Foreword to Issue 27
We have had a hiatus of a few months in the publication of the Newsletter, but not because there is nothing to report. One reason is that we rely very much on accounts of Iraq media developments that occur in the English language press. Since the transfer of authority to the Interim government, and partly because of the security situation, there is less coverage of media development issues. Perhaps this is not deemed to have the same degree of importance as during the Coalition era, or because there are fewer journalists chasing for elements to cover. Perhaps it is because in the utter complexity of instability and struggles for power, the role of the media hasn't been adequately defined. The "there are hundreds of newspapers" and "competition among television channels" story has been repeatedly told.
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Posted by Matthew Burton on November 16, 2004 at 03:49 PM in From the Editors, Higher Media Commission | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (173)
Reuters: Iraq Tells Media to Toe the Line
BAGHDAD - Iraq's media regulator warned news organizations Thursday to stick to the government line on the U.S.-led offensive in Fallouja or face legal action.
Invoking a 60-day state of emergency declared by Iraq's interim government ahead of the assault that began Monday, Iraq's Media High Commission said media should distinguish between insurgents and ordinary residents of the Sunni Muslim city.
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Posted by Matthew Burton on November 12, 2004 at 05:31 PM in Higher Media Commission | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (127)
Analysis: Media freedom under attack from both sides in Iraq
Text of editorial analysis by Alistair Coleman of BBC Monitoring Media Services on 2 November
Concern is rising over attacks on the press in Iraq, following the recent deaths of journalists and media workers in a particularly bloody week for the profession, which raises questions of press freedom in the region.
With reporters and media workers falling victim to both insurgents and US military action, and the interim government planning "stringent controls" on the media through a newly-created Higher Media Council, it has been asked whether it is possible to have a free press in Iraq.
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Posted by Matthew Burton on November 2, 2004 at 05:35 PM in Journalist violence | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (343)
Financial Times: Arab media under pressure after Iraq bomb
BAGHDAD - A car bomb that hit the offices of three pan-Arab satellite stations in Baghdad on Saturday came after one of them, al-Arabiya, altered news coverage that US and Iraqi interim government officials had called pro-insurgent.
The attack, which killed seven people, threatens to place the Arab media between a government that threatens to close them for being a mouthpiece for the rebels, and rebels who target them for being a tool of the government and its US ally.
For full text, see Issue 27
Posted by Matthew Burton on November 1, 2004 at 05:41 PM in Journalist violence | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (158)
