Pranay Gupte, ex-Sun Columnist and recently appointed executive editor of KT of has written a 'bizarre, completely unedited, unfactchecked' email to FishBowlNY after his quick exit from KT.
Here are some excerpts.
- "The Sheikh's government dismissed the chairman of the Galadari Group, Mohammed Galadari, and also the group's entire board of directors."
- "Khaleej Times, long a relatively independent voice in Middle East journalism, immediately becomes a government organ."
KT - the independent voice of journalism. Yeah right. - Mr. Galadari made editors in KT fetch dog biscuits for his dog and used 'verbal and physical abuse of editors and top management, often in public and using ethnic scatology'.
Now we know the reason why KT reporting was always so inspiring. - Sheikh Mohammed was very upset with Galadari policies of using the newspaper for his personal vendettas and for being hostile to some countries like India according to his own interests.
- Squabbles inside the Galadari family also lead to these events which has resulted in Mr. Galadari's arch enemies including his aunt being in the board at present.
- He calls his 'unusual time' in Dubai as 'a refresher course in petty politics and high intrigue' and 'an utter waste of time and energy' and reckons that this is a win for the Government control over the media.
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55 comments:
scatology he was in to scat ?
Wow! How we will we survive without our daily dollop of 'Dear Readers'?
Oh, and somebody ought to update the Wikipedia entry for KT
I was actually speaking to someone in the publishing industry about KT the other day...
way back when, rather than get a machine to automatically do inserts (i.e. put one of those insert advertisements (a slip of paper) in the first page of a magazine / newspaper), you'd arrive there early in the morning to see like 30 subcons having been there the entire evening doing it by hand /:
If employees messed up color seperation stuff it'd come out of their salaries.
To date; I haven't heard a single positive thing about Mohammed Galadari. Good move by the gov't.
Wow...
Good reportage in the UAE. Kinda like intelligent life on other planets. We know its there, but we just can't see it.
When a royal yells Stop Press, it means just that, eh? Wonder what will become of poor Doggie Woggie?
now if only they could get rid of the useless debbie menon & her lunatic rants & raves! i find her to be repetitive & boring.
i know nothing of the quality of either publication.. but i think mergers in media are always interesting..
in many countries cross ownership laws and anti-competition laws are there to prevent the narrowing of sources of information..
one always has to be concerned when losing a voice of news.. even if the voice isnt always saying everything it needs to..
it seems from other posts that a healthy undercurrent of well informed voices is brewing.. its importance is likely to increase..
cheers
lirun
telaviv
Such a weird situation.
KT should have gone down through market forces ie no one buying it...I don't like this solution, where the government swoops in to save the day. It only serves to reinforce the accepted wisdom that whatever the crisis, the government will bail you out.
On the other hand, with the amount of cash MARG had at his disposal, KT might not have sunk for years.
Sam,
Colour separation houses and printing cos in Dubai still deduct salaries for mistakes.
While its a good move by the Govt to stop the nonsense, they are planning to merge it with Emirates Today, which doesn't sound good at all.
The demise of KT will only make GN to take it easy.
let's be honest,neithe khaleej times or gulf news are good newspapers,heck neither is emirates toady& gul today!the only good 1 is ,of course, 7 days!now that's telling it like it is!
The whole thing is questionoable, the gupte guy has only been there for 13 days. Don't you think a smart man from the "NY Sun" would have researched KT before actually going to work there, the "negative" points he mentioned are not new.
Reading his lovely email, It felt that most of it came from personal issues rather than his worries about journalism. Now before I continue, let me tell you I am not a big fan of KT, and am aware of its reporting standards.
1-This guy had to squeeze in this bit "one of the seven of the oil-rich United Arab Emirates" hmmmm whats so relavent.
2-"Galadari, and also the group's entire board of directors. The group owns 11 companies, including Khaleej Times, Mazda dealerships, the Baskin-Robbins franchise, and Intercontinental Hotels in Middle East several countries." again, issues with wealth.
3- "bringing his dog to the paper, and asking editors to fetch dog biscuits for the animal" Please, I never heared of such a thing happening in other parts of this globe, certainly not in India Mr.Gupte.
