The Supreme Court is set to hear a case this term that could dramatically change the internet forever. Then, regulators in Ireland fined Facebook HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS of dollars for violating the privacy rights of children. Mike Papantonio & Farron Cousins discuss more. Transcript: *This transcript was generated by a third-party transcription software company, so please excuse any typos. […]
Documents obtained by The Intercept prove that the Department of Homeland Security has been censoring stories with the help of social media outlets. Then, a Starbucks manager says that he was told to punish pro-union employees at his store. Mike Papantonio & Farron Cousins discuss more. Transcript: *This transcript was generated by a third-party transcription software company, so please […]
A judge in Michigan has dropped the criminal charges against seven officials involved in the Flint water scandal. Also, CNN wants to become more “neutral,” but the network might be too far gone to save itself. Mike Papantonio & Farron Cousins discuss more. Transcript: *This transcript was generated by a third-party transcription software company, so please excuse any typos. […]
Prime Minister and Minister for Information and Public Enterprises Sitiveni Rabuka revealed this in Parliament last week in response to questions raised surrounding the engagement of Vatis Communications by the Ministry of Information under the Voreqe Bainimarama-led FijiFirst government.
Rabuka said Vatis had been engaged by the Department of Information from September 2019 to January 2023 to provide social media management services for the Fiji government social media platforms.
He said the department did not have the specifics for the engagement of Vatis by other ministries.
“The Department of Information entered into two one-year contracts with Vatis, commencing on September 24, 2019, and October 1, 2022, respectively, which also included provision for extensions,” Mr Rabuka said.
“The first contract between the Department of Information and Vatis commenced on September 24, 2019, and was valued at $280,000 VIP.
“The second contract which commenced on October 1, 2020, was valued at $295,412 VIP.”
The PM said that according to the Registrar of Companies records, Vatus was established on January 22, 2018, while the advertisement for the initial expression of interest for a social media management firm was posted on August 17, 2019.
Responding to questions on its experience and motivation, Rabuka noted Vatis had previous experience working with multiple and diverse range of stakeholders that included government ministries and statutory organisations, independent agencies and private organisations; and their experience included crisis management and strategic communication services on social media platforms, among other things.
Timoci Vulais a Fiji Times reporter. Republished with permission.
Here we go again. The state of Israel is committing unchecked barbarism against Palestinians and the Western corporate media has decided it all comes down to “clashes”.
The latest round of so-called “clashes” – sparked when Israeli police decided to mark the Muslim holy month of Ramadan by repeatedly attacking Palestinian worshippers at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque – has produced predictably disproportionate casualties.
Hundreds of Palestinians have been arrested and wounded as Israeli forces have once again flaunted their handiness with rubber bullets, batons, stun grenades and tear gas. In return, the police have suffered minimal injuries, while also undertaking to accompany illegal Israeli settlers into the mosque compound.
And apparently not satisfied with simply unleashing violence in Jerusalem, Israel has also launched a barrage of air strikes on the Gaza Strip and southern Lebanon following reported rocket fire.
As with all previous instances of Israeli-Palestinian “clashes”, the media’s choice to deploy such terminology serves to obscure the Israeli monopoly on violence and the fact that Israel kills, maims and mutilates at an astronomically higher rate than its supposed counterpart in “clashing”.
It also obscures the reality that Palestinian violence is in response to a now nearly-75-year-old Israeli policy defined by the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, the occupation of Palestinian land and the periodic perpetration of massacres – pardon, “clashes”.
Take your pick of contemporary, Israeli military assaults and you’ll find manoeuvres like Operation Protective Edge, the euphemism for the 2014 slaughter of 2,251 people in the Gaza Strip, including 551 children. Over a period of 22 days starting in December 2008, Operation Cast Lead took the lives of some 1,400 Palestinians in Gaza; three Israeli civilians died.
“Clashes” also abounded in 2018 when, in response to the Gaza border protests, the Israeli military killed hundreds of Palestinians and wounded thousands. And in May 2021, an 11-day Israeli rampage titled Operation Guardian of the Walls killed more than 260 Palestinians, approximately one-fourth of whom were children. As it so happens, this last operation was set off by – what else? – “clashes” at Al-Aqsa Mosque.
This bit of trivia has prompted certain news outlets to fret about what the current “spiralling bloodshed” between Israelis and Palestinians may portend – another media catchphrase that ultimately whitewashes Israel’s predominant role in the shedding of blood.
It is difficult, of course, to find any linguistic or moral equivalent to the media obsession with reporting Israeli savagery as “clashes”. One would not perceive an elk as “clashing” with a hunter’s rifle, just as one would not perceive a “clash” between a human neck and a guillotine.
This post was originally published on Common Dreams.
With tourism back and booming, Fiji is again a number one destination for travellers seeking an island paradise experience.
And while water lapping on the shoreline might make for an Instagram-worthy picture, for the people of Fiji, it presents a threat to their way of life.
This week on ABC’s Foreign Correspondent, special guest reporter Craig Reucassel travels across the islands of Fiji to see how the nation is combating climate change.
With his trademark style, Craig goes off the tourist track and shows what living with climate change actually means for those who don’t have the luxury of arguing about it.
Fiji: The Last Resort Video: ABC Foreign Correspondent
More than 800 villages are now on a government climate risk list — some communities have already been moved to higher ground but others are resisting.
And many are asking: who caused the problem and who should pay to fix it?
Special guest reporter Craig Reucassel files this video report for ABC Foreign Correspondent.
Unprecedented levels of disinformation will only get worse this election in Aotearoa New Zealand, but systems set up to deal with it during the pandemic have all been shut down, Disinformation Project researcher Dr Sanjana Hattotuwa has warned.
He says the levels of vitriol and conspiratorial discourse this past week or two are worse than anything he has seen during the past two years of the pandemic — including during the Parliament protest — but he is not aware of any public work to counteract it.
“There is no policy, there’s no framework, there’s no real regulatory mechanism, there’s no best practice, and there’s no legal oversight,” Dr Hattotuwa told RNZ News.
He says urgent action should be taken, and could include legislation, community-based initiatives, or a stronger focus on the recommendations of the 15 March 2019 mosque attacks inquiry.
Highest levels of disinformation, conspiratorialism seen yet Dr Hattotuwa said details of the project’s analysis of violence and content from the past week — centred on the visit by British activist Posie Parker — were so confronting he could not share it.
“I don’t want to alarm listeners, but I think that the Disinformation Project — with evidence and in a sober reflection and analysis of what we are looking at — the honest assessment is not something that I can quite share, because the BSA (Broadcasting Standards Authority) guidelines won’t allow it.
Dr Sanjana Hattotuwa, research fellow from The Disinformation Project . . . “I don’t want to alarm listeners, but . . . the honest assessment is not something that I can quite share.” Image: RNZ News
“The fear is very much … particularly speaking as a Sri Lankan who has come from and studied for doctoral research offline consequences of online harm, that I’m seeing now in Aotearoa New Zealand what I studied and I thought I had left behind back in Sri Lanka.”
The new levels of vitriol were unlike anything seen since the project’s daily study began in 2021, and included a rise in targeting of politicians specifically by far-right and neo-Nazi groups, he said.
But — as the SIS noted in its latest report this week — the lines were becoming increasingly blurred between those more ideologically motivated groups, and the newer ones using disinformation and targeting authorities and government.
“You know, distinction without a difference,” he said. “The Disinformation Project is not in the business of looking at the far right and neo-Nazis — that’s a specialised domain that we don’t consider ourselves to be experts in — what we do is to look at disinformation.
“Now to find that you have neo-Nazis, the far-right, anti-semitic signatures — content, presentations and engagement — that colours that discourse is profoundly worrying because you would want to have a really clear distinction.
No Telegram ‘guardrail’
“There is no guardrail on Telegram against any of this, it’s one click away. And so there’s a whole range of worries and concerns we have … because we can’t easily delineate anymore between what would have earlier been very easy categorisation.”
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson said she had been subjected to increasing levels of abuse in recent weeks with a particular far-right flavour.
“The online stuff is particularly worrying but no matter who it’s directed towards we’ve got to remember that can also branch out into actual violence if we don’t keep a handle on it,” she said.
“Strong community connection in real life is what holds off the far-right extremism that we’ve seen around the world … we also want the election to be run where every politician takes responsibility for a humane election dialogue that focuses on the issues, that doesn’t drum up extra hate towards any other politician or any other candidate.”
Green Party co-leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson . . . Image: Samuel Rillstone/RNZ News
Limited protection as election nears Dr Hattotuwa said it was particularly worrying considering the lack of tools in New Zealand to deal with disinformation and conspiratorialism.
“Every institutional mechanism and framework that was established during the pandemic to deal with disinformation has now been dissolved. There is nothing that I know in the public domain of what the government is doing with regards to disinformation,” Dr Hattotuwa said.
“The government is on the backfoot in an election year — I can understand in terms of realpolitik, but there is no investment.”
He believed the problem would only get worse as the election neared.
“The anger, the antagonism is driven by a distrust in government that is going to be instrumentalised to ever greater degrees in the future, around public consultative processing, referenda and electoral moments.
“The worry and the fear is, as has been noted by the Green Party, that the election campaigning is not going to be like anything that the country has ever experienced … that there will be offline consequences because of the online instigation and incitement.
“It’s really going to give pause to, I hope, the way that parties consider their campaign. Because the worry is — in a high trust society in New Zealand — you kind of have the expectation that you can go out and meet the constituency … I know that many others are thinking that this is now not something that you can take for granted.”
Possible countermeasures
Dr Hattotuwa said countermeasures could include legislation, security-sector reform, community-based action, or a stronger focus on implementing the recommendations of the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCOI) into the terrorist attack on Christchurch mosques.
“There are a lot of recommendations in the RCOI that, you know, are being just cosmetically dealt with. And there are a lot of things that are not even on the government’s radar. So there’s a whole spectrum of issues there that I think really call for meaningful conversations and investment where it’s needed.”
National’s campaign chair Chris Bishop said the party did not have any specific campaign preparations under way in relation to disinformation, but would be willing to work with the government on measures to counteract it.
“If the goverment thinks we should be taking them then we’d be happy to sit down and have a conversation about it,” he said.
“Obviously we condemn violent rhetoric and very sadly MPs and candidates in the past few years have been subject to more of that including threats made to their physical wellbeing and we condemn that and we want to try to avoid that as much as possible.”
Labour’s campaign chair Megan Woods did not respond to requests for comment.
Ardern’s rhetoric not translating to policy Former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern spoke during her valedictory farewell speech in Parliament on Wednesday about the loss of the ability to “engage in good robust debates and land on our respective positions relatively respectfully”.
“While there were a myriad of reasons, one was because so much of the information swirling around was false. I could physically see how entrenched it was for some people.”
Former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern gives her valedictory speech. Image: Phil Smith/RNZ News
Ardern is set to take up an unpaid role at the Christchurch Call, which was set up after the terror attacks and has a focus on targeting online proliferation of dis- and mis-information and the spread of hateful rhetoric.
Dr Hattotuwa said Ardern had led the world in her own rhetoric around the problem, but real action now needed to be taken.
“Let me be very clear, PM Ardern was a global leader in articulating the harm that disinformation has on democracy — at NATO, at Harvard, and then at the UN last year. There has been no translation into policy around that which she articulated publicly, so I think that needs to occur.
“I mean, when people say that they’re going to go and vent their frustration it might mean with a placard, it might mean with a gun.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Unprecedented levels of disinformation will only get worse this election, but systems set up to deal with it during the pandemic have all been shut down, Disinformation Project researcher Sanjana Hattotuwa has warned.https://t.co/LUVAbALjGD
The late Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a Nobel laureate and tireless campaigner against South African apartheid, once observed: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”
For decades, the BBC’s editorial policy in reporting on Israel and Palestine has consistently chosen the side of the oppressor — and all too often, not even by adopting the impartiality the corporation claims as the bedrock of its journalism.
Instead, the British state broadcaster regularly chooses language and terminology whose effect is to deceive its audience. And it compounds such journalistic malpractice by omitting vital pieces of context when that extra information would present Israel in a bad light.
BBC bias — which entails knee-jerk echoing of the British establishment’s support for Israel as a highly militarised ally projecting Western interests into the oil-rich Middle East – was starkly on show once again this week as the broadcaster reported on the violence at Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Social media was full of videos showing heavily armed Israeli police storming the mosque complex during the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.
Police could be seen pushing peaceful Muslim worshippers, including elderly men, off their prayer mats and forcing them to leave the site. In other scenes, police were filmed beating worshippers inside a darkened Al-Aqsa, while women could be heard screaming in protest.
