'Press Watchdog slammed by 'Dont Attack Iran' Campaigners
(CASMII)
(CASMII)
CASMII UK Press Release
Press Watchdog slammed by 'Dont Attack Iran' Campaigners
Press Watchdog slammed by 'Dont Attack Iran' Campaigners
The Press Complaints Commission was criticised for a lack lustre response to serious complaints about the use of unnamed sources in articles by the Daily Telegraph. The complaints, in particular the one launched by Professor Abbas Edalat of the Campaign Against Sanctions and Military Intervention in Iran (CASMII) in December last year, centred on the fact that extraordinary claims made in a number of headline articles about the threat posed by Iran were all based on unnamed and untraceable sources.
In an ironic echo of President Bushs demand that Saddam produced WMDs that turned out not to exist, the Press Complaints Commission responded to the complaints, saying that the complainant had not presented any evidence that the unnamed sources had been inaccurately quoted.
The response followed complaints from the international campaign group, CASMII, questioning the reliance of unnamed intelligence sources in several far-fetched articles about Iran by the Daily Telegraphs executive foreign editor, Con Coughlin. On 24 January 2007, relying on an unnamed European defence official Coughlin alleged that North Korea is helping Iran prepare a nuclear weapons test. In December the Telegraph ran a headline article by Coughlin claiming that Iran was grooming Bin Ladens successor. Both stories were universally dismissed by Middle East and military experts, and no attempt has been made to substantiate either allegation over the months since publication. Jeremy Bowen, the BBCs Middle East correspondent described the Bin Laden claims as wholly implausible and pointed out that Al Quaeda, a Sunni organisation would not be supported by the Shia administration in Iran.
These stories led CASMII to conduct a broader analysis of the accuracy of Mr Coughlins stories and the journalistic methods he uses. Analysing 44 articles by Mr Coughlin on Iran, CASMII found some stark patterns in terms of his journalistic technique:
· Sources were unnamed or untraceable, often senior Western intelligence officials or senior Foreign Office officials.
· Articles were published at sensitive and delicate times where there had been relatively positive diplomatic moves towards Iran.
· Articles contained exclusive revelations about Iran combined with eye-catchingly controversial headlines.
· The story upon which the headline was based does not usually exceed one line or at the most one paragraph. The rest of the article focused on other, often unrelated, information.
In addition, they revealed that Coughlin was none other than the journalist who, with the help of unnamed intelligence sources discovered the fact that Saddam Hussein could launch weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes and unearthed the link between the 9/11 hijacker, Mohammed Ata, and the Iraqi intelligence.'
In an ironic echo of President Bushs demand that Saddam produced WMDs that turned out not to exist, the Press Complaints Commission responded to the complaints, saying that the complainant had not presented any evidence that the unnamed sources had been inaccurately quoted.
The response followed complaints from the international campaign group, CASMII, questioning the reliance of unnamed intelligence sources in several far-fetched articles about Iran by the Daily Telegraphs executive foreign editor, Con Coughlin. On 24 January 2007, relying on an unnamed European defence official Coughlin alleged that North Korea is helping Iran prepare a nuclear weapons test. In December the Telegraph ran a headline article by Coughlin claiming that Iran was grooming Bin Ladens successor. Both stories were universally dismissed by Middle East and military experts, and no attempt has been made to substantiate either allegation over the months since publication. Jeremy Bowen, the BBCs Middle East correspondent described the Bin Laden claims as wholly implausible and pointed out that Al Quaeda, a Sunni organisation would not be supported by the Shia administration in Iran.
These stories led CASMII to conduct a broader analysis of the accuracy of Mr Coughlins stories and the journalistic methods he uses. Analysing 44 articles by Mr Coughlin on Iran, CASMII found some stark patterns in terms of his journalistic technique:
· Sources were unnamed or untraceable, often senior Western intelligence officials or senior Foreign Office officials.
· Articles were published at sensitive and delicate times where there had been relatively positive diplomatic moves towards Iran.
· Articles contained exclusive revelations about Iran combined with eye-catchingly controversial headlines.
· The story upon which the headline was based does not usually exceed one line or at the most one paragraph. The rest of the article focused on other, often unrelated, information.
In addition, they revealed that Coughlin was none other than the journalist who, with the help of unnamed intelligence sources discovered the fact that Saddam Hussein could launch weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes and unearthed the link between the 9/11 hijacker, Mohammed Ata, and the Iraqi intelligence.'
Kijkt u ook eens naar de tendentieuze berichtgeving in Nederlandse dagbladen als de Volkskrant. Zie ook: http://stanvanhoucke.blogspot.com/2007/05/de-israelische-terreur-206.html
1 opmerking:
Een beetje propaganda drukken is Broertjes kennelijk niet 'te groot'
Een reactie posten