4-"Mr. Galadari kept up a drumbeat of hostility against India and Indians, while demonstrating partisanship about Pakistan" I wonder why Mr. Gupte would mention that point? cherry picking evidence.
5-"f Mr. Galadari's favorite targets was the Indian consul-general in Dubai, Mr. Yash K. Sinha. At one point, editors were forbidden to publish photographs of Mr. Sinha – who's considered a star of the Indian Foreign Service, and is about to become India's ambassador to Venezuela –" hmmmm still can't figure why GUPTE will be fixated on this Indian KT issue.
6- "Sheikh Mohammed has been reported to be embarrassed by Khaleej Times's recent journalism" REALLY? and where did you get that report Mr. Reporter?
7-". I was appalled by the drumbeat of anti-Israel and anti-Semitic coverage."hahahaha, if you go to Israel, and check some of their news papers mr.gupte you will find alot of "anti muslim" news paper, so please if they offer you a job there research the news paper's history don't want you to go throug this trauma again.
8- "Gulf News, meanwhile is touching 100,000 each day." is he emplying that GN is better? LOL.
9- "Sheikh Mohammed, who has set out to establish Dubai as a financial-services hub and tourism center of the Gulf, has also been said to be concerned over the group's management practices, and corruption within the company. The internecine quarreling within the Galadari family clearly upset him." can I please laugh at this, LOL!!! RIGHT!! and LOL at the rest of the paragraph, what a low class "US" citizen are you Gupte, one little gossiper you are :)
10- "feel that it would be impossible for an American journalist who believes in an unfettered press to swear allegiance to what is most certainly likely to be a megaphone for the ruler of Dubai, however benign and visionary he may be." LOL now I have to cry,, the morals and the ethics LOL. We all know how unbiased the journalism is there, we do we do.
11-"Anyway, it's been an unusual time for me in Dubai -- a refresher course in petty politics and high intrigue. Most of all, it was an utter waste of time and energy. But look at it this way: I racked up impressive mileage on what surely has to be the world's best airline, Emirates Airline." a waste of ours too, believe me, one other miserable soul, who left all the problems in his lands and came here to point out ours.
Bottom line, if the government felt KT is bad, KT would not merge, KT would be shut down, dead. OK? so this whole story is just funny. Glad you enjoyed it.
Hot Lemon& Honey,
True, the Gupte guy is another freak who has issues with his former workplace and says nonsense most of the times.
At the same time, UAE is a long long way behind compared to other countries including US in terms of press freedom and unbiased reporting. So he has a point there.
Gupte is someone well known for creating problems when he leaves - New York Sun being one. He also used to work at the Daily Star and was sacked.
As for the quality of the media in the UAE.
You really think 7days is a good newspaper? It knows its audience certainly - but does that make it a good newspaper?
Dear Gupte (Is this the american version of Gupta?)
Its really sad reading that you did not enjoy your stay in Dubai (which is known to be heaven to many Indians like you)It obviously shows that you are not upto the high standards of living.
Its so strange that a man who only stayed in the country for less than 30 days could actually right 300 lines on his hatred the KT, the country and the government. This obviously reflects on his lack of patience and childhoodness.
Please allow me to quote one of your statements: "Anyway, it's been an unusual time for me in Dubai -- a refresher course in petty politics and high intrigue. Most of all, it was an utter waste of time and energy. But look at it this way: I racked up impressive mileage on what surely has to be the world's best airline, Emirates Airline." Its surprising such a statment would come from you who considers himself a professional Editor. People in your profession are all aware about Dubai and its growth and fame around the world. If it it was that bad as you have described it, I really doubt that all the people from around the world would actually die to come to Dubai. (I am not making this up. I come from a recruitment background hence I know the despration from other parts of the world to come to Dubai and be a member of the elite society and community.
You mentioned alot of points in which Mohammed Galadariis pro Pakistani's and hates Indians. Why dont you appreciate people and the way they are. As you mentioned that people prceived you as pro jewish then there shouldnt be anything wrong with you perciving him as pro Pakistanis. I honestly think that you have taken this personal. It is not just about the Ideology however it looks like a much more personel issue to you.
