Eventually I'll get to my view of all this as an Australian citizen and what I consider to be some craven behaviour on the part of the Australian government, however right now I think you NEED to read about this:
On the very day WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange was arrested, the U.S. Department of State -- which is waging all-out legal, PR and cyberwar against WikiLeaks for releasing its private cables -- announced it is pleased to host UNESCO's World Press Freedom Day in 2011.
The three-day celebration in may will pay tribute to new media that have made it possible for repressed people around the world to express their opinions and make public information their oppressive governments tried to keep secret.
"We are concerned about the determination of some governments to censor and silence individuals, and to restrict the free flow of information. We mark events such as World Press Freedom Day in the context of our enduring commitment to support and expand press freedom and the free flow of information in this digital age"
- Kevin Fogarty writing for ITworld
The press release for World Press Freedom Day also states:
"Expanding access to the internet and mobile technologies has opened new routes for gathering and sharing news and information. Those same technologies also have provided new tools to regimes that seek to filter and censor information or to silence those who want to express themselves. World Press Freedom Day 2011 will offer a forum for media freedom advocates, journalists, and policymakers to tackle these challenges and keep them on the global agenda. Freedom of the media is a fundamental human right that requires strong support and constant vigilance."
Joseph Lieberman, on the hand, said on Fox News (....) that he believed a newspaper should be investigated alongside WikiLeaks:
"To me, The New York Times has committed at least an act of bad citizenship, and whether they have committed a crime, I think that bears a very intensive inquiry by the Justice Department.”
The Guardian covers World Press Freedom Day with a very lyrically titled article:
"World Press Freedom Day reminds us that information is democracy's oxygen"
Showing posts with label Journalism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Journalism. Show all posts
Friday, December 10, 2010
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Right-wing bullshit re WikiLeaks.
Cenk Uygur on the utter hypocrisy of Republicans and their voicebox Fox News regarding WikiLeaks - reminding us also of who REALLY DID endanger the life of an intelligence operative, and what justice was served.
My friends, this is a pivotal event. We are witnessing one of the terrible collisions of our times between our right to know the truth, and the people who - for their own base political purposes - would destroy those who seek to give the truth to us.
Between those who deal in facts, and those who feed us lies.
By the way... Note this post from 6 months ago.
Some other little sound bites:
One indication of the indiscriminate forces being whipped up by the affair surfaced on a website called TOPIX which this week ran the question: Should the Yanks kill Julian Assange? Mr Humbert, from Irvine in California, wrote, ''The US should say to Australia, either you hand this treasonous scum's head on a stick with his ball stuffed in his mouth or we break diplomatic relations.''
Yank Oliver, from Sudbury in Canada, went further: ''That would stand as a good warning for other Aussies not to betray their allies.'' But neither went as far as Dr Zauius from Sudbury in Canada: ''Strike team needs to be dispatched to Sweden. I am wondering why they have not handed him over. Perhaps it is time to examine the Swiss (Right-wing political geography at its best...) in serious detail.''
- Martin Flanagan, journalist (you know... people who tell us stuff) for The Age newspaper
My friends, this is a pivotal event. We are witnessing one of the terrible collisions of our times between our right to know the truth, and the people who - for their own base political purposes - would destroy those who seek to give the truth to us.
Between those who deal in facts, and those who feed us lies.
By the way... Note this post from 6 months ago.
Some other little sound bites:
One indication of the indiscriminate forces being whipped up by the affair surfaced on a website called TOPIX which this week ran the question: Should the Yanks kill Julian Assange? Mr Humbert, from Irvine in California, wrote, ''The US should say to Australia, either you hand this treasonous scum's head on a stick with his ball stuffed in his mouth or we break diplomatic relations.''
Yank Oliver, from Sudbury in Canada, went further: ''That would stand as a good warning for other Aussies not to betray their allies.'' But neither went as far as Dr Zauius from Sudbury in Canada: ''Strike team needs to be dispatched to Sweden. I am wondering why they have not handed him over. Perhaps it is time to examine the Swiss (Right-wing political geography at its best...) in serious detail.''
- Martin Flanagan, journalist (you know... people who tell us stuff) for The Age newspaper
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Since when does Homeland Security work for BP?
Two weeks before the accident in the Gulf of Mexico, a BP refinery in Texas spewed an immense amount of toxic chemicals into the skies. BP says it did not percieve the scale of the emissions till weeks after.
Freelance photographer Lance Rosenfield was working on assignment when a BP security guard followed him. Rosenfield was later detained by police after taking photos. The police shared his personal information with the BP security guard on grounds of "Homeland Security". Then an FBI agent shows up...
The photographer's own disturbing version of events is here.
Freelance photographer Lance Rosenfield was working on assignment when a BP security guard followed him. Rosenfield was later detained by police after taking photos. The police shared his personal information with the BP security guard on grounds of "Homeland Security". Then an FBI agent shows up...
The photographer's own disturbing version of events is here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)