What is wrong with the British state broadcaster’s approach — and much of the rest of the Western media’s — is distilled in one short BBC headline: “Clashes erupt at contested holy site.”
Into a sentence of just six words, the BBC manages to cram three bogusly “neutral” words, whose function is not to illuminate or even to report, but to trick the audience, as Tutu warned, into siding with the oppressor.
Furious backlash Though video of the beatings was later included on the BBC’s website and the headline changed after a furious online backlash, none of the sense of unprovoked, brutal Israeli state violence, or its malevolent rationale, was captured by the BBC’s reporting.
To call al-Aqsa a ‘contested holy site’, as the BBC does, is simply to repeat a propaganda talking point from Israel, the oppressor state, and dress it up as neutral reporting
The “clashes” at al-Aqsa, in the BBC’s telling, presume a violent encounter between two groups: Palestinians, described by Israel and echoed by the BBC as “agitators”, on one side; and Israeli forces of law and order on the other.
That is the context, according to the BBC, for why unarmed Palestinians at worship need to be beaten. And that message is reinforced by the broadcaster’s description of the seizure of hundreds of Palestinians at worship as “arrests” — as though an unwelcome, occupying, belligerent security force present on another people’s land is neutrally and equitably upholding the law.
“Erupt” continues the theme. It suggests the “clashes” are a natural force, like an earthquake or volcano, over which Israeli police presumably have little, if any, control. They must simply deal with the eruption to bring it to an end.
And the reference to the “contested” holy site of Al-Aqsa provides a spurious context legitimising Israeli state violence: police need to be at Al-Aqsa because their job is to restore calm by keeping the two sides “contesting” the site from harming each other or damaging the holy site itself.
The BBC buttresses this idea by uncritically citing an Israeli police statement accusing Palestinians of being at Al-Aqsa to “disrupt public order and desecrate the mosque”.
Palestinians are thus accused of desecrating their own holy site simply by worshipping there — rather than the desecration committed by Israeli police in storming al-Aqsa and violently disrupting worship.
The History of Al-Aqsa Mosque. Video: Middle East Eye
Israeli provocateurs The BBC’s framing should be obviously preposterous to any rookie journalist in Jerusalem. It assumes that Israeli police are arbiters or mediators at Al-Aqsa, dispassionately enforcing law and order at a Muslim place of worship, rather than the truth: that for decades, the job of Israeli police has been to act as provocateurs, dispatched by a self-declared Jewish state, to undermine the long-established status quo of Muslim control over Al-Aqsa.
Events were repeated for a second night this week when police again raided Al-Aqsa, firing rubber bullets and tear gas as thousands of Palestinians were at prayer. US statements calling for “calm” and “de-escalation” adopted the same bogus evenhandedness as the BBC.
The mosque site is not “contested”, except in the imagination of Jewish religious extremists, some of them in the Israeli government, and the most craven kind of journalists.
True, there are believed to be the remains of two long-destroyed Jewish temples somewhere underneath the raised mount where al-Aqsa is built. According to Jewish religious tradition, the Western Wall — credited with being a retaining wall for one of the disappeared temples – is a place of worship for Jews.
But under that same Jewish rabbinical tradition, the plaza where Al-Aqsa is sited is strictly off-limits to Jews. The idea of Al-Aqsa complex as being “contested” is purely an invention of the Israeli state — now backed by a few extremist settler rabbis — that exploits this supposed “dispute” as the pretext to assert Jewish sovereignty over a critically important piece of occupied Palestinian territory.
Israel’s goal — not Judaism’s — is to strip Palestinians of their most cherished national symbol, the foundation of their religious and emotional attachment to the land of their ancestors, and transfer that symbol to a state claiming to exclusively represent the Jewish people.
To call Al-Aqsa a “contested holy site”, as the BBC does, is simply to repeat a propaganda talking point from Israel, the oppressor state, and dress it up as neutral reporting.
‘Equal rights’ at Al-Aqsa The reality is that there would have been no “clashes”, no “eruption” and no “contest” had Israeli police not chosen to storm Al-Aqsa while Palestinians were worshipping there during the holiest time of the year.
This is not a ‘clash’. It is not a ‘conflict’. Those supposedly ‘neutral’ terms conceal what is really happening: apartheid and ethnic cleansing
There would have been no “clashes” were Israeli police not aggressively enforcing a permanent occupation of Palestinian land in Jerusalem, which has encroached ever more firmly on Muslim access to, and control over, the mosque complex.
There would have been no “clashes” were Israeli police not taking orders from the latest – and most extreme – of a series of police ministers, Itamar Ben Gvir, who does not even bother to hide his view that Al-Aqsa must be under absolute Jewish sovereignty.
There would have been no “clashes” had Israeli police not been actively assisting Jewish religious settlers and bigots to create facts on the ground over many years — facts to bolster an evolving Israeli political agenda that seeks “equal rights” at Al-Aqsa for Jewish extremists, modelled on a similar takeover by settlers of the historic Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron.
And there would have been no “clashes” if Palestinians were not fully aware that, over many years, a tiny, fringe Jewish settler movement plotting to blow up Al-Aqsa Mosque to build a Third Temple in its place has steadily grown, flourishing under the sponsorship of Israeli politicians and ever more sympathetic Israeli media coverage.
Cover story for violence Along with the Israeli army, the paramilitary Israeli police are the main vehicle for the violent subjugation of Palestinians, as the Israeli state and its settler emissaries dispossess Palestinians, driving them into ever smaller enclaves.
This is not a “clash”. It is not a “conflict”. Those supposedly “neutral” terms conceal what is really happening: apartheid andethnic cleansing.
Just as there is a consistent, discernible pattern to Israel’s crimes against Palestinians, there is a parallel, discernible pattern in the Western media’s misleading reporting on Israel and Palestine.
Palestinians in the occupied West Bank are being systematically dispossessed by Israel of their homes and farmlands so they can be herded into overcrowded, resource-starved cities.
Palestinians in Gaza have been dispossessed of their access to the outside world, and even to other Palestinians, by an Israeli siege that encages them in an overcrowded, resourced-starved coastal enclave.
And in the Old City of Jerusalem, Palestinians are being progressively dispossessed by Israel of access to, and control over, their central religious resource: Al-Aqsa Mosque. Their strongest source of religious and emotional attachment to Jerusalem is being actively stolen from them.
To describe as “clashes” any of these violent state processes — carefully calibrated by Israel so they can be rationalised to outsiders as a “security response” — is to commit the very journalistic sin Tutu warned of. In fact, it is not just to side with the oppressor, but to intensify the oppression; to help provide the cover story for it.
That point was made this week by Francesca Albanese, the UN expert on Israel’s occupation. She noted in a tweet about the BBC’s reporting of the Al-Aqsa violence: “Misleading media coverage contributes to enabling Israel’s unchecked occupation & must also be condemned/accounted for.”
Bad journalism There can be reasons for bad journalism. Reporters are human and make mistakes, and they can use language unthinkingly, especially when they are under pressure or events are unexpected.
It is an editorial choice that keeps the BBC skewing its reporting in the same direction: making Israel look like a judicious actor pursuing lawful, rational goals
But that is not the problem faced by those covering Israel and Palestine. Events can be fast-moving, but they are rarely new or unpredictable. The reporter’s task should be to explain and clarify the changing forms of the same, endlessly repeating central story: of Israel’s ongoing dispossession and oppression of Palestinians, and of Palestinian resistance.
The challenge is to make sense of Israel’s variations on a theme, whether it is dispossessing Palestinians through illegal settlement-building and expansion; army-backed settler attacks; building walls and cages for Palestinians; arbitrary arrests and night raids; the murder of Palestinians, including children and prominent figures; house demolitions; resource theft; humiliation; fostering a sense of hopelessness; or desecrating holy sites.
No one, least of all BBC reporters, should have been taken by surprise by this week’s events at Al-Aqsa.
The Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, when Al-Aqsa is at the heart of Islamic observance for Palestinians, coincided this year with the Jewish Passover holiday, as it did last year.
Passover is when Jewish religious extremists hope to storm Al-Aqsa Mosque complex to make animal sacrifices, recreating some imagined golden age in Judaism. Those extremists tried again this year, as they do every year — except this year, they had a police minister in Ben Gvir, leader of the fascist Jewish Power party, who is privately sympathetic to their cause.
Violent settler and army attacks on Palestinian farmers in the occupied West Bank, especially during the autumn olive harvest, are a staple of news reporting from the region, as is the intermittent bombing of Gaza or snipers shooting Palestinians protesting their mass incarceration by Israel.
It is an endless series of repetitions that the BBC has had decades to make sense of and find better ways to report.
It is not journalistic error or failure that is the problem. It is an editorial choice that keeps the British state broadcaster skewing its reporting in the same direction: making Israel look like a judicious actor pursuing lawful, rational goals, while Palestinian resistance is presented as tantrum-like behaviour, driven by uncontrollable, unintelligible urges that reflect hostility towards Jews rather than towards an oppressor Israeli state.
Tail of a mouse Archbishop Tutu expanded on his point about siding with the oppressor. He added: “If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse, and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.”
This week, a conversation between Ben Gvir, the far-right, virulently anti-Arab police minister, and his police chief, Kobi Shabtai, was leaked to Israel’s Channel 12 News. Shabtai reportedly told Ben Gvir about his theory of the “Arab mind”, noting: “They murder each other. It’s in their nature. That’s the mentality of the Arabs.”
This conclusion — convenient for a police force that has abjectly failed to solve crimes within Palestinian communities — implies that the Arab mind is so deranged, so bloodthirsty, that brutal repression of the kind seen at Al-Aqsa is all police can do to keep a bare minimum of control.
Ben Gvir, meanwhile, believes a new “national guard” — a private militia he was recently promised by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — can help him to crush Palestinian resistance. Settler street thugs, his political allies, will finally be able to put on uniforms and have official licence for their anti-Arab violence.
This is the real context — the one that cannot be acknowledged by the BBC or other Western outlets — for the police storming of Al-Aqsa complex this week. It is the same context underpinning settlement expansion, night raids, checkpoints, the siege of Gaza, the murder of Palestinian journalists, and much, much more.
Jewish supremacism undergirds every Israeli state action towards Palestinians, tacitly approved by Western states and their media in the service of advancing Western colonialism in the oil-rich Middle East.
The BBC’s coverage this week, as in previous months and years, was not neutral, or even accurate. It was, as Tutu warned, a confidence trick — one meant to lull audiences into accepting Israeli violence as always justified, and Palestinian resistance as always abhorrent.
Jonathan Cook is the author of three books on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and a winner of the Martha Gellhorn Special Prize for Journalism. His website and blog can be found at www.jonathan-cook.net. This article was first published at Middle East Eye and is republished with the permission of the author.
The documentary world has come a long way since the early 1920s when Nanook of the North first hit the big screen. Now considered the first-ever documentary, the silent film followed the lives of Quebec’s real indigenous population, albeit with a few fictional scenes thrown in. But throughout the 20th century, as the movie industry (and subsequently the TV industry) picked up the pace, most people were more interested in fiction than facts. However, lately, things have started to change. Amid the rise of streaming platforms (looking at you, Netflix) and their succession of hits like Tiger King, Making a Murderer, and Night on Earth, documentaries are more popular than ever.
Documentaries are powerful sources of information. But they also resonate with viewers because they are engaging, creative examples of storytelling, too. They help to break down complex subjects into stretches of two hours or less, using montages, expert interviews, archival footage, and voiceovers (often from well-known celebrities). And this is exactly why the vegan world has embraced them. Where simple facts and figures struggle, a documentary utilizes imagery and emotive language to really represent the heart of issues, while simultaneously tugging on emotions.
If you’re in the mood to be immersed in some of the biggest current dilemmas the world is facing—but also, to learn about the solutions we already have at our fingertips—we’ve rounded up some of the best vegan documentaries available to stream right now.