Another point I would like to quote from your article: "I feel that it would be impossible for an American journalist" AMERICAN JOURNALIST? Does a passport determine who you are? where you originally come from? where your grandparents come from? Didnt your parents teach you about you heritage or did you just forget it with time. One thing i have never been able to understand is why peopl like you always try to runaway from their origins? why do you people pretend you are not indians and dont know the language nor culture, food, places etc. Why are you so americanised? why do you have to copy and do what they do? why cant you have an opinion of your own?
Its obvious that I am NOT the only one who doesnt think so highly of you as all the other responses are similar about you as a person.
I suggest you take some time off and visit your country. Eat some laddo and masala dosa and then walk on the streets of India. Once you do that then you will realise what a heaven like city Dubai is and you will take the next flight out of India and come to Dubai forever.
With no doubt,I am sure that youwill be one of those whi will but a house in Dubai and retire here as you will not hav to pay tax and enjoy all the services that are provided at the same time.
I hope this response makes you understand that its wrong jeperdising peoples name and work for just a couple of days you have spent with them. I hope you become more matured and realise what has happenedand what should be the next steps forward.
Woke: "At the same time, UAE is a long long way behind compared to other countries including US in terms of press freedom and unbiased reporting."
Please don't make laugh, its all sensored and "the freedom of speech" they claim is just like their"democracy" they claim.
HL&H: Democracy allows ‘freedom of speech’. By this, I mean one’s ability to criticize without risking prosecution thus ending up in a slammer or worse.
Having said this, censorship also exists in a democracy but not to the extent of requiring 100% approval of a Governing or Ruling Body before you hit the print or publish button.
I agree with what Woke said and have no comments about this ‘Gupte’ guy.
it's funny... gupte was writing about tea and crumpets for the new york sun...
i'd be bloody pissed off if i was offered a job as a business editor (with my outstanding experience about how creme brulee is affected when there's a shortage of eggs..bird flu et all) and then found that the job was not meant to be....
atleast the man enjoyed the flight...lol
freedom of speech means no censorship full stop, little interference means you have to find another term other than "freedom of speech"...
WoS: "By this, I mean one’s ability to criticize without risking prosecution thus ending up in a slammer or worse." hmmmmm I wonder if that holds true for the states these days... I have to laugh about this again
@HL & H & 'Dear Gupta':
Aggressive posts. Are either of you saying tht you think Gupte has made all of this up about DubaiGov 'investing' in Galadari Group? I ask only for information.
HL&H: My comment was not about the States. I addressed a general point on freedom of speech & censorship in a democracy.
freedom of speech means no censorship full stop, little interference means you have to find another term other than "freedom of speech"...
That would mean perfection, won't it?
From the FREEDOM HOUSE Freedom of the Press Report, 2006:
United Arab Emirates (2006)
Status: Not Free
Legal Environment: 23
Political Environment: 22
Economic Environment: 20
Total Score: 65
Countries are given a total score from 0 (best) to 100 (worst) on the basis of a set of 23 methodology questions divided into three subcategories. Assigning numerical points allows for comparative analysis among the countries surveyed and facilitates an examination of trends over time. The degree to which each country permits the free flow of news and information determines the classification of its media as "Free," "Partly Free," or "Not Free." Countries scoring 0 to 30 are regarded as having "Free" media; 31 to 60, "Partly Free" media; and 61 to 100, "Not Free" media. For more information on the criteria go HERE.
TEXT OF THE REPORT
Though the constitution provides for freedom of the press, there are laws that prohibit criticism of the government, ruling families, and friendly governments, and outlaw other statements considered a threat to social or economic stability. However, these laws rarely need to be enforced as journalists often practice self-censorship. The Ministry of Information licenses all publications and must approve the appointment of editors.
