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The curious case of BBC and Angelina Jolie’s double mastectomy

admin — Tue, 14 May 2013 15:50:48 +0000

A standing ovation for Angelina Jolie’s courage in coming publicly forward with her decision to undergo a double mastectomy. Surely, it wasn’t an easy step to take and her openness about it will certainly inspire many women across the globe. But let’s take a short pause here and ask ourselves why this tale featured as top story on BBC’s homepage for the whole day. It’s undoubtedly an act of bravery to reveal to the world that something so intimate to a woman is doomed to disappear soon. No question that Ms Jolie is the kind of personality that makes the news. She is a well-admired lady across the globe for her talent and her activism. Her op-ed was not only a personal recount of her procedure, but an informative article on the situation of female-related cancer, its risks, and the options women have. Nothing really new, but still relevant reading. It was inspiring and factual. So that the New York Times decided to publish the letter, it’s only normal and understandable. Her decision, taking into account the matter at hand and her celebrity status, was news-worthy. But as much as admirable, emotional, and encouraging Ms Jolie’s action was, one should [...]

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Dutch Press Officers: Sorry, National Media Only

admin — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 17:41:04 +0000

Correspondents have it hard. Finding stories that can hit a chord with foreign audiences isn’t an easy task. Sometimes, it’s not even the story, it’s just the Foreign Desk’s budget that is too short: so editors need to be picky when choosing for which report they’ll pay.

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The case of El País & Chavez’s wrong picture

admin — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 16:08:30 +0000

Spanish prestigious newspaper El País had a case of bad judgment when it published an unverified photo of an ill man believed to be Venezuela’s president Hugo Chávez. The head of state is currently in a Cuban hospital to treat his cancer.

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If Clark Kent is not putting up with it anymore, why should we?

admin — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 11:30:04 +0000

Superman’s alter ego Clark Kent is quitting his job as a reporter at the Daily Planet. He is fed up with ‘soft’ news and wants to do ‘real’ journalism. It is therefore ironic that a multitude of newspapers and journalists picked up on the infotainment story and reported on a fictional character as if Kent’s decision changed anything about our world. But as a matter of fact, I’d like to think his walk out has an impact. Superman has always been my favourite super-hero. He doesn’t need a butler like Batman does; he hasn’t got the weird personality of Spiderman. He’s just one of us, who happens to have the power of saving the world whenever we get in trouble – and boy don’t we keep him busy! It also brings me comfort the fact that his alter ego is a journalist. In that sense he is an all around society servant. My ‘romantic me’ wants to believe his career choice wasn’t a coincidence. As Clark Kent, he informs people; as Superman, he rescues them. However you look at it, he’s keeping democracy alive. (Have I gone a step too far here?) That’s why it was such a blow for [...]

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The Dutch didn’t vote for EU: How world media got it wrong

admin — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 22:41:18 +0000

As the first results of the Dutch general election came through worldwide media began reporting on a win for Europe. The Dutch chose to cast their votes on the liberal VVD and Labour PvdA parties. Their neck and neck race has led their leaders to lock themselves behind close doors and negotiate a way for them to govern together in a coalition. According to the BBC, the VVD and PvdA are pro-European parties. But is that so? It’s true that parties with a clear anti-EU agenda have suffered a great loss in their parliamentary seats. Anti-immigration Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party saw his MPs be reduced from 24 to 11. His strong stance against the Eurozone and a possible exit of the Netherlands from the 27-member block may have cost him some votes. However selling the idea that the Dutch voted for Europe isn’t absolutely accurate. Had that been the case then the support for the much pro-European D66 would have sky-rocketed. But that wasn’t the case. In fact, the Dutch chose for The Netherlands; not for Europe. The Labour party PvdA has been adamant about not giving in to Brussels pressure to meet the 3% deficit target demanded of all [...]

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Press expelled from MP Geert Wilders political party

admin — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 10:59:47 +0000

A reporter for the Dutch TV programme PowNews was shown the door out of the café where Geert Wilders’ (anti-Islam and anti-EU) Freedom Party supporters gathered for the election night. Jan Versteegh and his cameraman were taken by security after they were told they were posing “unwelcome questions” (sic). Moments before they were expelled Versteegh interviewed fellow journalists what they thought about the confined spaced press had been allocated and the strict reporting rules imposed by the party. The answers hinted on the paradox between the name of the party and the limitations to press freedom. Images then show the PowNews journalist asking questions to a Freedom Party member who places her hand on the camera lens to stop it from filming her. According to Versteegh, everyone present was forbidden to talk to the press. Security then escorted the two PowNews staff out with the reporter shouting “Isn’t this the Freedom Party?!” PowNews is a daily programme on Dutch public television with an unconventional take on news. Its reporters are recognized by their bright pink microphones and are no strangers to provocative questions and situations leaving many political leaders red-faced. Mr Wilders has been a regular in the programme and is [...]