The best vegan documentaries, streaming on Netflix and beyond
Cowspiracy
1Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret
Released in 2014, Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret, is still changing lives today. The film, which was directed by Kip Anderson and produced by Keegan Kuhn, examines the real impact that animal agriculture is having on the environment, from deforestation to greenhouse gas pollution to ocean dead zones. It also pulls back the curtain on industry denial, as researchers, authors, speakers, activists, and animal advocates take viewers on a deep dive into the ugly truth: the meat we consume as a society is devastating the natural world. Check it out
What the Health
2 What the Health
Another hit from Kuhn and Anderson, 2017’s What the Health examines another dangerous side of meat and dairy consumption: the impact it is having on our health. With input from medical experts, like Milton Mills, MD; Garth P. Davis, MD, FACS, FASMBS; and Neal Barnard, MD, FACC, the film explores the link between diet and disease, and investigates the real reason why some of the biggest health organizations in America aren’t doing more to educate the public about it. Check it out
Seaspiracy
3 Seaspiracy
Produced by Anderson and directed by Ali Tabrizi, 2021’s Seaspiracy takes a deep and sobering look at the state of the fishing industry. It not only examines environmental issues like plastic pollution (a significant percentage of which comes from things like nets and lines), but also the human cost of industrial fishing. But, of course, it also explores the solutions to these issues, one of which is, perhaps unsurprisingly, taking seafood off our plates. Check it out
Blackfish
4 Blackfish
Released in 2013, Blackfish remains a thorn in SeaWorld’s side, its reputation, and its ticket sales. Directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite, the film examines the ethics and dangers of keeping cetaceans in captivity by following the life of Tilikum, an orca who was captured off the coast of Iceland before spending the majority of his life in SeaWorld marine parks. Orcas have never killed human beings in the wild, but the stress of captivity likely led Tilikum to kill three people, two of whom were his trainers. Check it out
The Game Changers
5 The Game Changers
Star-studded The Game Changers, which counts James Cameron, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jackie Chan, and Lewis Hamilton among its executive producers, focuses on exposing the myth that meat is a necessary part of optimal athletic performance. While many think that packing in animal protein is a key part of sporting success, the film—which was directed by Louie Psihoyos—aims to demonstrate that the opposite is true. It spotlights world-renowned plant-based athletes like Patrik Baboumian (a record-holding strongman), Kendrick Farris (a record-holding weightlifter), and Dotsie Bausch (a US cycling champion). Check it out
Eating Animals
6 Eating Animals
Narrated by actor Natalie Portman, a passionate vegan and animal advocate, Eating Animals is based on the best-selling book of the same name, which was written by Jonathan Safran Foer. Like the novel, the documentary—which was produced by Christopher Dillon Quinn, alongside Portman and Foer—aims to expose the horrors of factory farming. It encourages people to look beyond cognitive dissonance and see what’s really going on at the end of their fork. Check it out
Milked
7 Milked
Milked, released in 2021 and directed by Amy Taylor, is a feature-length documentary that follows Chris Huriwai, an activist, as he travels New Zealand. Throughout his journey, he exposes the country’s multi-billion-dollar dairy industry and the scale of the impact it is having on people and the planet. It’s another wake-up call from Kuhn, who, alongside environmentalists like Jane Goodall and Suzy Amis Cameron, stars in the film, and has an executive producer credit. Check it out
Eating Our Way to Extinction
8 Eating Our Way to Extinction
Directed by Otto and Ludo Brockway and narrated by actor Kate Winslet, 2021’s Eating Our Way to Extinction is exactly what the title says it’s going to be. Accompanied by awe-inspiring cinematography, the film intends to be an eye-opening warning of what will happen to us and the planet if nothing changes soon in the food system. It features leading environmental experts, scientists, and global figures, but also powerful appearances and first-hand accounts from indigenous people. Check it out
Forks Over Knives
9 Forks Over Knives
Similar to documentaries like What the Health, 2011’s Forks Over Knives, which was directed by Lee Fulkerson, aims to educate people about the healing power of plant-based nutrition, but also explain why embracing a whole foods, plant-based diet may just extend your life and reduce the threat of debilitating chronic disease. Check it out
Earthlings
10 Earthlings
It may have been released in the mid-aughts, but 2005’s Earthlings, narrated by vegan activist and actor Joaquin Phoenix and directed by Shaun Monson, is still relevant today. Relying on hidden camera footage, the documentary takes aim at issues like factory farming, the pet trade, and animal testing, and strives to expose how and why some of the world’s biggest industries rely fundamentally on animal cruelty. Check it out
Dominion
11 Dominion
Directed by Chris Delforce, 2018’s feature-length film Dominion takes its lead from Earthlings in many ways. For one, it also stars Phoenix, alongside other big names like Sadie Sink, Rooney Mara, and Sia. But it also mimics techniques, like the use of hidden camera footage. It expands on this by adding harrowing drone footage to the mix, which aims to expose “the underbelly” of animal agriculture. Check it out
73 Cows
12 73 Cows
BAFTA-winning 73 Cows differs from many of the documentaries on this list, because it is not a factory farming exposé, and it doesn’t follow an activist or environmentalist. Instead, this moving film tugs on the heartstrings by focusing on Jay Wilde, a former beef farmer, and the personal journey that led him to give up his herd of cattle and pursue a career in vegan farming. Check it out
It’s gone! Finito! Yesterday was a memorable day for the media. The Media Industry Development Act was repealed in Parliament. The draconian piece of legislation is no more — and good riddance!
After 16 years, we finally can heave a sigh of relief, and look forward with great confidence. It mattered to journalists — and to the public, it should have mattered. In fact anything that has the potential to suppress information must be condemned strongly.
We are grateful and pleased that the MIDA was thrown out. The people of Fiji have a right to be informed. You all have a right to know what is happening around you, and the media has a duty to disseminate information without fear.
No one was ever taken to court for a breach of the Act — yet law remained a constant threat for editors. And that’s why we say it was designed to suppress the media, subsequently affecting the quality of information given to the masses.
There were massive penalties that were in place including fines of up to $100,000 and jail terms of up to two years. It meant editors were always second guessing what could be construed as possible breaches.
Freedom of expression should not be a sensitive topic, especially if you are ever going to talk about suppression. The people have a right to know they have a government that is held up to scrutiny, and is accountable for every action it takes.
That role falls on the Fourth Estate, the media — and this is why there was no room for the MIDA. Fiji needs a media landscape that is conducive to and encourages sensitivity to the rights of every Fijian.
So when 29 parliamentarians voted for the Act to be repealed yesterday, they showed they valued freedom of expression and the media — a pillar of democracy which is critically important in the greater scheme of things.
The media must be encouraged to play its watch-dog role without fear or favour. Speaking in support of the Bill to repeal the Act, Attorney-General Siromi Turaga said the media industry and by extension the dissemination of vital and relevant information to the public must be carried out in an environment where there is no fear of the unknown.
It is that fear of the unknown that kept editors on edge for 13 years.
How could you ignore that with massive fines and a jail term hanging over your head daily? Because there was no clear explanation about what constituted a breach, editors faced the very real possibility of someone somewhere using the Act against them.
It certainly wasn’t fashionable standing against the government then, raising niggling issues that made those in power look bad. The people do not need absolute control by the government. They don’t need suppressed information either.
Every MP who opposed the repeal of the Act needs to get a reality check about the value of information in a democracy. We should all be able to make well-informed decisions daily and be aware of what those in the corridors of power are up to.
Yes, we realise the media has the ability to influence the public, and with this power comes a greater sense of responsibility, and yes we know the importance of credible and accurate information to a nation.
We know about integrity. So today we look forward with a sense of optimism, and gratitude. We acknowledge every journalist, photographer, all those who work behind the scenes in media organisations, their families and loved ones, and all those who value freedom of expression.
You stood up to oppression, and held on, with hope that there would be good days. What a moment in time it turned out to be yesterday! Certainly one for the ages!
This Fiji Times editorial was published on 6 April 2023 under the original headline “One for the ages”. Republished with permission.
The Fiji Parliament has voted to “kill” a draconian media law in Suva today, sending newsrooms across the country into celebrations.
Twenty nine parliamentarians voted to repeal the Media Industry Development Act, while 21 voted against it and 3 did not vote.
The law — which started as a post-coup decree in 2010 — has been labelled as a “noose around the neck of the media industry and journalists” since it was enacted into law.
While opposition FijiFirst parliamentarians voted against the bill, Fiji’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad said binning the act would be good for the people and for democracy.
Removing the controversial law was a major election promise by Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka’s coalition government.
Emotional day for newsrooms The news was “one for the ages for us”, Fiji Times editor-in-chief Fred Wesley, who was dragged into court on multiple occasions by the former government under the act, told RNZ Pacific in Vanuatu.
He said today was about all the Fijian media workers who stayed true to their profession.
“People who slugged it out, people who remained passionate about their work and continued disseminating information and getting people to make well-informed decision on a daily basis.”
“It wasn’t an easy journey, but truly thankful for today,” an emotional Wesley said.
“We’re in an era where we don’t have draconian legislation hanging over our heads.”
He said the entire industry was happy and newsrooms are now looking forward to the next chapter.
“The next phases is the challenge of putting together a Fiji media council to do the work of listening to complaints and all of that, and I’m overwhelmed and very grateful.”
Holding government to account He said people in Fiji should continue to expect the media to do what it was supposed to do: “Holding government to account, holding our leaders to account and making sure that they’re responsible in the decisions they make.”
Fiji Times editor-in-chief Fred Wesley and Islands Business editor Samantha Magick embrace each other after finding out the the Fijian Parliament has repealed the MIDA Act. Image: Lydia Lewis/RNZ Pacific
Journalists ‘can be brave’ Islands Business magazine editor Samantha Magick said getting rid of the law meant it would now create an environment for Fiji journalists to do more critical journalism.
“I think [we will] see less, ‘he said, she said’, reporting in very controlled environments,” Magick said.
“Fiji’s media will see more investigations, more depth, more voices, different perspectives, [and] hopefully they can engage a bit more as well without fear.
“It’ll just be so much healthier for us as a people and democracy to have that level of debate and investigation and questioning, regardless of who you are,” she added.
RNZ Pacific senior sports journalist and PINA board member Iliesa Tora said the Parliament’s decision sent a strong message to the rest of the region.
“The message [this sends] to the region and the different regional government’s is that you need to work with the media to ensure that there is media freedom,” said Tora, who chose to leave Fiji because he could not operate as a journalist due of the act.
“The freedom of the media ensures that people are also able to freely express themselves and are not fearful in coming forward to talk about things that they see that governments are not doing that they [should] do to really govern in the countries.”
‘Step into the light’ – corruption reporting project Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project co-founder and publisher Drew Sullivan told RNZ Pacific that anytime a country that was not able to do the kind of accountability journalism that they should be doing, this damaged media throughout the region.
“It creates a model for illiberal actors in the region to imitate what’s going on in that country,” Sullivan said.
“So this has really moved forward in allowing journalists again to do their job and that’s really important.”
Fiji journalists, Sullivan said, had done an amazing job resisting limitations for as long as they could.
“Fiji was really a black hole of journalism [in] that the journalists could not participate in on a global community because they couldn’t find the information; they weren’t allowed to write what they needed to write.
“So this is really a step forward into the light to really bring Fiji and media back into the global journalism community.”
Korean cult investigation
Last year, OCCRP published a major investigation on Fiji, working with local journalists to expose the expansion of the controversial Korean Chirstain-cult Grace Road Church under the Bainimarama regime.
Rabuka’s government is currently investigating Grace Road.
Sullivan said OCCRP will continue to support Fijian journalists.
“But [the repealing of the act] will allow a lot more stories to be done and a lot more people will understand how the world really works, especially in Fiji.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Fred Wesley and Rakesh Kumar from The Fiji Times, Samantha Magick from Islands Business, and OCCRPs co-founder and publisher Drew Sullivan in Port Vila. Image: Lydia Lewis/RNZ Pacific
The man in charge of Fiji’s oldest newspaper has high hopes for press freedom in the country following the tabling of a bill in Parliament this week to get rid of a controversial media law.
The MIDA Act — a legacy of the former Bainimarama administration — has long been criticised for being “draconian” and decimating journalism standards in the country.
The law regulates the ownership, registration and content of the media in Fiji.
Under the act, the media content regulation framework includes the creation of MIDA, the media tribunal and other elements.
“It is these provisions that have been considered controversial,” Fiji’s Attorney-General Siromi Turaga said when tabling the bill.
“These elements are widely considered as undemocratic and in breach of the constitutional right of freedom of expression as outlined in section 17 of the constitution.”
Not a ‘free pass’
Turaga said repealing the act does not provide a free pass to media organisations and journalists to “report anything and everything without authentic sources and facts”.
“But it does provides a start to ensuring that what reaches the ordinary people of Fiji is not limited by overbearing regulation of government.”
Fiji Times editor-in-chief and legal case veteran Fred Wesley . . . looking forward to the Media Act “being repealed and the draconian legislation kicked out”. Image: Lydia Lewis/RNZ Pacific
The Fiji Times editor-in-chief Fred Wesley said he had a sense of “great optimism” that the Media Act would be repealed.
Wesley and the newspaper — founded in 1869 — were caught in a long legal battle for publishing an article in their vernacular language newspaper Nai Lalakai which the former FijiFirst government claimed was seditious.