The press in Dubai's Media City, a tax-free zone established in 2001 to draw in foreign investment and an emerging area of media freedom in the UAE, faced increased restrictions in 2005. In February, Basma Al-Jandaly, a reporter for Dubai's leading English daily, Gulf News, was harassed by police after she reported on a series of attacks on women in Sharjah, Dubai's neighboring province. The police maintained that she had interfered in their investigation. On June 15, Jandaly was briefly held at the Dubai airport as police informed her she was banned from traveling due to her reporting in Sharjah. She was released after Minister of the Interior Sheikh Seif Zayed al-Nahyan intervened, but now removes her name from police stories that could be seen as problematic. Also in June, the publishers of FO, a Dubai-based men's magazine, had their license revoked after publishing a revealing picture of singer Kylie Minogue. The United Arab Emirates Journalists' Association reported there had been at least 10 lawsuits filed against journalists in Dubai in 2005, a record number. After the release of Al-Jandaly in June, the Dubai Court of Cassation passed a ruling that granted journalism the same right of protection enjoyed by other intellectual work. It has yet to be seen what impact the ruling will have on media freedom. Outside of Media City, most television and radio stations are government owned and conform to unpublished government reporting guidelines. Self-censorship is pervasive in local reporting outside of Dubai and media outlets frequently publish government statements without criticism or comment.
Despite restrictions on the media in 2005, there have been reports that print media outlets have become bolder in criticizing government performance and even the system of government. While the main pan-Arab dailies are available and uncensored, other foreign newspapers, magazines, and periodicals are vetted by censors at the Ministry of Information. Though domestic broadcast media are almost entirely state owned and offer only official viewpoints, satellite dishes are common and international broadcasts are not explicitly censored. Internet access is widespread, although access is provided via a state-owned monopoly that censors sites pertaining to pornography, gambling, religious conversion, dating, gay and lesbian sites, and illegal drugs. For a brief period last year the website of the New York Times was blocked by the Dubai Telephone Company. More than 35 percent of the population had access to the internet in 2005.
In case anyone is interested here's the ranking of the rest of the Middle East/North Africa Region by RANK, COUNTRY, SCORE, STATUS:
1 Israel 28 Free
2 Kuwait 56 Partly Free
3 Lebanon 60 Partly Free
4 Algeria 61 Not Free
Egypt 61 Not Free
Jordan 61 Not Free
Morocco 61 Not Free
Qatar 61 Not Free
9 UAE 65 Not Free
10 Oman 70 Not Free
11 Iraq 71 Not Free
12 Bahrain 72 Not Free
13 Saudi Arabia 79 Not Free
14 Yemen 81 Not Free
15 Tunisia 83 Not Free
16 Iran 84 Not Free
Syria 84 Not Free
18 IOT/PA* 86 Not Free
19 Libya 96 Not Free
*Israeli Occupied Territories/Palestinian Authority
Keefieboy, No I don't think he is making it up, I know what is in KT, I have read KT, I have laughed at KT, All what this guy was talking about was his own pethatic personal conflicts that were the main reason for him to fly out and have a temper tantrum, not his passion for "freedom of speech and proper journalism"
Some of the personal issues that came out that bothered him was wealth, India v.s Pakistan, authority and suppresion/frustration. and to validate his silly point he throws in the anti-semetic B.S.
I mean the bobo person had done some research on the internet and was able to find the only valid point he attempted to make, "no freedom of speech" in the UAE media without stepping out of his room. for him to claim he had no idea what he was putting him self into is difficult to believe.
Now the bobo statment and throwing the figures of Israel's freedom of speech (LOL) is something else...both are just speaking out their inner conflicts.
Gupte --> the frustrated Indian who isn't making enough money and isn't able to find a place to "give him his worth".
Bozo--> convincing him/her self that Israel practice freedom of speech.
I feel sorry for both, who puts these figures, what standards, where are the evidence. Bob please go search the internet and see how many anti muslim Jewish news paper exist, and how many of them will still hire me if I was to write soemthing thats pro Palestine.
I'm having a difficult time understanding what your point is, but I am getting the general impression that you're objecting in some way to the fact that Israel is at the top of the list.
Look, data is data -- I didn't collate it and I didn't make the conclusions. A non-partisan group whose stated purpose is to determine quantitative levels of personal freedoms did.
