COMMENT : The tree of grief — Hina Hafeezullah Ishaq

Friday, December 21, 2012, http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/

How can a parent not weep for the loss of a child, just because the child was not his? How can a parent talk about keeping his children safe yet kill those of others?

It was the year 2004 and the first day of September; the site was School Number One, located in the town of Beslan, North Ossetia, in the Russian Federation. It was the start of the new school year and hundreds of children accompanied by their parents were present on the grounds when a group of terrorists arrived allegedly in a police van and a military truck shortly after 9:00 am, shooting in the air. The children and their relatives were forced into the school gymnasium while around eight people were killed as a brief gunfight ensued between the terrorists and police. More than 1,100 persons were taken hostage, nearly 800 of them were children. The terrorists prevented the hostages, including children, from eating or drinking, shot and blasted strong adults with remote controlled bombs. The Russian troops stormed the building on the third day of the siege: 326 people died, 186 of them were children.

The price of freedom : MEDIA

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk ,Friday, December 21, 2012

According to figures published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), 2012 has been the deadliest year for journalists the world over. Around 88 journalists have been killed so far. This includes the new breed of citizen journalists who have been reporting from conflict zones such as Syria, Egypt and other places, giving on location details of the events they encounter, at times including video footage. Three countries have been singled out by the Paris-based media monitoring group as most dangerous to journalists, cameramen and photographers: Syria, Somalia and Pakistan. The death toll for this year is a third more than the previous year and the highest since figures began to be compiled 17 years ago. The reason for this increase, as told by Christophe Deloire, the head of RSF, is that those responsible for crimes against journalists are never punished. Because there is no follow up in nearly all cases, the criminals carry on fearlessly. The absence of the fear factor that the long arm of the law will nail any perpetrator is making every passing year more dreadful for journalists.

It’s your fault

Masud Alam; http://dawn.com/2012/12/20/

Pakistani media is trashy because people – that would be consumers of media, or simply put, you – demand and happily receive trash. That was the only explanation offered at an event that measured atmospheric pressure of the media environment and found it low enough to predict that stormy weather is only getting worse.

The Asian Media Barometer first conducted home-grown analysis of the media landscape in Pakistan and India in 2009, in which India scored 2.4 and Pakistan a slightly better 2.5 out of a maximum score of 5. The 2012 Barometer found Pakistan sliding down to 2.4. Beating India by one decimal point was the source of pride then, and being where India was three years ago, is the saving grace now. But is it?

OVER A COFFEE : When journalists can become assassins: Dr Haider Shah

Saturday, December 15, 2012,  Dr Haider Shah

Nowhere in the world has one seen TV stations running malicious campaigns against national politicians on a round the clock basis

She was found dead in her room at staff accommodation near the Edward VII Hospital in Central London where she had worked as a nurse for four years. Jacintha Saldanha, a loving mother of two, is believed to have committed suicide by hanging herself after the Indian-born nurse was duped by Aussie radio stars pretending to be the Queen and Prince Charles. What the radio pranksters believed to be their journalistic scoop ended up as a shot that put a working woman down. The case is still under investigation and the questionable role of the hospital administration after the incident may have contributed to the fatal decision by the wretched health worker. The incident, however, has renewed the calls for greater scrutiny of the conduct of journalists. The unfettered obsession to improve their radio station’s ratings by faking a call to get confidential and private information about the health of pregnant Princess Kate Middleton has caused so much anguish that the two radio presenters are now put in a safe house for their own security.

How the Taliban Turned Against Pakistan's Right-Wing Journalists

Malik Siraj Akbar

Editor in Chief, 'The Baloch Hal'; Author; Contributing Writer

Pakistan has announced a reward of 50 million rupees (approximately $520,000) for anyone with information about people involved in a failed plot to assassinate a renowned television journalist last week in Islamabad, the nation's capital.