“After the change in government, there has been a change in the way the press has been disseminating information,” Wesley said.
“We have had a massive turnover [of] journalists in our country. A lot of young people have come in. At the The Fiji Times, for instance, we have an average age of around 22, which is very, very young,” he said.
Handful of seniors
“We have just a handful of senior journalists who have stayed on who are very passionate about the role the media must pay in our country.
“We are looking forward to Thursday and looking forward to the act being repealed and the draconian legislation kicked out.”
He said two thirds of the journalists in the national newspaper’s newsroom have less than 16 years experience and have never experienced press freedom.
He said The Fiji Times would then need to implement “mass desensitisation” of its reporters as they had been working under a draconian law for more than a decade.
He added retraining journalists would be the main focus of the organisation after the law is repealed.
‘Things will get better’ Long-serving journalist at the newspaper Rakesh Kumar told RNZ Pacific that reporting on national interest issues had been a “big challenge” under the act.
Kumar recalled early when the media law was enacted and army officers would come into newsrooms to “create fear” which he said would “kill the motivation” of reporters.
“We know things will get better now [after the repeal of the act],” Kumar said.
But he said it was “important that we have to report accurately”.
Jacinda Ardern will largely be remembered in Aotearoa New Zealand as the prime minister whose pandemic-era policies saved thousands of Kiwi lives, according to former prime minister Helen Clark.
And she will also be considered an example of how to govern in the age of social media and endless crises, political experts say, while also achieving more than her critics might give her credit for.
Ardern was set to deliver her valedictory speech later today, having stepped down as prime minister earlier this year after just over five years in the job.
“I think that while I’m happy for Jacinda that she’s going to get a life and design what she wants to do and when she wants to do it, you can’t help feeling sad about her going,” Clark, herself a former Labour prime minister, told RNZ Morning Report ahead of Ardern’s speech.
“Leaders like Jacinda don’t come along too often and we’ve lost one.”
Ardern has played down suggestions online vitriol played a part in her decision to stand aside — but acknowledged on Tuesday she hoped her departure would “take a bit of heat out” of the conversation.
Clark said she “fundamentally” believed the hatred got to Ardern, powered by “populism and division” generated by former US President Donald Trump and his supporters.
‘Conspiracies took hold’
“Conspiracies took hold and suddenly you know, as the pandemic wore on here, I think the sort of relentless barrage from America — not, not just through Trump himself and the reporting of him, but through the social media networks — we have the anti-science people, the people who completely distrusted public authority, the QAnon conspiracies and hey, it played out on our Parliament’s front lawn and it still plays out and it’s very, very vitriolic and divisive.
“So I think that that spillover impact was really quite, well, not just unpleasant — it was horrible.”
Former PM Jacinda Ardern on the front page of the New Zealand Herald today . . . revealing her next move. Image: Screenshot APR
The perpetrator of the 2019 mosque shootings used the internet to connect with and learn from other extremists, which led to Ardern setting up the Christchurch Call movement to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online.
“The mosque murders was just the most horrible thing to have happen on anyone’s watch, and she rose to the occasion, and I think the international reputation was very much associated with initially the empathy that she showed at that time,” said Clark.
But “one of New Zealand’s darkest days”, as Ardern put it at the time, was not the only near-unparalleled crisis she had to deal with in her time as prime minister.
“The White Island tragedy was another that needed, you know, very empathetic and careful handling. But then comes covid, and there’s no doubt that thousands of people are alive today because of the steps taken, particularly in 2020.
‘Would we have survived?’
“You know, I mean, I’m obviously in the older age group now which is more vulnerable. My father is 101 now and has survived the pandemic. But would we have survived it if it had been allowed to rip through our community, like it was allowed to rip through others?
“I think that there’d be so many New Zealanders not alive today had those steps not been taken.”
Data shows New Zealand has actually experienced negative excess mortality over the past few years — the elimination strategy so successful, fewer Kiwis have died than would have if there was no pandemic.
Despite that, it was New Zealand’s aggressive approach towards covid-19 in 2020 and 2021 that arguably drove much of the polarisation and online vitriol.
“There’s no doubt that those measures did save lives. They also drove people into frenzied levels of opposition and fear and isolation,” said Clark. “They felt polarised, they felt locked out.”
But she said Ardern bore “very little” responsibility for that.
Former PM Helen Clark . . . “There’s no doubt that those measures did save lives.” Image: RNZ News/AFP
Political scientist Dr Bronwyn Hayward of the University of Canterbury said Ardern’s Christchurch Call to eliminate extremist content will have a long-lasting impact on not just New Zealand, but the world.
“There’s been a lot made about the fact that she resigned under pressure from the trolls, which is completely missing the point that what she’s saying is that in this era where we’ve got particularly Russian, but also other countries’ bots that are attacking liberal leaders,” Dr Hayward told Morning Report, saying Ardern was the first global leader to “really understand” how what happens online can spill over into the real world.
“She understands that democracies are now under attack, and the front line is your social media, where we’ve got a propaganda war coming internationally.
“So she’s taken a very systemic approach to thinking about how to tackle that, so that in local communities it feels like you’re reeling from Islamophobia, to racism to transphobia, but actually, when we look internationally at what’s happening, naive and quite disaffected groups have been constantly fed this material and she’s taken a systemic approach to it.”
Clark said one of the biggest differences in the world between Ardern’s time as prime minister and her own, was that she did not have to deal with social media.
“I didn’t have a Twitter account, didn’t know what it was really. We had texts, that was about it. We used to have pagers, for heaven’s sake.”
Ardern’s domestic legacy One of the first things Hipkins did when he took over as prime minister was the “policy bonfire” — but critics have long said the Ardern-led government has had trouble delivering on its promises.
Interviewer Guyon Espiner reminded Clark that her government had brought in long-lasting changes like Working for Families, the NZ Super Fund and Kiwibank — asking her what Ardern could point to.
Clark defended Ardern, saying the coalition arrangement with NZ First in Ardern’s first term slowed any reform agenda she might have had, and then there was covid-19.
“Looking back, there needs to be more recognition that the pandemic blindsided governments, communities, publics around the world. It wasn’t easy.”
Dr Hayward pointed to the ban on new oil and gas exploration and child poverty monitoring, “which before that was ruled as impossible or too difficult”.
Dr Lara Greaves, a political scientist at the University of Auckland, said it was “incredibly hard to really evaluate” Ardern’s legacy outside of covid-19.
“Ultimately … she is the covid-19 prime minister.”
Former PM Jacinda Ardern at a covid-19 press conference. Image: RNZ News/Pool/NZ Herald/Mark Mitchell
The future Clark said Ardern would be emotional during her valedictory speech.
“You have very close relationships with colleagues, you have relationships with others of a different kind — with the opposition, with the media, with the public — and you’re walking away, you’re closing the door on it.
“But you know that a new chapter will open, and that life post-politics can be very rewarding. I’ve certainly found it so. I have no doubt that Jacinda will get back into her stride with doing things that she feels are worthwhile for the the general public and worthwhile for her.”
After losing the 2008 election, Clark rose the ranks at the United Nations. She said while that was an option for Ardern, there is plenty of time for the 42-year-old to do other things first.
“I was, you know, 58 when I left being prime minister. And Jacinda’s leaving in her early 40s and she has a young child, so who knows? She may want Neve to grow up with a good old Kiwi upbringing.
“And she may want her, you know, involvement internationally to be more, you know, forays out from New Zealand. That’s for her to decide. I mean, the world’s her oyster, if she chooses to follow that.”
Dr Greaves also pointed to Ardern’s relative youth.
“It seems like she’s going for a period of sort of recovery and reflection and figuring out what to do next. But of course, she’s got another 20 years in her career, at least — the world’s her oyster.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
As Jacinda Ardern gets ready to deliver her valedictory speech in the Parliament today, former prime minister Helen Clark says she will largely be remembered as the prime minister whose pandemic-era policies saved thousands of Kiwis’ lives. https://t.co/LhKPSZulpW
Democratic Congressperson Rashida Tlaib has urged fellow Congress members to sign a letter to US Attorney-General Merrick Garland urging him to drop the charges against Julian Assange, reports Binoy Kampmark.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is letting the whole country know how thin his skin is by pushing to change defamation laws to make it easier to sue journalists who report on his administration. Mike Papantonio & Farron Cousins discuss more. Transcript: *This transcript was generated by a third-party transcription software company, so please excuse any typos. Mike Papantonio: Florida Governor […]
Last Thursday’s big news story was the indictment of Donald Trump, with banner headlines in all the papers that still print on paper. The phrase I saw most often was “uncharted territory,” (and occasionally “unchartered territory”), which is somewhat true: we’ve never had a former president, much less one seeking election, under indictment. But, truth be told, it seems like these waters were fairly easy to predict. It’s been obvious for many years that Trump disregarded rules and laws, acted on whims and appetites, and was a greedy skinflint; him ending up in trouble for tax evasion to cover up an affair with a porn star seems unlikely only in its details.
The truly novel story came out a few hours earlier on Thursday, with the publication of Nature. The magazine is one of the world’s two pre-eminent scientific journals, and it emerges weekly from its London base with the latest in carefully peer-reviewed research. This week it carried one of the most important installments in the most important saga of our time, the rapid decline of the planet’s physical health. It was in the form of a dispatch from the Antarctic, where researchers found, to quote their title, clear evidence of “Abyssal ocean overturning slowdown and warming driven by Antarctic meltwater.”
One understands why that was not quite as easy to put into headlines as Trump’s arrest. But translated from the scientific, it’s the rough equivalent of “South Pole to Planet Earth: Drop Dead.” As The Guardian explained, in the best summary of the research I’ve seen, the study shows that “melting ice around Antarctica will cause a rapid slowdown of a major global deep ocean current by 2050 that could alter the world’s climate for centuries and accelerate sea level rise.”
If greenhouse gas emissions continue at today’s levels, the current in the deepest parts of the ocean could slow down by 40% in only three decades.
This, the scientists said, could generate a cascade of impacts that could push up sea levels, alter weather patterns and starve marine life of a vital source of nutrients.
Basically, as melting ice pours fresh water into the ocean around Antarctica, it dilutes the salinity of the sea; that reduces its density and it’s no longer heavy enough to sink, pushing out the water that’s already there. The decomposing organisms that have dropped to the sea floor thus remain locked there, as the whole vast conveyor belt begins to slow. This phenomenon has already been observed in the Arctic, where melting water pouring off Greenland and from melting sea ice has slowed the Arctic Meridional Overturning Current, or AMOC; the Australian scientists behind this new study have confirmed that the same thing is underway in the antipodes. The water that once flowed north, carrying nutrients to the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans will stagnate in place. Other studies have predicted additional problems as these currents decline, including moving rainfall bands by a thousand kilometers from their present position. As one scientist put it, the Antarctic current is “on a trajectory that looks headed towards collapse,” and not on a scale of centuries, or even century. On a scale of decades and years. We’re as far from 2050 as we are from Bill Clinton denying he’d had “sexual relations” with “that woman,” which is to say not very far (and also reminder that embarrassing presidents are not in themselves a new phenomenon, even if Trump took it to an entirely new and endlessly more dangerous level).
The scale of the systems we’re now affecting is almost incomprehensible—the flow of the Arctic current is a hundred times larger than the Amazon river. And the speed is incomprehensible. “In the past, these circulations have taken more than 1,000 years or so to change, but this is happening over just a few decades,” one of the study’s authors said. “It’s way faster than we thought these circulations could slow down.”
But that’s because we’ve built a new planet, one with a markedly different atmosphere. Which changes everything. Even before the epochal news from the Antarctic, the earth’s oceans had been sending distressing signals this spring. In late March, scientists reported that the temperature of ocean waters around the planet was rising abruptly, reaching record levels in recent weeks.
Around mid-March, ocean-temperature monitoring data shows that average surface water temperatures surpassed 21 degrees Celsius (about 70 degrees Fahrenheit) around the globe, excluding polar waters, for the first time since at least 1981, when the data set originated. That is warmer than what scientists observed at this time of year in 2016, when a strong El Niño drove the planet to record warmth.
This time those records are being set in the latter phases of a La Nina cold cycle—though it’s becoming clear that a new El Nino is in the process of forming and should be here by late summer or early fall. The chances are growing that it will be an extremely strong version of the Pacific warm current, and if so it will drive the climate crisis into a new gear—Jim Hansen, the planet’s greatest climatologist, has suggested we could see temperatures pass, at least for a time, the 1.5-degree temperature mark. In political terms, this means probably the last spurt in aroused global fear, translating into the last chance for widescale emissions reductions, during the period when we still have some hope of really limiting temperature rise. After that, we may well be in territory where only truly terrifying interventions like solar geoengineering will suffice.