So if you've got a problem with those conclusions then you should challenge them. If you think the data is skewed or inaccurate, then you should state your objections.
But -- with all due respect -- you haven't really done that.
"who puts these figures, what standards, where are the evidence"
This explanation of sources is from the FREEDOM HOUSE page on methodology:
Our data come from correspondents overseas, staff and consultant travel, international visitors, the findings of human rights and press freedom organizations, specialists in geographic and geopolitical areas, the reports of governments and multilateral bodies, and a variety of domestic and international news media. We would particularly like to thank other members of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) network for providing detailed and timely analyses of press freedom violations in a variety of countries worldwide.
"but I am getting the general impression that you're objecting in some way to the fact that Israel is at the top of the list."
LOL again is that all what you were able to get out of my long paragraph.
If those numbers are going to make you feel better. I'm glad.
And bobo, I'm still curious to put out of all oter countries listed as "free" you put "Israel" as a reference. Just curious.
And PLEASE stop staring at those figures when clearly the media is biased everywhere in the world.
And stop copying and pasting, the links are enough. Thank you very much.
Freedom of speech means scrutiny. The abilty to take critcism and act upon it is the sign of a mature society.
As for Gupte, yes he has personal issues wherever he goes. But I wouldn't say anything he wrote was inaccurate.
HL&H: Shk Mo had taken Galadari to task about his increasingly bizarre behaviour, editorials and his sniping. That's well known in media circles.
I was told by a former member of KT that the dog biscuit stories are true.
It's also well known in media circles that KT's circulation is going through the floor and if GN isn't perceived as being better than KT - why have its sales not fallen by the same rate, and why has the new man in charge started apeing the GN front page style?? It's a shame, as a strong KT would mean a better media for all.
Bottom line. The government feels KT is bad, but it was because of one man...that man is now gone.
Is that rocket science?
Also - you will find newspapers in Israel with an anti-Muslim stance, but that is through their choice, not because of Government dictat. There were a couple of newspapers who constantly questioned the war on Lebanon, and they were allowed to do so. That's called freedom of speech. You think a pro-Israeli newspaper would still be operating in the UAE?
so no more "your favorite number 1 newspaper"? no more "dear readers"?
ah well cie la vie!
so if "your favourite no 1 newspaper "& "emirates toady" do merge ,what will it be known as?
i would like 2 see that!
"I'm still curious to put out of all oter countries listed as "free" you put "Israel" as a reference. Just curious."
I didn't list Israel as a reference. I posted an independent organization's index of press freedom in ME countries. You think it's untrue? Then factually disprove it.
"And PLEASE stop staring at those figures when clearly the media is biased everywhere in the world."
Is there media bias in the world? Of course. With regard to the attitudes of both the Israeli and Arab press? I'm sure you could make the argument but as of yet you haven't.
This discussion is a bit like arguing with someone who's had too much to drink at a party. Even if you make a valid point they become louder and more impassioned -- primarily as a way of disguising the fact that most of what they are saying has little or no substance.
It all comes down to this: how has any of what you've said countered the FH statement that the Israeli press has more freedom than the press in other parts of the ME?
bobo,
I agree with you about hl & h. I can't remember the last time I read someone write so much and make so little sense.
hl & h,
You seem to have some trouble understand this, but if someone says "X has a free press", you can't disprove that by either asserting that the media are biased (bias and free speech are not incompatable) or that some of the media somewhere have are anti-Muslim. Can you please list all the American journalists that you seem to believe that the US government is imprisoning for writting anti-government material? (when you wrote '"By this, I mean one’s ability to criticize without risking prosecution thus ending up in a slammer or worse." hmmmmm I wonder if that holds true for the states these days').
Can you please tell us who have missed it how the US isn't a democracy? ('Please don't make laugh, its all sensored and "the freedom of speech" they claim is just like their "democracy" they claim.') For that matter can you produce one example of the press being censored? If the US government is censoring the press and locking up journalists who disagree with them, what exactly are people like Keith Olbermann, David Corn, Paul Krugman, the staff of the NY Times, etc, etc, etc, doing walking around free and denouncing the president and congress constantly? Did the government just not notice them? To busy locking up people that we have never heard of?
