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Opinion: "Leveson: reasons to be wary of press promises"
DATELINE: 17/1/12
One by one the editors pop up in front of Lord Justice Leveson and agree that there should be tougher regulation of the press. They may warn of the need to avoid throwing the baby of challenging journalism out with the bathwater of unethical conduct, but most of them accept that the Press Complaints Commission, as presently constituted, is not up to the job.
Lobbyists to face statutory register
DATELINE: 15/1/12
A number of lobbying stories in the weekend's papers. The top one reveals that the government will publish its plans for a statutory register of lobbyists this Thursday/Friday.
BBC wins right to broadcast prisoner interview
DATELINE: 12/1/12
The High Court has ruled that Justice Secretary Ken Clarke was wrong to stop the BBC filming a terrorism suspect held for seven years without trial.The court said there was public interest in interviewing Babar Ahmad, due to the case's exceptional nature. The Justice Secretary had argued an interview was not necessary to inform the public about
Mr Ahmad's story.The British Muslim denies terror-related charges and is fighting extradition to the US.
Briefing on the future of the Freedom of Information Act (Note new venue)
DATELINE: 12/1/12
The Freedom of Information Act is being reviewed by a parliamentary committee which is likely to recommend changes to the law. This could be an important opportunity to improve the Act. But there will also be significant pressure for new restrictions from public authorities concerned about the cost of dealing with FOI requests or lobbying for new exemptions. A briefing will be held at 2.00 pm Wednesday 18 January 2012 Room 212 (not FOI office), Hatton Square Business Centre, 16 Baldwins Gardens, London EC1N 7RJ.
Cameron's links with the Murdoch press: only superficial probing at Leveson
DATELINE: 10/1/12
If the cursory level of questioning of the Sun's editorial executives is to be any guide, David Cameron has little to fear from the Leveson Inquiry's brief to make recommendations on the "future conduct of relations" between politicians, media proprietors and newspaper editors.
Dominic Mahon, editor of the Sun, who was among five executives who gave evidence (9.1.2012), faced only a superficial inquiry about Rupert Murdoch's involvement in the Sun's endorsement of the Conservatives at the 2010 general election.
Press Freedom: a democratic rubric
DATELINE: 4/1/12
Professor Julian Petley, the Campaign chair, gave verbal evidence to the Leveson Inquiry on 8th December 2011, along with Professor Ian Hargreaves of Cardiff University and Dr. Daithi Mac Sithigh. You can download a copy of his paper to the Inquiry (titled Press Freedom: a democratic rubric). This resulted in his appearance. A transcript and video of the session (and of all other sessions) may be found on the Leveson web site. A full record of the session - including profiles, witness statements and submissions - is available at: http://www.levesoninquiry.org.uk/hearing/2011-12-08pm/
Other recent stories
Supporting Bradley Manning
EFJ condemns new wave of repression & arrests of Turkish journalists
Mosley sues Google over sex video access
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Notices
Notices
Wapping Returns to London
DATELINE: 4/1/12
The non-stop revelations in the phone-hacking scandal have ensured that Rupert Murdoch was never far from the headlines last year, which made the 25th anniversary of the Wapping events all the more relevant. To mark the onset of 2012, the Exhibition commemorating Wapping, "The Workers' Story", returns to London, where it can be seen at the Bishopsgate Institute Library, 230 Bishopsgate, London EC2M 4QH from 9th January to 29th February. The exhibition is open Monday to Thursday and Saturday 10.am - 5.30pm on Friday 10am to 2pm
The Exhibition has been on display since August in various locations in London, Liverpool, Salford, Manchester and Brighton - the Marx Memorial Library, TUC Congress House, St George-in-the-East, Wapping, Liverpool Unite office, Goldsmiths College, the People's History Museum, Manchester, the Working Class Movement Library in Salford, and Unite conferences in Brighton and London.
A special edition of the Wapping Post was produced for the Exhibition in September highlighting the essentially anti-democratic aspects of News International's activities, particularly the company's anti-union stance. Trade union rights to be re-asserted and reinforced at NI, and this means abolishing the legal loophole which allows the company-funded and run Staff Association to pose as a union defending workers' rights.
Free Press and this website continue to summarise and analyse media issues and developments.
Some copies of the Wapping Post special edition are still available, along with anniversary badges. If you would like to help with the information desk at the Exhibition, please contact Ann Field (ann.field@btinternet.com) as soon as possible.
Getting the message across
DATELINE: 23/12/11
After a year which saw the biggest trade union protest in a generation as public sector workers demanded protection for their pensions, the Trades Union Congress is preparing to face 2012 and a set of challenges as great as anything in the decade of Margaret Thatcher's government.
A Chance for Change
DATELINE: 25/11/11
The CPBF's 'Leveson pamphlet', A Chance for Change, is now available as a download from the site - just click to retrieve it.
DOWNLOAD FREEPRESS NOW
DATELINE: 26/3/10
Download PDFs of Freepress here.
MEDIA FOR ALL CONFERENCE
DATELINE: 26/3/10
Papers from the Media for All Conference
MEDIA MANIFESTO
DATELINE: 26/3/10
The media’s job is to inform and entertain us but we rely on them too to tell us what our rulers and representatives are up to. In the run-up to the Iraq war the government used spin and disinformation in the media to create panic and mislead people. The truth is coming out now, but we need stronger, more independent media to be able to scrutinise governments and make informed choices.
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Random Links
Links
al jazeera
wordpower: books to change our world
bectu (broadcast, entertainment, cinematograph and theatre union)
indymedia: independent media
media watch mailing list
global village cat - access TV worldwide
sp media watch
kurdishmedia.com
subscribe to 'the weekly spin'
media reform - us-based campaigning group also known as Free Press
Middle East Media Guide
committee to protect journalists
bad subjects: political education for everyday life - from the University of California at Berkeley
jihad unspun - 'a clear view of the war against terror'
undercurrents (for the news you don't see on the news)
notwar.net - quirky international peace group with details of hundreds of campaigning peace groups
michael moore's site
Disinformation - US site combining analysis, rumour, paranoia and alternative lifestyles.
alter-eu - The Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation
cris - the campaign for communication rights in the information society
RAM (Refugees, Asylum-seekers and the Mass media) project bulletin
Ofcom website - the uk's broadcasting and telecoms regulator
One World
media communications policy resources (from Katharine Sarikakis of Leeds university)
stop war web site
Brass Check TV
Institute for War and Peace Reporting
medialens: the real news from the US
writers' guild of great britain
Democracy Fail
British Helsinki Human Rights Group
International News Safety Institute
NUJ Brussels branch
Alliance for Lobbying Transparency
presswise
british journalism review
information clearing house
who owns what - from columbia journalism review
campaign for freedom of information
International Network for Cultural Diversity
archives of the weekly spin
Public Voice, a voluntary sector coalition campaigning on citizens' interests in communications.
new internationalist
media workers against the war
Liberty's 'yourrights' online provides information and access to advice on human rights issues such as free expression and privacy as well as information on the specific rights of various individuals and groups.
international federation of journalists
red pepper - campaigning journal & web site
Civil Rights Movement