“The longer we go on with higher rates of greenhouse gas emissions, the more changes we commit ourselves to,” said one of the Aussie scientists who brought us this week’s grim and vital news. That’s been true for decades now; the question as always is if we’ll react to the latest warning. The crime that history will remember Trump for is almost certainly withdrawing from the Paris climate accord. But they got Al Capone on his taxes too.
In other energy and climate news:
+New York governor Kathy Hochul seems poised to do something really dumb, undermining New York’s climate laws at the behest of the fossil fuel industry, largely by introducing an accounting trick on the way we figure the warming impact of methane. New York enviros are fighting back. Follow the Twitter feed (sigh) of New York Communities for Change for the latest updates
+You can sign a petition asking state treasurers to do the right thing and back climate and indigenous rights in this spring’s round of shareholder meetings at big companies. Meanwhile, thanks to Senator Ed Markey and Reps Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib for introducing legislation that would cut off the flow of financing from big banks to the fossil fuel industry. A strong argument for this law comes in a Seattle Times oped from Third Act organizers Lisa Verhovek, Mary Lou Dickerson, and Bobby Righi:
In light of the recent upheavals in the banking sector and the greater concentration of deposits in the large Wall Street banks, we need more than ever to demand that these banks use their enormous power to invest responsibly. We can expect our banks to manage both financial and climate risks, and to this end encourage people to contact their own banks and credit unions to review both the stability of the bank, FDIC insurance coverage and whether they are funding fossil fuel development.
+Jeff Goodell, one of the world’s great climate reporters, has come back with a haunting dispatch from the Okavango Delta, where oil companies have begun drilling in yet another remarkable corner of the earth.
The Okavango Delta is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and for good reason: It is one the world’s last wild places. It’s not a savanna or a rainforest or a jungle. It’s at the northern edge of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana — a desert formed of the wind-blown fragments of some of the oldest rocks on Earth. But at certain times of the year, water comes flooding down from the highlands of Angola, a gently rising plateau north of Botswana and Namibia that was the site of bloody conflicts for the last three decades of the 20th century. Out of these battle-scarred hills, this land of strife and suffering, runs the water that makes up the delta.
The water in the delta is beautiful and clear, unpolluted by chemicals or sediments. For wildlife, this water is a lifeline, a paradise, a refuge. Hippos and crocodiles thrive in the shallow channels and pools. More than 500 species of birds flash through the skies. It is a landscape of ancient baobab trees (one baobab in Namibia is estimated to be 2,100 years old) and riverbanks of papyrus, the plant from which Egyptians learned to make paper 4,000 years ago. It is an unfenced, undomesticated place that still moves to the rhythms of nature, where the big animals that populated your childhood imagination live and hunt and die without human interference.
+An old friend—and truly veteran solar campaigner Sajed Kamal—offers an essay detailing his hopes for a move from mutually assured destruction to an era where climate cooperation offers some hope for peace. It includes a reminder of a quote from former Exxon CEO (and Trump secretary of state) Rex Tillerson: “My philosophy is to make money. If I can drill and make money, then that’s what I want to do.”
+Many thanks to the Wall Street Journal (whose news side is different from its editorial side) for pursuing the “mystery” of who hired a global hacker to spy on opponents of Exxon. The hacker is in a New York jail, not talking. Bonus is a picture of yours truly, since my account was one of the ones he was after.
Books play a magical role in our childhoods. Those few minutes of bedtime reading at the end of the day are so precious and sweet for children that they ask for another story, and then another, and another. Though children’s books speak to society’s most innocent humans, from a vegan perspective, some books might not fit the cruelty-free bill.
Whether it mentions a human eating an animal or praises a person who farms our friends for food, certain stories are better off not being shared with our vegan families. Despite those books that imply animal cruelty, there are many delightful vegan-friendly stories for young ones. Some are intentionally pro-vegan, and some are just accidentally animal-friendly.
Is a vegan diet safe for kids?
Children are less likely than adults to see animals as food, according to a recent study—so it’s no surprise your little one may be looking to eat more plants instead of animals. Parents, rest easy. A vegan diet is suitable for children. In fact, research shows that plant-based diets supplemented with vitamin B12 are an excellent source of nutrition for kids at all stages of childhood, according to Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM). And even the American Dietetic Association (ADA) agrees.
“It is the position of the [ADA] that appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases,” the ADA reported in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. “Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and for athletes.”
Children can thrive on a vegan diet, according to a recent review published in Nutrition Research. According to researchers, vegan kids showcased normal growth patterns. Plus, kids who eat plant-based foods were found to consume the recommended amount, if not more, of essential nutrients such as iron and protein when compared to their non-vegan counterparts. In the long-run, healthy vegan diets can help lower the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
Plant-based diets also help kids eat more fruits and vegetables, food groups their diets are generally lacking in. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 2007 and 2010, 60 percent of children failed to consume the daily recommended amount of fruit. During this same period, 93 percent of kids didn’t eat enough vegetables.
If your kids are growing more vegcurious by the day, talk to their pediatrician about essential nutrients and supplements such as B12 and vitamin D—which may need to be supplemented. Online research and kid-approved recipes can also put you at ease. Board-certified pediatrician Yami Cazorla-Lancaster, DO, also offers a plethora of easy-to-digest nutritional information specifically geared toward families and children looking to eat more plant-based through her website Veggie Fit Kids.
Vegan children’s books
Here are 15 of our favorite children’s books suitable for vegans of all ages.
1 V is for Vegan
Written and illustrated by Ruby Roth, this book is perfect for littles learning their ABC’s. Fun rhymes and bright colors teach kids about vegan food groups alongside animal protection and the importance of being kind to the environment. Build a vegan library for the kids in your life with Roth’s other titles such as That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals and Vegan Is Love. Learn more
2 Wild Librarian Bakery and Bookstore
Books, yummy treats, and a love for animals come together in this book written and illustrated by Stacy Russo. Stella the librarian embarks on a journey as she follows her dreams of opening her very own bakery and bookstore under one roof. Complete with vegan recipes, this book is perfect for bedtime and for kids eager to learn their way around the kitchen. Don’t miss Russo’s Stella Peabody’s Wild Librarian Bakery and Bookstore, a novel-in-stories set in the same universe geared toward older kids. Learn more
3 Kira’s Animal Rescue
Author Erin Teagan teamed up with AmericanGirl to teach young girls around the world about helping animals in their time of need. The follow up to Kira Down Under, this sequel follows Kira as she helps evacuate an animal sanctuary after a bushfire threatens to destroy the animals’ home. For budding animal activists, this book also features teen activist and animal rights advocate Genesis Butler. Learn more
4The Forgotten Rabbit
Known for her wonderful writing about animals and related issues, this charming book by Nancy Furstinger (and illustrated by Nancy Lane) follows rescued rabbit Bella on her journey from a neglected life in cruel conditions to a joy-filled home with someone who loves her. Both The Gryphon Press (the book’s publisher) and Furstinger are active in raising awareness about animal issues, and the book includes a full page of information about rabbit adoption, proper bunny care, and other resources. Learn more
5Make Way for Ducklings
Unfortunately, not all childhood classics will be appropriate for vegan households, but this beloved book (first published in 1941 and written and illustrated by Robert McCloskey) contains no scenes featuring animal cruelty. The story follows a pair of ducks as they search Boston for an appropriate home to begin their family. Finally finding just the right place, they are soon parents to eight baby birds. Escorting the little ones around town could be dangerous, but with the help of some compassionate humans, the ducks make their way to safety. Learn more
6Dave Loves Chickens
You can tell this will be a fun book by the brightly colored illustration on the cover, featuring Dave, an alien embracing two chickens. Colorful and upbeat, Dave Loves Chickens still comes with a serious message and some valuable information for children about our friends, aka the chickens. “As you and I and Dave will agree,” writes author and illustrator Carlos Patiño, “chickens are great, and they don’t belong on your plate.” Learn more
7 When the World is Dreaming
Children are big dreamers (and dreams directly follow bedtime stories), so it’s fitting that there are two children’s books about dreams on this list. In lulling poetry, the book—written by Rita Gray and illustrated by Kenard Pak‚ asks what animals such as snakes, deers, and newts dream. The end of the book will especially speak to young vegans, when a little girl dreams of all of the animals gathering in her room “and none of them feels the least bit afraid.” Learn more
8Jasper’s Story: Saving Moon Bears
In this beautifully illustrated book, Jill Robinson (founder of the nonprofit Animals Asia) collaborates with renowned writer Marc Bekoff to tell the story of Jasper, one of the hundreds of bears rescued by Animals Asia from the cruelty of bear-bile farming. The book—illustrated by Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen—offers an explanation of the bile-farming industry in simple terms, while depicting Jasper’s inspiring recovery and happy new life at Animals Asia’s sanctuary in China. Learn more
9Our Farm: By the Animals of Farm Sanctuary
The first time Maya Gottfried visited Farm Sanctuary, she realized that this place of peace that provided loving shelter for animals who had suffered was a children’s book waiting to be written. Her book Our Farm: By the Animals of Farm Sanctuary tells the stories of some of the residents of the organization’s shelters in poems penned from the animals’ perspectives. Art by Robert Rahway Zakanitch beautifully captures their sweet faces and gentle souls. Learn more
10 The Adventures of Esther the Wonder Pig
Authors Steve Jenkins and Derek Walter (along with Caprice Crane) bring their New York Times bestselling memoir for adults to life for children in this loveable picture book. Jenkins’ and Walter’s lives were changed forever when they discovered that their adopted mini-pig, Esther, was not so mini after all. Kids will love this true story about the family’s move to a big farm to accommodate Esther’s size, and how it inspired them to create the Happily Ever Esther animal sanctuary—a home for dozens of rescued animals, from chickens to a donkey. Learn more
11 Gwen the Rescue Hen
The second book in Stone Pier Press’s Farm Animal Rescue series, Gwen the Rescue Hen sheds light on the realities of factory farming in an age-appropriate and relatable way. Author Leslie Crawford’s playful prose tells the tale of Gwen and her fateful escape from an egg farm. Free from the hen house, Gwen’s adventure is only just beginning as she discovers a new life on the outside. As children read about the friendship that she forges with a boy named Mateo, they will gain more than an enlightening look at farmed animal rescues, but also a lesson in compassion, and a close look at the extraordinary individuals who are chickens. The book also includes a bonus section, with fun facts all about chickens. Learn more
12 If Animals Said I Love You
Through alliterative rhymes, in this book for preschoolers author Ann Whitford Paul takes an imaginative look at how non-human animals, from cheetahs to gorillas, might express their love for others in their families. In David Walker’s whimsical illustrations that feature various animal mamas and papas snuggling their babies, human families are made aware of the similarities between us and our animal counterparts. Though we might say it differently, we all love the same. Learn more
13 Pig Park
In this upbeat picture book written by M.J. Minor and illustrated by Julian Galvan, readers meet Curly, a spunky and playful pig. Highlighting the similarities between dogs and pigs, this is a story of empathy and friendship that inspires families to think differently about why they may consider some animals as good companions, and others differently. Curly’s love for carrots and friends that include String Bean Pete, also brings excitement around eating fruit and vegetables. Learn more
14 Not A Purse
When author Stephanie Dreyer went vegan, the changes that her connection to animals inspired were strictly limited to her food. However, she quickly learned about the injustices to animals in her home goods and beauty products, in addition to food system cruelties. Through research, she became educated about the multitude of everyday items in our homes that exploit animals. Through surprising facts that every child will understand, and fun-loving illustrations by Jack Veda, her book Not A Purse enlightens families about the various ways that animals are worn and used at home, and inspires them to explore alternatives. Learn more
15Caterpillar Dreams
The protagonist of this book—written and illustrated by Clive McFarland—is a teeny caterpillar who dreams of flying and exploring the world outside of the garden where he lives. He works hard to achieve his dream. Then something miraculous happens, and everything for which he had hoped comes true. This sweet book offers subtle lessons on the importance of dreams, the value of friends, and the amazing things that life can bring. Learn more
Stephanie Dreyer is the author of Not A Nugget and Not A Purse, and the founder of StephanieDreyer.com where she helps families cook and eat healthier.
This post was originally published on VegNews.com.
Vanuatu’s Supreme Court has ruled in favour of Trading Post Ltd, the owner of the VanuatuDaily Post newspaper, BUZZ FM96 and other media outlets, in a case against the government’s refusal to renew the company’s former media director’s work permit.
