19 June 2014
OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today told participating States that events in Ukraine pose a great threat to media freedom and free expression across the OSCE region.
“I ask for all the parties involved to show some modicum of restraint and respect for the fundamental values of free media and make democracy and civilized society work,” Mijatović said while presenting her semi-annual report to the Permanent Council.
“At the end of the day, there’s no more effective way to restrict free media, free expression and the free flow of information than resorting to physical and emotional violence and threats of violence against members of the media. And since the beginning of the Maidan demonstrations there figuratively has been a tide of violence perpetrated against members of the media,” she said.
During her presentation Mijatović said that four journalists had been killed since the conflict in Ukraine began and that countless others had been assaulted physically and emotionally. She said she had intervened about 120 times throughout the OSCE region to defend the rights to free expression and free media since the Representative’s last regular report in November, often connected to the backsliding of journalists’ rights in some participating States.
“The work of my Office will not slow down. It is my mandate to bring information to you on media violations in all countries. The issues at stake in Ukraine are central to the issues of free media and free expression across the entire OSCE region and they have my full attention,” Mijatović told the Permanent Council.
Mijatović pointed to some bright spots in the media landscape in the OSCE region since her last report, including the co-operation between her office and participating States on good-faith efforts to adopt legal regimes beneficial to free media, and training events organized by her office for journalists, government officials and law enforcement officers on central media freedom issues.
“Too many nations around the world know that, like democracy, free media and free speech do not come naturally and cannot be taken for granted. They must be constantly justified, reaffirmed and strengthened. That is the reason why the Office of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media was created and what the Organization must consider in order to make sure it functions properly and professionally in carrying out the mission,” Mijatović said.
The report to the Permanent Council is available at www.osce.org/fom/119957
The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media observes media developments in all 57 OSCE participating States. She provides early warning on violations of freedom of expression and media freedom and promotes full compliance with OSCE media freedom commitments. Learn more at www.osce.org/fom, Twitter: @OSCE_RFoM and on facebook.com/osce.rfom.
19 June 2014
Afghan President General Hamid Karzai has spoken exclusively to BBC’s Chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet about the Taliban and the latest developments in Iraq.
Doucet – a past winner of the AIB’s International Personality of the Year award – was granted an exclusive interview that covered a range of areas as Western troops prepare to leave Afghanistan.
Watch the entire interview at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-27897644.
19 June 2014
Channel NewsAsia has launched a nation-wide school competition – Days of Rage – Digital Media Competition. The competition, a collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Student Development Curriculum Division, is held from end May 2014 as part of efforts to celebrate Singapore’s 50th year of independence in 2015.
Students from various institutions in Singapore are invited to create a video based on themes and characters seen in the channel’s highly acclaimed series, Days of Rage. Entries should show how one key character featured in the Days of Rage programme would act in today’s context, and the impact it could have on the community.
The 5-part series was first telecast on the channel from January 2014, and the adapted versions in Chinese, Malay and Tamil were subsequently shown on the respective MediaCorp mass entertainment channels. Vice President of International Productions at Channel NewsAsia Network Programming and Promotions, Ms Mok Choy Lin, says, “Days of Rage is one of our top notch documentary programmes that has been very well received from all quarters since it was first telecast. Shot with some of the highest production values, it is not only very entertaining as a TV programme, but historically instructive as well. The Ministry of Education has found the series useful in educating the youths about Singapore’s History and we want to use it to kindle interest among the young about the iconic moments in Singapore’s past and to stimulate thought on some of the events and issues. We are also planning an encore telecast of the series from 1st July 2014.”
The competition is open to all secondary school, Junior College, ITE and Polytechnic students and deadline for submission is end July. The winning entry will win a cash prize of S$1,000 and will be showcased on the Days of Rage microsite on channelnewsasia.com. (Source: Press release)
17 June 2014
The Irish Bar in Tashkent
Bars, restaurants, and cafes in Uzbekistan say they are being forced to pay a US$1,000 fee for permission to show matches of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which began in Brazil on June 12, according to a report on AIB Member RFE/RL.
Owners of bars and restaurants in Uzbekistan say that they were instructed by the National Television and Radio Company (MTRK) to first sign contracts with the company that will allow them to legally show the matches to their customers. The bar owners say the MTRK threatened to impose fines if they do not comply. An official of the MTRK who wished to remain anonymous confirmed the information to RFE/RL on June 11.
The charges follow an immense hike in the TV rights fees charged to Central Asian broadcasters for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In 2010, the five Central Asia republics paid a total of around US$150,000 for the rights. This year, a Turkish company secured the rights for a figure believed to be around US$5m.
17 June 2014
An internet cafe in Uzbekistan
AIB Member Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has reported that Internet users in Tajikistan say that Google services, including YouTube and the Gmail electronic mail system, remain inaccessible and that international organisations have protested about the situation.
Reporters Without Borders and the OSCE’s representative on freedom of the media have urged Tajik authorities to restore access to YouTube and Google.
The services became inaccessible via Tajikistan’s leading internet providers on June 9.
The deputy chief of the Tajik government’s Communications Service, Rafiqjon Shakirov, told RFE/RL on June 11 that his agency had nothing to do with the situation and cited “possible technical problems” as the cause of the disruption. Meanwhile, owners of expensive Android smartphones, which run Google-based software, complain that the situation has turned their phones into ordinary mobile devices.
16 June 2014
Thomson Video Networks today announced that leading global satellite operator Eutelsat is launching an Ultra High Definition (UHD) demonstration channel for Southeast Asia and Australia, based on the award-winning ViBE™ VS7000 multi-screen video system and Sapphire MPEG stream server. Broadcast via Eutelsat’s year-old EUTELSAT 70B satellite, the demo channel will leverage the advanced high-efficiency video coding (HEVC) capabilities of the Thomson Video Networks solutions to provide a rich UHDTV picture at up to 50 frames per second (FPS) and in 10-bit color.
“The ViBE VS7000 system and Sapphire stream server combine to create a very simple and affordable platform for broadcasting a UHD channel — as well as an ideal opportunity to demonstrate the full power of HEVC encoding for delivering pristine UHD picture quality with maximum bandwidth savings,” said Michel Chabrol, Director Marketing Innovation and Digital Cinema at Eutelsat. “With this new initiative, we’re looking forward to demonstrating the latest developments in UHDTV, and just how cost-effective and bandwidth-efficient it can be for broadcasters.”
With its ability to create HEVC content at any frame rate and any resolution up to UHD with superb video quality, the ViBE VS7000 will provide file transcoding for the Eutelsat demo channel. Thomson Video Networks’ Sapphire channel-in-a-box broadcast server will streamline playout by creating playlists of HEVC clips and scheduling the broadcasts. The 4K channel will broadcast an array of documentary, cultural, and sports content created by TV channels, production companies, and Eutelsat itself to demonstrate the stunning viewing experience UHD affords.
“As a long-term Thomson Video Networks partner, Eutelsat is expanding its footprint in the vital and booming Asian broadcast marketplace, and blazing a trail for the next generation of television,” said Tony Berthaud, vice president, Asia-Pacific sales, Thomson Video Networks. “By applying our advanced HEVC technology to demonstrate the feasibility of UHDTV in Asia, Eutelsat is setting the scene for this new format worldwide.” (Source: Press release)
