Foreword to Issue 24
In this week's issue, we highlight the focused, seemingly successful remonstrations by US officials to obtain change in the policies of Aljazeera. These efforts include requests (or more) by Secretary of State Powell to have the Emir of Qatar adjust policies of the satellite broadcaster. We also include excerpts from a complex and intriguing press conference by Richard Boucher in which he sets forth a framework for justifying such intervention (Article 4). Among the aspects discussed at the press conference are: what are the specific kinds and categories of Al Jazeera activity that are subject of reproach? What remedies does the Coalition and the US consider they have available? Under what circumstances would the US government consider deploying the same remedies for US media that, it thought, crossed the Aljazeera line?
Continue reading "Foreword to Issue 24"
Posted by Matthew Burton on April 30, 2004 at 09:31 PM in Aljazeera, From the Editors, Violence in broadcasting | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (287)
Qatar to act on US concerns about Al-Jazeera
BBC MONITORING IRAQ BRIEFING 0400 GMT 30 APR 04
Copyright 2004 BBC Monitoring/BBC
BBC Monitoring International Reports
Qatari Foreign Minister Shaykh Hamad bin Jasim al-Thani pledged on Thursday to act on sternly-worded US complaints that Qatar-based Al-Jazeera television network's coverage of Iraq is unfair, AFP reported. "We will take this concern back to Al-Jazeera and they have to review it," he said at the White House. "We need Al-Jazeera to be professional and we don't want anybody to send lies or to send wrong information". Shaykh Hamad said he had talked with Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who had "some concerns that Al-Jazeera sends some inaccurate information about what's happening in Iraq". At the same time, he distanced himself from the channel's coverage, saying he was "not responsible" for it and that the network was "part of the free press" in Qatar. Qatar's government, he said, needed to hear from Al-Jazeera "what they have to say about this". (AFP 2232 gmt 29 Apr 04)
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 30, 2004 at 11:15 AM in Aljazeera | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (202)
Al-Jazeera tones down 'violent' images - Claire Cozens The Guardian
Staff at al-Jazeera have been ordered to tone down "excessive violence" in their coverage of Iraq, sparking fears that the Arab satellite channel's senior editors are softening in their determination to resist pressure from the US government.
Continue reading "Al-Jazeera tones down 'violent' images - Claire Cozens The Guardian"
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 30, 2004 at 11:01 AM in Aljazeera, Violence in broadcasting | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (156)
Arabs are watching US TV channel Alhurra--survey Reuters
WASHINGTON, April 29 (Reuters) - The controversial U.S. Arabic-language TV channel Alhurra is winning viewers as a news source in the Arab world despite rising anti-American attitudes in the region, according to a U.S.-financed poll released on Thursday.
Continue reading "Arabs are watching US TV channel Alhurra--survey Reuters"
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 29, 2004 at 02:19 PM in Alhurra, Middle East media, New television, Public diplomacy | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (408)
U.S. Protests Broadcasts by Arab Channels - By Christopher Marquis - New York Times
WASHINGTON, April 28 - The Bush administration, frustrated by what it calls "inflammatory" reports by Arabic television channels, has in recent days protested to foreign government officials, confronted Arab news executives and put together a list of supposed abuses.
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell brought up American concerns about Al Jazeera, a channel based in Qatar, with Qatar's foreign minister earlier this week, saying "the friendship between our two nations is such that we can also talk about difficult issues that intrude in that relationship, such as the issue of the coverage of Al Jazeera."
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 29, 2004 at 11:19 AM in Aljazeera | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (426)
Reality television: Al-Jazeera has a track record of accurate reporting
When US forces recently demanded that a team from the Arabic TV station al-Jazeera leave Falluja as a condition for reaching a ceasefire with the local resistance, it came as no surprise at the network's headquarters in Doha. Reliable sources there say that coalition officials threatened to close down the al-Jazeera bureau in Baghdad earlier this year and last week sent a letter accusing the network of violating the Geneva convention and the principles of a free press.
Click here to read this Guardian article.
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 27, 2004 at 12:04 PM in Aljazeera, Middle East media, Press freedom, Violence in broadcasting | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (134)
STATE DEPARTMENT REGULAR BRIEFING
BRIEFER: RICHARD BOUCHER, DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN
LOCATION: STATE DEPARTMENT BRIEFING ROOM, WASHINGTON, D.C.
