitt Privacy Lawsuit That Went Very Badly For UK Freedom Of Expression Is A Wakeup Call That The Media Everywhere Needs A System To Get Involved In Such Important Cases At The First Stage – The Appeals Level Is Too Late
The privacy lawsuit won by Canadian folk singer Loreena McKennitt against a former friend and colleague, Niema Ash, claiming Ash’s book contained personal details that were an invasion of privacy has rocked the UK media with lawyers and editors fearing it is the end of “kiss and tell” celebrity stories. Yet how this case actually made privacy law in the UK should come as a shock and wake-up call to the media worldwide that it needs to get its legal protection house in order.

No More Free Radio/TV In Azerbaijan
After smoldering for weeks, the Azeri government finally acted on its displeasure with television and radio broadcaster ANS. News accounts show a revolting picture of police surrounding the stations’ as authorities moved in to shut them down.

Blame and Shame on South Africa’s Public Broadcaster
Independence and transparency separates State broadcasters from public broadcasters. Or, that is the theory. Blacklisting political commentators by South Africa Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) news officials is bad enough. Trying to cover it up is worse.

Major World Journalist Organizations Reject Government-imposed or Suggested Codes of Conduct, Guidelines, or Even New Laws Restricting Freedom of the Press In Response To The Danish Cartoons, But They Agree That Journalists Should Not Create Unnecessary Tension By Promoting Hatred Or Inciting Violence
Major news organizations including the International Federation of Jounalists (IFJ) and several all-news channels have held separate meetings in the past days to discuss the Danish cartoon controversy and to determine what has been learned and what needs to be done to prevent similar distress in the future.

Who Wants to Know How Newspapers Can Survive In the Internet Age? And Here It Is
What Rupert Murdoch told a Meeting of American Editors in Washington This Week Should Be Required Reading for Every Publisher and Editor

The “blacklisting” of political commentators from South Africa’s public broadcaster SABC became quite public as the list was published on a website. SABC complained. South African media watcher Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI) complained to the media regulator about possible constitutional and Broadcasting Act violations. FXI is picketing the SABC. The SABC is refraining from comment.

Equally egregious and far more powerful in undermining public confidence in journalism are the lists of preferred journalists, those reliable for favorable coverage.

America has just gone through a very public court trial of a former government official, Lewis “Scooter” Libby, now convicted of perjury. One of the sidebars to the Libby trial has been the public discussion of the degree to which the current American administration played with journalists and news organizations, seeking the most “favorable” coverage. Trial testimony revealed more than one journalist for well-known and usually respected media outlets as “safe” to provide “friendly” news coverage.

Who would suspect that the current American administration would need to curry favor with certain journalists when it already has a “semi-official” shill in the Murdoch-owned Fox News? What was the Fox News headline after the Libby trial jury announced its verdict? “Libby Found Not Guilty of Lying to FBI Investigators” missed the four counts of perjury Mr. Libby may, expected presidential pardon notwithstanding, review from a jail cell.

But the Americans – like the “third-worlders” – are easy targets. Journalists in both “worlds” are expected to be “on the take,” literally or figuratively. Reprehensible and wreckless co-opting of journalists as political tools is hardly limited to the usual and customary targets of ire. Even more reprehensible is the blind-eye turned by European media watchers to criticism of European press and its practice. In Switzerland, for example, journalists were brought to trial for “revealing” embarrassing details of the SwissAir scandal. Where, pray tell, were the big name media watchers?

Germany’s international public broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) - an unfailing and unsung star of independent journalism - reported how German newspapers have a “cozy relationship” with public figures, to the point of allowing interview subjects to edit final copy. When asked about the practice a journalism school director told DW that it’s simply the difference between Anglo-Saxon and German practice.

Bad practice is always bad practice – in journalism as well as management. This writer holds firmly in the memory bank being told by a very senior Reuters executive that sexual harassment of an employee was an Anglo-Saxon – not European – problem. As public confidence in media erodes by the hour, is it not time to set aside a moment to consider the consequences of our ethical actions?