Geo Television, Pakistan's first 24/7 private news channel, said Hamid Mir, the host of popular talk-show Capital Talk was the prime target of a car bomb plot. The attackers had fixed a bag with a half kilogram of explosive material below the senior journalist's car seat, which was immediately removed by the bomb disposal squad after Mr. Mir's neighbors spotted the suspicious bag.

Pakistan's National Assembly passes controversial ‘fair trial’ bill

National Assembly passed a controversial ‘fair trial’ legislative bill on Thursday while authorising the state to intercept private communications in order to catch terrorists, may also pose a threat to people’s privacy.

The bill was tabled by Law Minister Farooq Naek despite opposition from the MQM and PML-N.

The bill has formally paved the way for the government to tap phones and use e-mails and text messages as proof in trials.

The legislation provides the authority to the government that it can access “data, information or material in any documented form … through audio visual device, CCTV, still photography, bugging, observation or any mode of modern devices or techniques obtained under the Act … documents, papers, pamphlets, booklets” for surveillance.

Is Time Magazine’s Person Of The Year Still Relevant?

BY Christopher Zara | December 19 2012 2:34 PM

When Time magazine named Charles Lindbergh its first Man of the Year in 1927, superlative journalism was still a fresh concept. 

The Oscars weren’t born yet. And the notion of “Best Of” still promised to serve an untapped niche.

But at a time when media consumers are inundated with listicles at every turn (a quick look on BuzzFeed’s homepage yielded “10 Faces You Make When You’re Stuck In A Bad Relationship”), it’s fair to question the relevance of Time magazine’s time-honored practice. 

A deadly year for journalists: 2012

By Terry Glavin, Ottawa Citizen December 19, 2012

You could say it was the one bright spot Reporters Without Borders managed to find in 2012, a year that has turned out to be the deadliest for journalists since the press freedom organization released its first global year-end roundup, in 1995. Afghanistan’s pioneering liberal daily, Hasht-e Sobh (8 AM), is still alive.

Sanjar Sohail, the newspaper’s fearless 31-year-old Afghan-Canadian publisher, was in Paris Tuesday to collect the organization’s annual media prize. I spoke with Sohail, who I’m proud to say is a friend, just as he was about to head from his hotel to the prize banquet at the Le Monde auditorium.

“I’m very excited,” he said. “After six or seven years working with Hasht-e-Sobh and 10 years as a journalist, I feel my work is being recognized by people in the field, even outside Afghanistan.”

Sohail deserves all the recognition and honour he can get. In awarding him the 2012 prize, Reporters Without Borders director general Christophe Deloire said Hasht-e Sobh’s vigilance and professionalism prove that “freely-reported quality journalism can develop in the most difficult corners of the planet.”

Two Pakistani Writers Honored for Commitment to Free Expression

41 Facing Persecution Win Hellman/Hammett Grants

(New York) - Forty-one writers from 19 countries have received 2012 Hellman/Hammett grants for their commitment to free expression and their courage in the face of persecution.

The award-winners have faced persecution for their work, generally by government authorities seeking to prevent them from publishing information and opinions.  Those honored include journalists, bloggers, essayists, novelists, poets, and playwrights. They also represent numerous other writers worldwide whose personal and professional lives are disrupted by repressive policies to control speech and publications.

EU builds bridges among media, flood-affected people and government: EU Envoy EU builds bridges among media, flood-affected people and government: EU Envoy

Wednesday, 19 December 2012 20:58

Posted by Shoaib-ur-Rehman Siddiqui

ISLAMABAD: The EU ambassador to Pakistan Lars- Gunnar Wigemark Wednesday said media played important role in early rehabilitation and recovery of the flood affected people.

He was addressing a function held at Pakistan National Council of the Arts to celebrate the success of a useful cooperation between EU and journalism to highlight the important issues following 2010 and 2012 floods in Pakistan.

The EU Ambassador Lars-Gunnar Wigemark commended the achievements of the 'Media for Early Recovery' project and reiterated EU's commitment to support Pakistan.