Dan McGarry, who served as a director of the company when he had his visa revoked in 2019, said the ruling was a “big win for independent media”.
McGarry’s work permit application was rejected by then Prime Minister Charlot Salwai’s government.
The reason given by the Labour Commissioner Murielle Meltenoven at the time was that McGarry’s role — who at the time had lived and worked in Port Vila for 14 years — could be taken up by a ni-Vanuatu person and that he had failed to train his local staff.
The Daily Post claimed that the decision to revoke McGarry’s visa was made after the newspaper had published stories concerning the arrest and arbitrary deportation of a group of Chinese nationals, some of whom had been granted Vanuatu citizenship.
McGarry and the company claimed that Meltenoven’s decision was a political one and argued that the government had no right to meddle in their lawful hiring decisions and appealed the decision.
The issue had escalated and he was barred by the government from returning to the country, a decision which was later overturned by the Supreme Court.
Acted unlawfully
On Tuesday, March 28, Justice Dudley Aru ruled that both the Labour Commissioner and the Appeals Committee acted unlawfully in barring McGarry’s employment.
“After three long years, I feel vindicated,” McGarry, who testified in the case, said in a statement.
A former Vanuatu Daily Post media director and journalist has won a legal challenge on Tuesday against the government’s decision to revoke his visa. https://t.co/KrJmYLzoCh
“Sadly, it took so long to get justice that I had to move on to other work, but this is a crucial principle that had to be defended.”
The use of bureaucratic measures to meddle in private business decisions and stifle our free and independent media is unacceptable in a free and democratic society,” he said.
“I’m grateful to the owners of the Daily Post and to all my colleagues and friends there who have never wavered in their stalwart defence of our right to chart our own course,” he said.
“This is a big win for the Daily Post, and a big win for independent media in Vanuatu.”
McGarry said it was not known whether a state appeal is forthcoming.
RNZ Pacific has contacted the Vanuatu’s labour office for comment.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Editor’s Comment: Dan McGarry has been a valued contributor to Asia Pacific Report for several years. We congratulate him and the Vanuatu Daily Post for this victory for media freedom in Vanuatu and the Pacific.
America’s Lawyer E46: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is taking his hatred for the press to a new level with legislation that would make it easier for government officials to sue media outlets. The SEC has filed charges against a group of celebrities for promoting a crypto currency but failing to reveal that they were paid […]
In my seventy-plus years from 1946 to now, the chorus of fear-mongering bullshit has never ceased – only grown louder. The joke is on us. Ha Ha Ha.”
– Oliver Stone, Chasing the Light
Perhaps silence is the best response to the endless cavalcade of official lies that is United States history. The Internet and digital technology have allowed those lies to increase exponentially in number and frequency with the result that people’s minds have become like 7-Eleven stores, open 24/7 for snack-crap “news.”
But once you become conscious that it’s lies night and day, it sets your head aswirl and plunges your soul into depths of despair. You are tempted to retreat from such knowledge and talk of trees and trivia. But you are ashamed of your country. It’s hard to laugh. You feel you are drowning. You flounder and gasp for air. You look around and wonder why most people are able to go their merry ways believing the lies and whistling in the dark. Junk news nation, indeed.
Yes, there are alternative voices who tell the truth, but their audiences and monetary support are very small or non-existent compared to the corporate mainstream media and those who shout and scream across the Internet as they take in a lot of money from naive followers. The recent revelations about Alex Jones’s wealth probably doesn’t bother his diehard fans, but they should. Likewise, the funding sources for websites and writers of various persuasions are important to know, for they reveal possible biases in their work. Snake oil salesmen are commonplace, and there are many naive customers lining up for their wares.
Wealth and power are the main drivers of the media chicanery that has captured so many minds. Writers, of course, should be fairly paid for their work, but in this Internet age, most are not. As with the movies and book publishing, the income gap between the big names – the celebrity stars – and less well-known writers, even if their work is excellent, is huge.
Some sites and writers make a lot of money, but who they are is a guessing game. No one’s talking. Some regularly tell their readers that if they don’t receive enough contributions, they will be unable to continue to write or publish, even when the sites do not pay their contributors. Whether this is good marketing or income-by-threat is up for grabs. Whichever it is, it seems to work, as far as I can tell, for these writers and websites don’t disappear.
Money is the dirty secret of all news and commentary. To paraphrase someone: It is very difficult to get truth from writers whose income is dependent on pleasing those who fund them.
You may have noticed how many former military officers, CIA agents, mainstream journalists, pharmaceutical company executives, and sundry other government and corporate bigwigs appear in the mainstream and alternative media to support or oppose government policies. The mainstream ones doing the propaganda they always did, while the alternative ones appear as converts to the dissident faith. No one ever explains how and by whom these people are financed or how their lucrative pensions affect their consciences. “Former” is a funny word. Ha Ha Ha.
Confidence “men” come in all shapes and sizes with no one talking money.
So let me fess up. I received about $200 in support last year for edwardcurtin.com, my website. Nothing before that and not a cent over the last 5-6 years for many hundreds of articles that have appeared very widely across the Internet. Before the Internet, publications paid for work, mine and others. Not now, at least for me. How much money writers are receiving, and who is supporting their sites, is a taboo subject.
So I am thinking about selling mugs at my site with my name and mug shot on them and a line of supplements that will increase one’s testosterone and estrogen in equal measure to make sure no one takes offense in this era of delicate feelings. Ha Ha Ha. Yes, the joke is on us. I identify as a man since I am one. Don’t be offended.
Jokes aside, as Leonard Cohen sang:
Jokes aside, as Leonard Cohen sang:
“Oh, like a bird on the wire
Like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free”
If you are stubborn enough and have the good fortune to find inspiration from those brave dissidents who have gone before us and those who continue to lead us on, you realize silence is betrayal and that you must speak, even if all seems hopeless at times. Even when no one is paying you, or maybe more accurately, because no one is paying you. Even though it is hopeless, even though it isn’t. This is another secret. There are many.
It’s been twenty years since the U.S. brutally invaded Iraq. When George W. Bush, at a staged pseudo-event in Cincinnati on October 7, 2002, as he set Americans up for the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, said, “Facing clear evidence of peril, we cannot wait for the final proof, the smoking gun, that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud,” no one laughed him out of the house. His claim was simply an evil joke that was reported as truth. It was all predictable, blatant deception. And the media played along with such an absurdity, which is their job and what they always do. I pointed it out at the time in a newspaper column, but who listened to a hick writer in a regional newspaper.
Iraq obviously had no nuclear weapons or the slightest capability to deliver even a firecracker on the U.S. But the mainstream media, Senator Joe Biden, politicians galore, celebrities like Oprah Winfrey with her guest, the eventually disgraced Judith Miller of the New York Times, the despicable Tony Blair, et al., all supported Bush’s blatant lies. Soon Colin Powell, the “hero” of George H. W. Bush’s 1991 made-for-TV Gulf War of aggression against Iraq, would do his Pinocchio act at the United Nations and the U.S. military was off to get Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden’s evil twin, both the latest Hitlers until Vladimir Putin replaced them. I guess I skipped some others such as Muammar Gaddafi and Bashar Al-Assad. New Hitlers proliferate so fast it’s hard to keep track of them. Ha Ha Ha. The joke is on us.
As everyone knows, or should, more than a million Iraqis died because of George W. Bush, but how many cared? How many cared when once Bush was gone, Barack Obama, aided and abetted by the cackling Hilary Clinton, destroyed Libya and ignited the war against Syria? You want examples? There are too many to name here. But let it be said these lies span all American administrations, whether it’s Bill Clinton continuously bombing Iraq and Serbia through Trump bombing Syria and Somalia, up to the present day with Biden attacking Russia via Ukraine, etc. All these presidents are liars, but their followers treat them otherwise. Biden says Jimmy Carter asked him to deliver his eulogy. What does that tell you? Shall we laugh? Sing?
On the clear understanding
That this kind of thing can happen
Shall we laugh?
Shall we laugh?
Shall we laugh?
Shall we laugh harder if I mention the Covid-19 propaganda and all those writers who have failed to even address it, as they have failed to question 9/11 and other obvious official lies? Is it not evident that if they did so, their money flows might dry up? Here and no further is a widespread rule, for they must adhere to the boundaries imposed by “responsible thought” and the “no go” zones with which they tie their own hands in order to keep their wallets full.
If you are lucky, as I was, when you are young you discover how fearful of free thought and how corrupt our institutional authorities are. You don’t spend decades feasting off the spoils of those institutions only to “wake up” once you have made your name and secured your fortune, which seems to be the way of so many wise luminaries of the Internet Age who are either trying to ease their consciences as they get ready to kick the bucket or are perhaps putting us on.
When I was twenty-four years-old, I accepted my first teaching job at a small Catholic college where I taught theology. I had been trained in the latest and best scholarly work of the most renown international theologians. Rather than indoctrinating my students with rote learning, I taught them to read widely and think deeply in the tradition of a liberal arts education. To seek out the best scholarship.
But doing so became quickly apparent to the college and Church authorities who were stuck in the inquisitorial age of obedience or else and no thinking allowed. Although my students loved my courses and felt freed up for the first time to think about their spiritual lives, I was hounded to correct my heretical teaching, which of course I refused to do.
At one point when I was at lunch in the cafeteria, a nun who was a professor, stole my brief case with my notes and left the cafeteria. One of my students saw her do this and chased her into the ladies’ room where the nun hid in a stall. The nun kept flushing the toilet to scare the student away, but the student wouldn’t let her out until she returned the briefcase. Ha Ha Ha. It sounds funny to recount but was an example of my experience at this college. Someone vandalized my office door and ripped down anti-war posters that were on it. I was gone from that college soon thereafter. It taught me a lot. Obey or else.
Heresy: The Latin word is from Greek hairesis, a taking or choosing for oneself, a choice.
At another teaching job a year or so later, I had a more chilling experience. I was known as an anti-war activist, a conscientious objector from the Marines, etc., and one day, a late Friday afternoon when few were around, an administrator asked to meet me on a deserted stairwell where he proceeded in hushed tones to try to convince me to join him in Army Intelligence to spy on others. He said I would be perfect for the job since I was known as an anti-war dissident. I told him to fuck off, but I was shocked by his double life and his request.
I have since learned that this guy the spy was not an anomaly, for government confidence men are widespread.
I’ve had many other such early experiences for which I am very grateful, even though when I was fired from jobs and lost income it was traumatic at the time. By my thirtieth year, I knew the system was corrupt to its core and subsequent experience has only ratified that conclusion. I got the joke.
I recount these incidents not because my experiences are singular and I’m special, for others have suffered the same youthful fate. But such good fortune can fortify you for life or break your spirit. If the former, you don’t wait to retire to push back against all the lies or regret your past. You find that it’s all good and life has set you on the heretic’s path of freedom and choice. You realize that what you went through is absolutely nothing compared to people around the world who have and continue to suffer at the hands of the U.S. military industrial complex. You realize your experiences are trivial in the larger scope of things and that your government’s conduct is beyond condemnation. It is an abomination. You feel ashamed to live in a land where killing is a game.
The sociologist Peter Berger puts it well in his little classic, Invitation to Sociology, when he discusses experiences that lead to seeing through the play-acting nature of social life:
Experiences such as these may lead to a sudden reversal in one’s view of society – from an awe-inspiring vision of an edifice made of massive granite to the picture of a toy-house precariously put together with papier mâché. While such metamorphosis may be disturbing to people who have hitherto had great confidence in the stability and rightness of society, it can also have a very liberating effect on those more inclined to look upon the latter as a giant sitting on top of them, and not necessarily a friendly giant at that. It is reassuring to discover that the giant is afflicted with a nervous tick.
Notice the giant George W. Bush’s clicking eyes as he delivers his “facing clear evidence of peril” lies for the invasion of Iraq. He and his presidential good friends are cardboard cartoon characters whose eyes reveal their evil intentions. “It’s a Barnum and Bailey world/Just as phony as it can be,” but it would all fall to pieces if it weren’t for you and me failing to see through all the bad actors, not just presidents but the whole cast of characters that populate the Spectacle of news and opinion.
The Russians are coming! Ha Ha Ha. Yes, Oliver, the joke’s on us.
But it’s not really funny, except in the most sardonic and dark way, for we now do really face clear evidence of peril as a result of Biden and his crazy predecessors who have run U.S. foreign policy for so long. They have brought us to the edge of nuclear war with Russia by surrounding Russia with NATO bases and nuclear weapons, while doing the same to China.
Bertolt Brecht was right in his poem “To Those Born After”:
Truly I live in dark times!
Frank speech is naïve. A smooth forehead
Suggests insensitivity. The man who laughs
Has simply not yet heard
The terrible news.