Last, do yourself a favor and don't talk about thing that you don't understand. You only make yourself look foolish.
@brn: nice one!
brn and Keefieboy, congratulations.
I can't be bothered to look up the many articles that state that the U.S media is censored, and what is allowed to be aired is censored, so I don't think its really "freedom of speech" after all. Once I am back in Canada I will be more than happy to send you the links that I have for you to add to your "stats and numbers".
I used to be quite impressed by how much the media in the U.S is able to criticize and make fun of important figures, I agree we can only dream of doing that here, but I also know now that whatever comes out of the press must be "okayed" and the wording and the content can be edited. Every country has different ways to deal with the problem makes, locking people up is only one of them, I'm sure you know of more subtle ways of doing just the same in a less obvious way.
I never claimed we practice freedom of speech, neither did I say our journalism is top notch.
"Last, do yourself a favor and don't talk about thing that you don't understand. You only make yourself look foolish." Thanks. Foolish is a person who believes all what spoon fed to them by their "biased freedom of speech" media. When you burst your bubble and see whats happening all over the world and analyze your media that often prepares us for whats waiting for us in the future, you will be able to see what I am talking about. Everytime your lovely media reveals scanadals and criticize someone or something, I always think "why, whats that leading to", nothing is a coincidence in your great media and distraction is a strategy that I have noticed to be used ALOT. Sorry if this doesn't make sense again, it could be that english is my second language or that you have trouble hearing others point of views. Either case I don't care if you understand or don't, we clearly don't agree. Stay in your bubble until something happens to burst it for you.
If you want the links, email me and I will send it to them when I am back.
Stay in your bubble... You missed out 'expat'. LOL
hl & h,
Please, post these links when you get the chance, I would be fascinated to see who exactly is able to censor the American press without it being obvious to the naked eye. This would be especially interesting since I have seen almost every possible viewpoint in the American media.
I agree with you completely about not believing everything that comes out of the media - no matter where it is from. Obviously they, like everyone, has biases, and that fact will affect what they report and how. I think that the best policy is to try to verify things, especially when if it confirms what you want to believe.
While you are at it, can you tell me, was this press censor asleep at the switch when all the stories of the past few years that were embarassing to the government came out? Let me give you a partial list: Abu Ghraib, secret renditions, water boarding, illegal phone tapping, monitoring financial transactions, lack of WMD in Iraq, Haditha?
I think that it is clear that we have wildly different viewpoints on the world. You seem to imply that everything that happens is part of some vast conspiracy. ('Everytime your lovely media reveals scanadals and criticize someone or something, I always think "why, whats that leading to", nothing is a coincidence in your great media and distraction is a strategy that I have noticed to be used ALOT.')
That is fine, to each his own, and you may even be right. But once you take that worldview, it becomes a closed system. Everything that happens only confirms it. Things that make the government look bad are deliberate attempts to confuse you. And the YOU are the one living in the bubble, with no way to see out of it.
brn, well done, read the Hesham's post, alot of the answers to your smart questions are there.
hl & h,
Actually I read his (the entire thing at his blog, not just the first four on this blog), and I have to say that I missed these answers that you claim exist there. I guess that he removed the names of all the American journalists that have been jailed or worse for criticizing the Bush administration and all the stories that were censored sometime between when you posted your comment and when I read it.
But I still have hope that you will find time to let me know when you have all this evidence ready.
brn, good for you.
When you email me, I will send you the links. Until then, do something useful.
well just to put my two bits in (i promise to stick to less than 500 words)... american journalism isn't all the pretty picture it's painted out to be..
i'm not saying of course that the media here is all peaches and cream but let me clarify what i just said...
