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Wikipedia: the gift that keeps on giving…
It seems that even television is not safe from Wikipedia spotters. A Syrian blog points to some smooth script re-purposing over at Al Jazeera English on their series A Question of Arab Unity. ALJAZ“Nasser and his fellow officers assured Britain that it would respect British citizens and property in Egypt, limiting the possibility of intervention…
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Democracy and the BBC: more preached than practised
One of my favourite quotes on democracy (disowned by its originator alas), comes from British educator Derry Hannam: Learning about democracy and citizenship in school is a bit like reading holiday brochures in prison. Why do I trawl that quote up? Well, BBC Director-General Mark Thompson, in an interesting and wide-ranging speech addressing the trust…
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“Balance” in diplomacy: lessons for journalism
I am sorry to say I have never had much time for diplomats. Prejudice, you understand. Reading former British diplomat Carne Ross’s enjoyable and self-critical memoir – Independent Diplomat: Dispatches from an Unaccountable Elite – hasn’t exactly changed my mind. But as well as reminding UK tax-payers that they could save a lot of money…
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Two views on TV news
I had a chance to look over the memo from ITN’s Dave Mannion on the return of News At Ten. Without repeating it in full, it offers important insights into the thinking of one of Britain’s best television journalists. We have been given a prime time slot. Our job is not simply to split the…