What kind of times are these, when
To talk about trees is almost a crime
Because it implies silence about so many horrors?
When the man over there calmly crossing the street
Is already perhaps beyond the reach of his friends
Who are in need?
While still on-air, O’Brien said the station had not been given a chance.
Staff had been told they had the support of the chief executive, the board, the executive “and they have f…..d us”, she said.
Garner responded: “This is betrayal.”
Crying staff
“He said other staff had joined the two radio hosts in the studio and several of them were crying.
“Radio is one of those projects, where you have to settle in, and slowly but surely get your numbers, get your ratings, get your revenue,” Garner said.
He said the company was “bleeding cash”.
A short time later the station began playing music.
Show producer Tom Day tweeted that the Mediaworks board had made a proposal to shut down Today FM.
“They have given us only until the end of this afternoon to make submissions. I have no words.”
Today FM PULLED OFF AIR. as Duncan and Tova explain the station and staff are being cut.
“We’ve been told to play music”
“This is it, folks!”
‘Gutting’ to be axed Day told RNZ it was gutting to have their station axed by Mediaworks.
He confirmed the Mediaworks board had proposed to close down the Today FM Brand in a meeting this morning.
He wished they had been given more time to build their brand after being on the air for just over a year.
He said staff had attended a meeting with Palmer and HR staff this morning and it seemed clear the station would be shut down.
“It’s pretty much a done deal.”
Staff had been told there was a five-year plan for the station but instead it looked like it would close after just one year.
“We feel pretty gutted and let down,” he said.
‘Serious uncertainty’
A story on Today FM’s website says it is facing “serious uncertainty”.
It also references the appearance just before 9am of its key broadcasters Garner and O’Brien who went on air and used a swear word banned in most circumstances by the Broadcasting Standards Authority to describe their current situation.
In the on-air segment O’Brien said that following the resignation of Mediaworks head of news Dallas Gurney, soon after the sudden departure of chief executive Cam Wallace, the team had not been able to get the same level of assurance from the board or acting chief executive Wendy Palmer about the future of the radio station.
“We’ve got to hold out hope here, but we’re scared,” she said.
Today FM Co-host Duncan Garner . . . “This is betrayal.” Image: RNZ/Screenshot/AM
Station-wide meeting
A station-wide meeting had been called with Palmer, the story said.
In a statement, Palmer said: “This morning at the MediaWorks board’s request, we have taken Today FM off air while we consult with the team about the future of the station.
“This is a difficult time for the team and our priority is supporting them as we work through this process.”
She said more information would be released at a later date.
MediaWorks also operates the Edge, the Breeze, Mai FM and the Rock among other stations.
Media commentator blames poor ratings RNZ Mediawatch commentator Colin Peacock told Midday Report the company had spent a reported $6 million to $9 million to set up Today FM in a bid to compete with talkback radio market leader NewstalkZB.
The station needed to build its own news operation because Newshub and the TV channels had been sold to Discovery in 2021.
“The ratings didn’t work out bluntly over the past year,” he said.
The departures of Wallace and Gurney within the last month meant the biggest supporters of the station had left and current management was determined to cut costs.
He said “there was a lot to sort out” because the company would want to use the frequency and there would probably need to be payouts to any staff made redundant.
“They’ve really burned bridges with their staff so there will be fallout from this that will be financial as well.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Greens’ co-leader Marama Davidson believes she knows who was riding the motorbike that hit her during a protest against British anti-transgender activist Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, also known as Posie Parker.
Asked by Radio Waatea host Dale Husband whether it was Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki under the helmet, she said it was definitely a member of Tamaki’s group, which diverted past the Albert Park protest on the way to Tamaki’s own rally at Aotea Square.
“It was them, I’m really clear about that, and the rest of it is under police complaint so I will try not to jeopardise that investigation but I can confidently say I know who it was,” Davidson said.
She said she was in shock when she made a statement to a rightwing Counterspin Media videographer shortly after that “white cis men” were the main perpetrators of family violence, and she stood by her position that it was men rather than trans people who were the biggest threat to women.
Opposition National, ACT and New Zealand First parties called for her to be sacked as Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence for her comments, while they also supported Keen-Minshull’s visit on free speech grounds.
Communication Minister Timothy Masiu has hit back at recent reports termed as “inaccurate” over the control of media in Papua New Guinea from his ministerial statement in Parliament.
He said it was not true that the government was trying to control the media by setting up a Media Council.
He refuted the report, saying that the government would not control the media.
In his responce to questions raised, Masiu clarified the intent and purpose of the Media Development Policy which was basically to establish an enabling framework to recognise and develop the media in PNG to “support our development agenda”.
“Current research and recent consultations have led us to the consolidation of four main issues within the media sector,” he said.
“First is the concerns on [the] quality of journalism. By concerns we observe the decline of quality investigative journalism, the impact of substandard reporting on the development agenda, and the concerns on conduct, ethics, and accountability of journalists.
“My ministry, through the Department of ICT [Information Communications Technology], is currently collating both quantitative and qualitative data to verify the concerns on safety of journalists. We recognise that, at the moment, there is a lack of protection mechanisms for journalists.
‘Reorganising’ state-owned media
“My ministry has for the last three years looked at options on how to reorganise state-owned media outlets so that we coordinate dissemination of government information better.
“We recognise that us as government are lacking coordination in government information.
“The ministry has identified that SMEs [small and medium-sized enterprises], particularly in the modern media space, are not recognised as professionals and not given appropriate support.
“By promoting access to information, media diversity, and responsible journalism, the policy aims to support the development of a more informed, engaged, and empowered citizenry in Papua New Guinea.
“On the question of how this policy will promote media freedom, early this year we released draft version 1, followed by a version 2 of the National Media Development Policy.
“In both versions of the draft policy, we proposed for the re-establishment of the PNG Media Council as an independent arm to represent and maintain standards within the media professions.
“The ministry maintains the view that the PNG Media Council, through its self-governing model, is not doing enough to grow the profession and hold journalists accountable.
Media Council ’empowered’
“Through the ministry’s proposal, the PNG Media Council would be empowered and hold mainstream media outlets accountable and establish [a] protection mechanism for journalists.
“I want to inform Members of Parliament that we have had a consultation workshop and as a result, my department is working on identifying a model where we can find common ground with all stakeholders.
“I want to remind all that this policy is not about regulating but more on building capacity and recognition within the media profession.
“The department is reviewing whether to include provisions for oversight on social media platforms and we will inform in version 3 of the draft policy.
“As a matter of update, my department will be publishing a consultation report this week.
“Following this, the consultation itself is leading us to undertake a series of nationwide surveys to better define our media landscape and ascertain data necessary to consolidate issues highlighted in the recent consultation workshop.
“My department is expected to be releasing a version 4 of the draft policy towards the end of April.
“This version 4 will be subject to further feedback. I expect to take to cabinet as early as May and should legislation be proposed, we would also start the drafting process in May.”
Gorethy Kenneth is a senior PNG Post-Courier journalist. Republished with permission.
The Fiji government has announced it will repeal the controversial Media Industry Development Act 2010.
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka said cabinet had approved the tabling of a bill to repeal the Act “as a whole.”
“The decision is pursuant to the People’s Coalition Government’s commitment to the growth and development of a strong and independent news media in the country,” said Rabuka in his post-cabinet meeting update.
“It has been said that ‘media freedom and freedom of expression is the oxygen of democracy’,” he said.
“These fundamental freedoms are integral to enable the people to hold their government accountable.
“I am proud to stand here today to make this announcement, which was key to our electoral platform, and a demand that I heard echoed in all parts of the country that I visited,” he added.
The announcement comes just days after Rabuka’s government introduced a new draft legislation to replace the act.
Strongly opposed
The move to replace the 2010 media law with a new one was strongly opposed during public consultations by local journalists and media organisations.
They said there was no need for new legislation to control the media and called for a “total repeal” of the existing regulation.
The country’s Deputy Prime Minister, Manoa Kamikamica, told RNZ Pacific last Friday that there were areas of concern that local stakeholders had raised during the consultation session of the proposed new bill.
“We hear what the industry is saying, we will make some assessments and then make a final decision,” he said.
But Rabuka’s announcement today means that the decision has been made.
RNZ Pacific has contacted the Fijian Media Association for comment.
‘Good decision’ but investment needed University of the South Pacific head of journalism programme Associate Professor Shailendra Singh said the announcement was expected.
Dr Singh said repealing the punitive legislation was a core election platform promise of the three challenger parties which are now in power.
“This is a good decision because the Fijian media and other stakeholders were not sufficiently consulted when the decree was promulgated in June 2010.”
But he said while getting rid of the media act was welcomed, the coalition was working on a new legislation and “we have to wait and see what that looks like”.
“The media act was dead in the water or redundant before the change in government. The new government could not have implemented it after coming to power, having criticised it and campaigned against it in their election campaign,” he said.
“Repealing the act removes the fear factor prevalent in the sector for nearly 13 years now.”
Dr Singh said the government had committed to the growth and development of a strong news media.
Public good investment
But that, he said, would require more than the repeal of the act.
“[Improving standards] will require some financial investments by the state since media organisations are struggling financially due to the digital disruption followed by covid.”
He said among the many challenges, the media industry was struggling to retain staff.
“So incentives like government scholarships specifically in the media sector could be one way of helping out.
“Media is a public good and like any public good government should invest in it for the benefit of the public.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Over the years we have watched with concern; how Tibet, and the issues related to China’s illegal and brutal occupation of that country, are misrepresented and/or distorted by mainstream media.
It has jaundiced our view towards journalism. A profession which once was staffed by dedicated, professional individuals, writing with objectivity and integrity. Perhaps that’s still the case? But just not when the subject is about Tibet!
Sometimes this is explained by a laziness, an over-reliance on pre-published articles. Problem is such references often feature information served up by the Chinese Regime, handed to leading press agencies. Who consume and repeat such disinformation without question or consideration, especially in relation to it’s bogus claim that Tibet is part of China.
One of our friends in the UK emailed a story over to us. which appeared March 28 in The Independent newspaper.
Image: The Times – Mongolian boy recognized and confirmed as the 10th Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa Rinpoche by Tibet’s Exiled Dalai Lama
It reports the recognition and confirmation; by the exiled Dalai Lama, of a U.S born Mongolian boy as a reincarnation of a prominent and respected Tibetan Buddhist Lama. Much to the agitated constipation of China’s dictatorship.
The piece is fairly well composed, offering up key facts on the story and remaining pretty much objective, that is until the very last sentence. When the reporter (Joe Sommerlad) ends his piece with the following:
“Beijing, in turn, considers him a dangerous separatist and has banned his portrait from being displayed in public, although many Chinese Tibetans still revere him.” (Emphasis Added)
This is the last impression offered up to the reader, borrowed from China’s fact-free propaganda. Note the phrase “Chinese Tibetans” a crass distortion to mislead people into regarding Tibetans as not having their own distinct national identity.
We wonder if journalists such as Mr Sommerlad are writing articles about Russian occupied territories of Ukraine and using the term ‘Russian Ukranians’?
The Fiji government is signalling that it will not completely tear down the country’s controversial media law which, according to local newsrooms and journalism commentators, has stunted press freedom and development for more than a decade.
Ahead of the 2022 general elections last December, all major opposition parties campaigned to get rid of the Media Industry Development Act (MIDA) 2010 — brought in by the Bainimarama administration — if they got into power.
The change in government after 16 years following the polls brought a renewed sense of hope for journalists and media outlets.
But now almost 100 days in charge it appears Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka’s coalition is backtracking on its promise to get rid of the punitive law, a move that has been condemned by the industry stakeholders.
“The government is totally committed to allowing people the freedom of the press that will include the review of the Media Act,” Rabuka said during a parliamentary session last month.
“I believe we cannot have a proper democracy without a free press which has been described as the oxygen of democracy,” he said.
Rabuka has denied that his government is backtracking on an election promise.
“Reviewing could mean eventually repealing it,” he told RNZ Pacific in February.
“We have to understand how it [media act] is faring in this modern day of media freedom. How have other administrations advance their own association with the media,” he said.
He said he intended to change it which means “review and make amendments to it”.
“The coalition has given an assurance that we will end that era of media oppression. We are discussing new legislation that reflects more democratic values.”
And last week, that discussion happened for the first time when consultations on a refreshed version of a draft regulation began in Suva as the government introduced the Media Ownership and Registration Bill 2023.
The bill is expected to “address issues that are undemocratic, threatens freedom of expression, and hinders the growth and development of a strong and independent news media in Fiji.”