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Parachute journalism

admin — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 10:21:57 +0000

An article by New York Times’ Steven Erlanger got some Dutch readers raising a few eyebrows when he described them as seemingly ‘melancholy and sedate’. Erlanger wrote about the atmosphere in the country just days before it elected a new parliament. Melancholy and sedate don’t seem to be words that fit well with the Dutch. After all, they score high on all sorts of happiness indexes, including 4th place in UN’s World Happiness Report. Plus turn-out here for the 2012 general poll was of 74% – while it is decreasing in the Netherlands it is still above the EU’s average. If the Dutch are sedate and melancholic, what would that say about the 41% Portuguese who did not cast their vote in the 2011 parliamentary elections and whose national song Fado is reminiscent of pain and nostalgia? The explanation may well lie in the fact that Erlanger is a parachute journalist: colleagues who are flown in by their media organizations for a short period of time to report on an event from a country they know little of. It often happens when there’s a natural disaster, a conflict emerging or the anniversary of an important happening. It has its benefits. Parachute [...]

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RNW: End of an era

admin — Mon, 28 May 2012 00:41:51 +0000

For decades radio world services have broadcast to its citizens scattered around the globe so that they could listen to the news in their own language and not miss out on those important stories from back home. Simultaneously, these services focussed on areas of the world where media repression or armed conflict prevented balanced intakes on international events and current affairs. But their end has become a painful possibility. In 2011 the world’s five main world services (VOA, BBC, RFI, DW, RNW) were all told massive cuts to their funding were on the way. Last year the BBC announced the full closure of five languages and the end of radio broadcasting in other seven until 2014. Deutsche Welle has also reduced its daily 260 short wave broadcasting hours to 55, shifting its focus to online broadcast and partnerships with FM radio stations. But probably the biggest axe of all has been to Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW). The Dutch government approved a 70% cut from €46 million to €14 million per year. It’s old news – the decision was taken on June 2011. But the reality has just sunk in. On May 11 the Dutch language service was broadcast for the [...]

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Reporting live from the comfort of home

admin — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:56:25 +0000

Reporting on international courts has become more of a television club attended by journalists than a media coverage. Dozens of broadcasting vans are parked outside the Special Court for Sierra Leone in The Hague area. Media from all over the world has flown in to cover one of the most gripping international cases: Charles Taylor’s trial. The ex Liberian president had the dubious privilege of being the first former head of state to be judged before an international court. The press officer from the court had no hands to measure (or handle) the amount of press accreditation for today. Every single journalist wanted to be present. Media corporations sent in their big-shots and star reporters to cover the verdict. But just a lucky few actually got to sit in the public chamber and see Mr Taylor from up close and personal.. It’s the same scenario in every international court in The Hague at the beginning and end of every case. Most of the reporters end up elbowing each other in an obvious too small media centre, watching the proceedings from a television screen. And as the court provides live web-streaming the truth of the matter is that all of us [...]

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Say what?

admin — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 20:16:41 +0000

Elections seem to have a special effect on producers. For the next 24 hours they will be working around the clock under a sort of spell which urges them to feel whatever result was achieved it will mean dramatic change. As if the rest of the problems in the rest of the world were nothing compared to these news. No massacres, wars, plane crashes will be as important as understanding what’s next for their country. The Dutch government stepped down on the same weekend of the French presidential elections. It was a difficult time for the cabinet to throw in the towel as insecurity in financial markets had already provoked alarming bells in credit agencies who threaten with a downgrade of the Dutch AAA status. The coalition had only been ruling for 1,5 years and no Dutch citizen wanted to head to the ballots this soon. So when I got a call on Monday from a producer from a top international news television channel (I won’t name and shame), I immediately assumed they wanted the latest on the Dutch political debacle. “Yes, indeed”, she told me. “And we also want to know what’s the Dutch government’s reaction to the French [...]

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