Everyone is preparing for IBC 2014 that takes place in Amsterdam. The conference opens on 11 September, and the exhibition gets underway the following day, running until 15 September. AIB will be in Amsterdam, meeting members, discussing key issues from spectrum reallocation to new digital production tools. And copies of the latest edition of The Channel, our international media magazine, will be available for all delegates at IBC.
US President Barack Obama has once again called for the release of Al Jazeera English journalists, jailed for seven years in Cairo on 23 June this year.
Speaking on the last day of the US-Africa summit in Washington DC on Wednesday 6th August, Obama addressed the issue in clear terms, stating the US demands the freedom of journalists to report, a basic tenet of a civilised society:
“The specific issue with the Al Jazeera journalists in Egypt we have been clear both publicly and privately that they should be released”, Obama stated. “We have been very consistent in pushing governments not just in Africa but around the world to respect the right of journalists to practice their trade. As a critical part of civil society and a critical part of any democratic norm”.
Managing Director of Al Jazeera English, Al Anstey, welcomed the President’s comments and renewed the call for the immediate release of Al Jazeera English’s detained staff who have now been behind bars for 222 days:
“Peter, Mohamed, and Baher are superb journalists with great integrity. Their continuing detention is outrageous, a challenge to media freedom, and to the freedom of speech. Not a shred of evidence was presented against them in the trail which culminated in the extraordinary sentences, so once again we call for an end to this injustice.”
Unprecedented global support for the release of Al Jazeera journalists
Calls for the release of Al Jazeera staff have previously been made from the White House, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the European Union, the Australian Government and over 150 rights groups, including The Association for International Broadcasting, Amnesty International, the Committee to Protect Journalists and the International Press Institute.
Over 200,000 people have signed petitions globally, including two petitions signed by 150,000 people presented to the Egyptian Vice Counsel in Sydney by Australia’s leading journalists.
Over 40 of the world’s top journalists have also signed a letter demanding the release of the journalists, and media outlets across the globe have staged their own protests, including BBC, CNN, ITN, Channel 4, Fairfax Australia, Toronto Star, VRT deredactie and Iran’s Shargh Daily.
High profile supporters include leading media personalities Larry King, Christiane Amanpour, Jon Snow, Piers Morgan, Stephen Fry, Ben Wedeman, Brian Stelter, Alex Thompson, as well as Naomi Klein, Reza Aslan, Mia Farrow, Bianca Jagger, Julia Perez and Russell Simmons.
Similarly public calls of support for the release of the journalists has occurred throughout the social media campaign #FreeAJStaff, with over 137,000 people who have shared their support on Twitter, reaching 112 million people, and delivering over 2 billion impressions.
The case has also been lampooned on the US comedy show The Daily Show, as well as numerous political cartoons.
On Thursday, 7 August Al Jazeera English began special coverage of ‘Gaza Under Fire’, one month since the start of the conflict. From online infographic and in-depth analysis, to news features throughout the day, the coverage will be in comprehensive, culminating in a full special news hour at 1800 GMT (9pm Gaza, 7pm London).
“Our reporters on the ground in Gaza delivered exceptional insights, updates and witness accounts during the heat of the conflict,” commented Managing Director of Al Jazeera English, Al Anstey. “At the one-month mark, with a ceasefire in place, we can now look at the impact and assess the damage to both sides.”
Al Jazeera assesses the scale of destruction of the Gaza strip, after a month of Israeli bombardment. The coverage also look at attempts to rebuild lives and infrastructure after weeks of airstrikes and a ground offensive, which has included heavy tank shelling in civilian areas.
Correspondents Andrew Simmons, Imtiaz Tyab and Charles Stratford will deliver live crosses from Gaza, covering the human impact of the conflict in Gaza; from child trauma to the reality of life under siege.
Diplomatic Editor James Bays will assess how the conflict is playing out politically for all sides, as well as the overall cost to both Hamas and Israel from the month-long conflict. Senior Correspondents Jonah Hull and Patty Culhane in London and Washington, DC will review the international reaction to the crisis.