The proposed law will amend the MIDA Act by removing the punitive clauses on content regulation that threatens journalists with heavy fines and jail terms.
“The bill is not intended as a complete reform of Fiji’s media law landscape,” according to the explanations provided by the government.
No need for government involvement But the six-page proposed regulation is not what the media industry needs, according to the University of the South Pacific’s head of journalism programme Associate Professor Shailendra Singh.
Associate Professor Shailendra Singh . . . “We have argued there is no need for legislation.” Image: RNZ Pacific
“We have argued there is no need for legislation,” he said during the public consultation on the bill last Thursday.
“The existing laws are sufficient but if there has to be a legislation there should be minimum or no government involvement at all,” he said.
The Fijian Media Association (FMA) has also expressed strong opposition against the bill and is calling for the MIDA Act to be repealed.
“If there is a need for another legislation, then government can convene fresh consultation with stakeholders if these issues are not adequately addressed in other current legislation,” the FMA, which represents almost 150 working journalists in Fiji, stated.
Speaking on behalf of his colleagues, FMA executive member and Communications Fiji Limited news director Vijay Narayan said “we want a total repeal” of the Media Act.
“We believe that it was brought about without consultation at all…it was shoved down our throats,” Narayan said.
“We have worked with it for 16 years. We have been staring at the pointy end of the spear and we continue to work hard to build our industry despite the challenges we face.”
‘Restrictions stunts growth’ He said the Fiji’s media industry “needs investment” to improve its standards.
Narayan said the FMA acknowledged that the issue of content regulation was addressed in the new law.
But “with the restrictions in investment that also stunts our growth as media workers,” he added.
“The fact that it will be controlled by politicians there is a real fear. What if we have reporting on something and the politician feels that the organisation that is registered should be reregistered.”
The FMA has also raised concerns about the provisions in relation to cross-media ownership and foreign ownership as key issues that impacts on media development and creates an unequal playing field.
Sections 38 and 39 of the Media Act impose restrictions on foreign ownership on local local media organisations and cross-media ownership.
According to a recent analysis of the Act co-authored by Dr Singh, they are a major impediment to media development and need to be re-examined.
“It would be prudent to review the media ownership situation and reforms periodically, every four-five years, to gauge the impact, and address any issues, that may have arisen,” the report recommends.
Fijian media stakeholders at the public consultation on the Media Ownership and Regulation Bill 2023 in Suva on 23 March 2023. Image: Fijian Media Association/RNZ Pacific
But Suva lawyer and coalition government adviser Richard Naidu is of the view that all issues in respect to the news media should be opened up.
Naidu, who has helped draft the proposed new legislation, said it “has preserved the status quo” and the rules of cross-ownership and foreign media ownership were left as they were in the Media Act.
“Is that right? That is a question of opinion…because before the [MIDA Act] there were no rules on cross-media ownership, there were no rules on foreign media ownership.”
Naidu said the MIDA Act was initially introduced as a bill and media had two hours to to offer its views on it before its implementation.
“So, which status quo ought to be preserved; the one before the [MIDA Act] was imposed or the one as it stands right now. Those are legitimate questions.”
“There is a whole range of things which need to be reviewed and which will probably take a bit of time.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
One year ago then-MSNBC analyst Malcolm Nance announced he had left the network to join the fight against Russia with the Ukrainian International Legion, telling MSNBC’s Joy Reid “I’m done talking” to much fanfare from the blue-and-yellow-flag-waving crowd.
A year later, The New York Times has published a report which would seem to indicate that Nance was not done talking after all.
In an article titled “Stolen Valor: The U.S. Volunteers in Ukraine Who Lie, Waste and Bicker,” the Times describes how foreign volunteer fighters “who lack the skills or discipline to assist effectively” are hindering the war effort, saying that “people who would not be allowed anywhere near the battlefield in a U.S.-led war are active on the Ukrainian front — often with unchecked access to weapons and military equipment.”
The New York Times’ Justin Scheck and Thomas Gibbons-Neff name several of these problematic volunteers who “lie, waste and bicker,” including well-known American volunteer fighter James Vasquez, whom they confront about lies they’ve discovered he told in order to get himself to the frontline in Ukraine. But like many articles in the mainstream media, the chewiest bits aren’t found until many paragraphs down.
class=”twitter-tweet” data-width=”550″>
Oof.
“Malcolm Nance, a former Navy cryptologist and MSNBC commentator, arrived in Ukraine last year and made a plan to bring order and discipline to the Legion. Instead, he became enmeshed in the chaos.”
Malcolm Nance, a former Navy cryptologist and MSNBC commentator, arrived in Ukraine last year and made a plan to bring order and discipline to the Legion. Instead, he became enmeshed in the chaos.
Mr. Nance, whose TV appearances have made him one of the most visible Americans supporting Ukraine, was an experienced military operator. He drafted a code of honor for the organization and, by all accounts, donated equipment.
Today, Mr. Nance is involved in a messy, distracting power struggle. Often, that plays out on Twitter, where Mr. Nance taunted one former ally as “fat” and an associate of “a verified con artist.”
He accused a pro-Ukraine fund-raising group of fraud, providing no evidence. After arguing with two Legion administrators, Mr. Nance wrote a “counterintelligence” report trying to get them fired. Central to that report is an accusation that one Legion official, Emese Abigail Fayk, fraudulently tried to buy a house on an Australian reality TV show with money she didn’t have. He labeled her “a potential Russian spy,” offering no evidence. Ms. Fayk denied the accusations and remains with the Legion.
Mr. Nance said that as a member of the Legion with an intelligence background, when he developed concerns, he “felt an obligation to report this to Ukrainian counterintelligence.”
Scheck and Gibbons-Neff report that “Mr. Nance has left Ukraine,” which would make sense if that was how he was behaving. Perhaps he was asked to leave, or perhaps he left on his own because so many people hated him.
In case you’re unaware, Malcolm Nance has an extensive history of telling brazen lies to advance the interests of the US empire, and has suffered no professional consequences as a pundit for doing so. As journalist Glenn Greenwald has documented over the years, these include making the objectively false claim on MSNBC that former Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein “has a show on Russia Today,” falsely asserting that the WikiLeaks documents published ahead of the 2016 election were “riddled with obvious forgeries,” and falsely accusing Greenwald himself of being “an agent of Trump and Moscow” who is “deep in the Kremlin pocket.”
It is rare for the mainstream media to push falsehoods made up whole cloth by the media employees themselves; normally mass media propaganda consists of uncritically reporting false claims made by government officials, or using half-truths, distortions and lies-by-omission to give their audiences an inaccurate picture of what’s going on. Malcolm Nance’s media career has been one so brazenly propagandistic that it makes other propagandists cringe due to his lack of subtlety, which is why even the imperial smut rags like The New York Times are spitting on him now.
This gruelling war has had very little about it that draws a smile, but at least we’ll always have the story of an odious imperial spinmeister flying to Ukraine to fight the Russians only to go home in disgrace while being spurned by his fellow propagandists after acting like an infantile troll.
___________________
My work is entirely reader-supported, so if you enjoyed this piece please consider sharing it around, throwing some money into my tip jar on Patreon, Paypal, or Substack, buying an issue of my monthly zine, and following me on Facebook, Twitter, Soundcloud or YouTube. If you want to read more you can buy my books. The best way to make sure you see the stuff I publish is to subscribe to the mailing list for at my website or on Substack, which will get you an email notification for everything I publish. Everyone, racist platforms excluded, has my permission to republish, use or translate any part of this work (or anything else I’ve written) in any way they like free of charge. For more info on who I am, where I stand, and what I’m trying to do with this platform, click here. All works co-authored with my husband Tim Foley.
British gender activist Posie Parker has left New Zealand, calling it the “worst place for women she has ever visited”.
Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, also known as Posie Parker, shared a photo on social media showing her being escorted by police through Auckland Airport.
She left her rally at Albert Park in Auckland yesterday without speaking, after being overwhelmed by thousands of heckling counter-protesters and pelted with tomato juice.
Controversial Harry Potter author JK Rowling took to Twitter to brand the protest scenes in Auckland yesterday “repellent”.
During a series of Tweets, she said a mob “had assaulted women standing up for their rights”.
Parker posted to Twitter and said she was leaving ‘the worst place for women she has ever visited’.
The activist also claimed she was a victim of a campaign to assassinate her character, boosted by a “corrupt media populated by vile dishonest cult members”.
No Wellington rally
Her departure means her planned rally for Wellington today will not go ahead.
A local group supporting her visit Speak Up For Women NZ had already announced the scheduled rally today in Wellington had been cancelled due to security concerns.
Auckland Pride rejected the idea that the activist had abandoned her Wellington plans due to threats of violence.
There is a narrative quickly taking hold amongst anti-trans groups and individuals that Parker abandoned her event because of violence from our community.
The group Tweeted: “There is a narrative quickly taking hold amongst anti-trans groups and individuals that Parker abandoned her event because of violence from our community.
“We reject this narrative. We are of the firm belief that the demonstration of unity, celebration, and acceptance alongside joyous music, chanting, and noise of 5,000 supporters was too loud to overcome and the reason for her departure – and not the actions of any one individual.”
NZ First leader Winston Peters said violence and cancel culture did not represent “the majority of New Zealanders who want an open and free Western democracy that values freedom of speech”.
Irony of ‘disgrace’
He tweeted: “Whether you agree with her views or not, the irony of the disgraceful situation that occurred at the Posie Parker event, is that violence, hatred, and intimidation is coming from the very group who claim to be the ones standing up for inclusivity and freedoms.”
While Parker’s planned rally in Wellington today is off, groups opposing her views still plan to turn out, with the city’s annual CubaDupa festival also taking place today.
Police say they will be out in central Wellington to monitor and respond to any problems.
Parker arrived at the Albert Park event yesterday morning to speak with supporters at a rally.
Her presence and comments infuriated rights advocates, and the reception she received in Auckland yesterday left Parker visibly shaken.
Posie Parker being escorted from her Auckland rally yesterday. Video: RNZ News
Neo-Nazis in Australia
The controversial British activist’s Melbourne rally days before was attended by neo-Nazis, a fact widely reported in New Zealand before she was allowed into the country by Immigration NZ and Immigration Minister Michael Wood.
Parker was critical of what she said was a lack of police presence at the Auckland event, with her security team struggling to separate her from hostile crowds of protesters.
After being escorted to a police car through the crowd, Parker requested to be driven to the police station, because she feared for her safety.
Media had reported she was seen checking in for an international flight out of Auckland last night.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
“The most important thing from my perspective is a strategic partnership — a partnership where the media should not be seen as the enemy or a nuisance.”
This was the view of the Communications Fiji Ltd news director and Fijian Media Association executive Vijay Narayan expressed at a media segment of the Police Consultative Session in Suva yesterday.
Narayan said the media and the police had the same goals and objectives “focusing on truth, integrity, accountability and transparency”.
He said the media was ready to have regular meetings with the senior command of Fiji’s Police Force, and also extended an invitation to the Acting Police Commissioner Juki Fong Chew and his senior officers to visit individual media outlets to understand their work.
Narayan said that at times there was a disconnect where the only time the media was called in was when police wanted to say something or maybe when there was a major issue at hand.
He said he remembered that the Crime Stoppers Board also included members of the media and media organisations.
He added that they “fought the fight together”.
Communications Fiji Ltd news director Vijay Narayan speaking at the police workshop. Video: Fijivillage
Police need ‘humanising’
Narayan encouraged police to engage more with the public through media conferences as the Police Force also needed to be “humanised”, and not just focus their message on posting to their social media page.
The CFL news director said that at times they might not be on the same page but the tough questions needed to be asked.
Fiji Sun’s investigative journalist Ivamere Nataro said some people she spoke to did not understand the work of the police and kept requesting frequent updates.
Nataro said that in this digital age, news spread faster on social media and if the police did not open up to the mainstream media, it was another thing that people looked at.
She said police needed to engage more with the community and show that they cared.
Commissioner agrees
While responding to the media, Acting Commissioner Chew said he agreed with what had been said, and moving forward the police would try to improve.
But Chew also gave an example of when a story had been published alleging that someone had been tortured.
He said the story was published and they did not know whether it was true or false.
When the matter was investigated, the issue just died out.
He said that if they manage to find that person, he or she would be taken to task for giving false information.
Krishneel Nair is a Fijivillage reporter. Republished with permission.
Cowspiracy
What the Health
Seaspiracy
Blackfish
The Game Changers
Eating Animals
Milked
Eating Our Way to Extinction
Forks Over Knives
Earthlings
Dominion
73 Cows
(@kristina_wong) 
(@AucklandPride)