Just a few comments on the on-going discussion on racism and media
reporting. Other contributors have noted the dubious coverage of the
murders of tourists in Uganda. ITN reports in Britain have been
awful. Yesterday's coverage of the events provided absolutely no
context to what is occurring. Certainly it failed to rise very much
above the 'Africa' is a dangerous place inhabited by 'dangerous
people' sort of nonsense. The tragic deaths of tourists is a
consequence of complex political problems stemming out of
political-ethnic tensions in the region and deserves better coverage
than they are getting. As another contributor pointed out these
conflicts are claiming many more lives in Rwanda, Burundi and
Congo than just those of western tourists. The appallingly narrow
perspective adopted was summed up in ITN's listing of African
countries deemed unsafe for tourists - as though this was the most
important element to be considered; there was no attempt to explain
why they were dangerous.
Contributors in Britain will be aware that tonight sees the end of
ITN's traditional 10pm news bulletin 'News at Ten'. The revamping of
their news schedules has provoked considerable debate with many
people lamenting the change. Goodness know why! News at Ten has long
ago ceased to be a serious news programme - it now presents a
combination of sensationalism and 'human interest' pieces generally
devoid of any meaningful analysis. The controversy over its
re-scheduling serves to reflect the dominance of style over substance
and the medium over the message.
Meanwhile the US continues to bomb Iraq with the Air Force now
allowed more leeway in what they can target. How many people died in
Iraq yesterday? 'News at Ten' did not deem it worthy of coverage.
Dave
Dr. David Storey
Geography Department &
Centre for Rural Research
University College Worcester
Henwick Grove
Worcester WR2 6AJ
England
Tel: 01905 855189
Fax: 01905 855132
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