Also covered are the UN accusations of war crimes committed by Palestinian factions operating in densely populated civilian areas and claims of a disproportionate use of force by Israel. Further, the diplomatic attempts to negotiate a lifting of the Israeli imposed blockade.
AlJazeera.com will feature an infographic detailing the scope of the destruction in Gaza and will also hear from ordinary Gazans, highlight how world leaders responded and photo galleries detailing the month-long conflict.
‘We will provide comprehensive insight into the conflict itself, but also the bigger story on the ongoing siege of Gaza, highlighting the crucial facts the latest escalation of violence has exposed”, stated Salah Negm, Director of News for Al Jazeera English.
Download promo: http://goo.gl/1wofvc
Everyone is preparing for IBC 2014 that takes place in Amsterdam. The conference opens on 11 September, and the exhibition gets underway the following day, running until 15 September.
AIB will be in Amsterdam, meeting members, discussing key issues from spectrum reallocation to new digital production tools.
And copies of the latest edition of The Channel, our international media magazine, will be available for all delegates at IBC.
BBC Russian and other Russian-language news websites have been told by the Russian state media watchdog, Roskomnadzor, to remove interviews with Artem Loskutov, a Russian artist and activist. In the interviews, Loskutov talks about a forthcoming march in favour of the “federalisation of Siberia” due to take place in Novosibirsk.
In the case of the BBC, Roskomnadzor is concerned with an audio interview first broadcast on 31 July as part of BBSeva, a programme which looks at current affairs from a human-interest angle, with a special focus on arts and culture. In it, Mr Loskutov (pictured above) spoke with the BBC’s Seva Novgorodsev about the planned “march for the federalisation of Siberia” in Novosibirsk. On the webpage, the BBC also added background on Mr. Loskutov and his previous activities to provide further context to the story. A quote was added from a blog by Mr Loskutov in which he says that as an artist he views the event as “part parody, part provocation, but also, partly, a real attempt to gain autonomy” – but, he adds, as a Siberian, he is trying to raise serious questions about the future of Siberia.
A BBC spokesperson said: “We have no plans to remove this interview from our website. Mr Loskutov is an artist and activist known for organising events which are, at first sight, parodies of political activity, but which also bring out serious issues about life in Russia. Mr Loskutov’s views represent his personal position. The BBC aims to present all sides of a story in an impartial, unbiased way, and we have also requested an interview with a Russian government official to explain their position on the planned march. Our editorial decisions are guided by the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and the story in question is in full compliance with the requirements set out by this document.”
It appears that the march organisers’ page on Russian-language social networking site VKontakte has been taken down or blocked.
Euronews’ Isabelle Kumar spoke to Ellen MacArthur in The Global Conversation first aired 31 July 2014. After battling towering waves alone at sea, she broke the world record for the fastest circumnavigation of the globe in 2005, Ellen MacArthur returns with a new challenge: accelerate the transition to an eco-friendly circular economy.
During the interview, Ellen MacArthur also engages with Euronews’ online audience by answering questions submitted via #AskMacArthur.
On the circular economy:
“I think one of the most interesting elements of the European Commission’s work around the circular economy, is that they are looking at taking, for example, the eco-design directive, which is very much focused on the energy consumption of products, and saying how do we take that further to look at what sits within products, the recyclability of products of course, but actually that lies within the fact that the products are designed to be recycled, they’re designed to be regenerated, they are designed to be remanufactured, so its opening up much more to look at the whole system, rather than just the energy element.”
About the adrenalin:
“There’s a lot of adrenalin in both worlds. How does that adrenalin compare? When you sail around the world there is massive adrenalin, you fear for your life, but ultimately, it does not matter. If it all goes wrong, it’s just you, it’s your family, the implications on your family and friends, but ultimately it’s just you, it doesn’t really matter, and you do it for you because that’s your goal. This isn’t for me, this is something much larger, this is a massive challenge for all of us moving forwards. If there is a reason for adrenalin to be higher in this, well its because actually, this matters, our global economy really matters.”