Mr Boucher answers questions on concerns about Al-Jazeera, Violence in the Media and press freedom.
Continue reading "STATE DEPARTMENT REGULAR BRIEFING"
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 27, 2004 at 11:37 AM in Aljazeera, Middle East media, Press freedom, Violence in broadcasting | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (83)
Berkowitz on Henninger on Spirit of America
Henninger suggests that Americans who support President Bush write out their checks so Hake can buy the equipment in the U.S. and ship it to Iraq "and get Iraqi-run TV on the air before the June 30 handover."
It boggles the mind that the Bush Administration can't come up with the $100,000 for equipment, considering the millions that have already been tossed at U.S.-sponsored media efforts. And, whether getting these television stations up and running will convince the Iraqi people the U.S. occupation is just is certainly a dubious proposition at best. More
Posted by Matthew Burton on April 23, 2004 at 11:51 PM in Public diplomacy | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (35)
A new look to Arab news by Muafac Harb (news director, Alhurra and Radio Sawa)
There is something very important to be said about competition, especially within the media. With the onslaught of cable and satellite networks in the United States, Americans can easily watch a news story on four or five different channels, to ensure they get a balanced and accurate idea of what is going on in the world and filter through any biases, whether real or imagined.
That is essentially the idea behind Alhurra (Arabic for "Free One"), the latest Arabic-language news and information channel to come to the Middle East: to present factual and accurate reporting to viewers in the 22 Arab countries we reach, thereby providing them with a fresh perspective of the news that affects them. Once people have a better understanding of the world around them, they become part of the global debate.
Click here to read more.
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 22, 2004 at 02:33 PM in Alhurra, Middle East media, Public diplomacy | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (131)
A revolutionary impact: a conversation with Mohammed El Nawawy
An interview with Mohammed El Nawawy, author of Al-Jazeera: The Story of the Network That Is Rattling Governments and Redefining Modern Journalism
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 22, 2004 at 12:15 PM in Aljazeera, Middle East media, Press freedom | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (138)
Arabs in Control - by Joshua Hammer - Newsweek International
Networks: The official U.S. efforts to shape opinion on the Arab Street are also-rans in a growing competition between new Arabic TV stations.
Continue reading "Arabs in Control - by Joshua Hammer - Newsweek International"
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 20, 2004 at 03:06 PM in Al Arabiya, Aljazeera, Middle East media, New television, Press freedom | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (200)
Iraqis enjoy new freedom of expression on Web journals by Cesar Soriano
A year ago, few Iraqis had ever had access to a computer, much less used it to communicate to the outside world.
Now, Internet cafes seemingly dot every block in Baghdad, and new ones open often. That has led to a new phenomenon here: bloggers.
For more on Iraq's bloggers click here to read this USA Today article.
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 20, 2004 at 02:54 PM in Internet | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (51)
Coalition Provisional Authority Briefing:
Click here to read the transcript of this CPA briefing, questioned on violence against journalists in Iraq.
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 20, 2004 at 02:42 PM in Journalist violence, Press freedom | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (61)
Henninger on Spirit of America
The First Marine Expeditionary Force and U.S. Army in Iraq want to equip and upgrade seven defunct Iraqi-owned TV stations in Al Anbar province--west of Baghdad--so that average Iraqis have better televised information than the propaganda they get from the notorious Al-Jazeera. If Jim Hake can raise $100,000, his Spirit of America will buy the equipment in the U.S., ship it to the Marines in Iraq and get Iraqi-run TV on the air before the June 30 handover.
Now we are getting somewhere. Since day one, the Coalition Provisional Authority's weakest suit has been the war of ideas, images and public relations. More
Posted by Matthew Burton on April 16, 2004 at 11:48 PM in Public diplomacy | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (169)
Egyptian group to launch Iraq's first private national TV - Hawa (BBC Monitoring World Media)
A licence has been granted allowing an Egyptian consortium to launch the first privately owned national TV station in Iraq on 15 June, Al-Jazeera and the Associated Press reported on 13 April.
The Arabic-language TV station will be called Hawa, (meaning "air"). It will start by broadcasting six hours of news and entertainment programmes daily before going 24/7, said Hasan Abu al-Ala, the station's deputy manager and editor-in-chief.
Posted by Vanessa Hetherington on April 15, 2004 at 11:28 AM in Middle East media, New television | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (126)