BRN, you referred to several American stories (Abu Ghuraib, wire tapping, etc. etc.)...if you look a little deeper though, there's more than what appears on the surface...
for example, when the war on Iraq was being waged, no paper sang praises of the government louder than the New York Times...it was only later when the issue of WMDs came up that they did a 360 degree turn so quick, it made readers dizzy...here Judith Miller was praising Dubya and his cabinet for their heroic effor and now she was singing about Jo Wilson, Valerie Plame and calling Dubya a liar (well maybe she got it right there)...for the paper to have turned away from its original opinion that quick, seems a bit suspicious...of course now Miller's a martyr but looking at her archives makes for an interesting read...unfortunately NYT allows non-subscribers to only read 50 words of archived articles...maybe a subscriber on this blog could do us a favour...
as a journalism student, we've discussed many kooky examples of American and other forms of journalism...i personally have no favourites, it's human nature to err...journalism is flawed everywhere and the best thing is to do is to create a patchwork standard with examples from across the globe...that's what they're teaching in journalism schools today anywaz.. :)
"it was only later when the issue of WMDs came up that they did a 360 degree turn so quick, it made readers dizzy...here Judith Miller was praising Dubya and his cabinet for their heroic effor and now she was singing about Jo Wilson, Valerie Plame and calling Dubya a liar"
Sorry, but if they did a 360 degree turn I think they'd be stating the same opinion.
(yes, I know i'm being pedantic)
I stand corrected, Miller did a 180 degree turn...
thanks sam, not! :)
alisha,
I agree that the NY Times changed their position on the war completely. How exactly is that evidence that the government is censoring or controlling what they wrote in a way that shows that the US press isn't free? To use Ockham's Razor, isn't the simplest explanation that the Times, like all the other media, believed the information about WMD before the war, but then when none were found, changed their mind?
And I'm not sure that you have the whole Miller-Wilson-Plame affair correct. I agree, Miller was the main correspondent before the war supporting the WMD story. But on the Wilson affair, she was pushing the pro-admin/anti-Wilson storyline. She was jailed for not revealing who in the administration told her about Joe Wilson's wife. If she wanted to make the Bushies look bad, she would have told that.
Ms. Miller was fired (not that they are calling it that, but that is the fact) by the Times for her flawed reporting on WMD.
my examples aren't to prove that the US government controls its media with an iron fist...from what i garnered from your and H, L & L's spat was that you two were debating about where journalism was better - the USA as opposed to the rest of the world... and so here was my arguement that the US media was as honourable as it was painted to be...
Also about that bit about the government control stuff...if (and i repeat IF) wikipedia is to be beleived, the journalists who broke the phone tapping story were pressured by the White House to not release it and they held the story for as long as they could, until they found out that another media organization was going to scoop them...
of course, this is the same site that says that world leaders refer to Khaleej Times to make decisions...
I however have a soft spot for wikipedia...so much for being an objective journo student :P
..so here was my arguement that the US media was as honourable as it was painted to be...
i meant "wasn't as honourable"...
...just a thought...
Mebbe NYT was embarassing Dubya by saying nice things about him, so they were asked to do a volte-face.
See? Proof that American media is Government controlled.
DG said:
"If freedom of speech only means criticism, then we don't want this freedom."
Sure you don't. Indeed you won't get it at all. Not anytime soon.
P.S. Let's put it a little more positively:
"If freedom of speech only means saying nice things about us, why sure, we want it."
alisha,
No, agree with you completely that the American media is far from perfect. I lived with it my whole life, you are preaching to the choir on this one. As a whole, its members are lazy (e.g. convential wisdom is repeated ad nausum without challenge) and broadly ignorant (any review of the coverage of the DPW affair will show this), especially about importantn things like history, technology and economics. It has a very narrow ideological outlook about many things. I agree completely with those who claim that it has multiple biases.
What I disagree with hl & h about is her claim that the media is not free. And the examples that I gave were to point out that those stories were not the sort of thing that would be run in controlled media.
"What I disagree with hl & h about is her claim that the media is not free"
There is no comparison when it comes to transparency between US and the media in the UAE - yes the US has got it better - perhaps not the best or accurate, but far better than the UAE when it comes to freedom of speech.
However, transparency, free speech etc all did not exist about 30 or 40 years ago - say for the black community in the US.
UAE is a very young country, still in her mid 30's - "freedom" of speech and transparency will surely expand as the country grows & matures on - I believe that.
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