Comments on: Is Rwanda really that bad for journalists? Actually, I don’t think so http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/ Reporter & Producer Thu, 10 May 2012 22:24:27 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Jean-Baptiste Ndahumba http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/#comment-2087 Jean-Baptiste Ndahumba Tue, 07 Dec 2010 19:21:27 +0000 http://www.jinamoore.com/?p=1881#comment-2087 It is really interesting to see how the Wikileaks case is handled by the media and various institutions or by individuals who represent them. First, the assumption of a completely transparent society is an illusion, when we attend consultations between the world-renowned newspapers and government officials before publishing certain information published by Wikileaks. Secondly, we are surprised to see that clearly, there are two weights and two measures when the interests of some countries whose secrets must be preserved while others must sacrifice themselves to meet the First Amendment . Thirdly, where are RSF, Amnesty International and HR to defend Mr. Julian Assange wanted for a crime he did not commit a priori (?) because obviously, he is being prosecuted unfairly for other reasons, etc.. . It is really interesting to see how the Wikileaks case is handled by the media and various institutions or by individuals who represent them. First, the assumption of a completely transparent society is an illusion, when we attend consultations between the world-renowned newspapers and government officials before publishing certain information published by Wikileaks. Secondly, we are surprised to see that clearly, there are two weights and two measures when the interests of some countries whose secrets must be preserved while others must sacrifice themselves to meet the First Amendment . Thirdly, where are RSF, Amnesty International and HR to defend Mr. Julian Assange wanted for a crime he did not commit a priori (?) because obviously, he is being prosecuted unfairly for other reasons, etc.. .

]]> By: Fred Mwasa http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/#comment-1909 Fred Mwasa Tue, 09 Nov 2010 13:04:28 +0000 http://www.jinamoore.com/?p=1881#comment-1909 Hello everybody, I am looking forward to your support on how I can progress on the above posting. Mwasa Hello everybody, I am looking forward to your support on how I can progress on the above posting.

Mwasa

]]> By: Fred Mwasa http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/#comment-1908 Fred Mwasa Tue, 09 Nov 2010 12:52:03 +0000 http://www.jinamoore.com/?p=1881#comment-1908 Dear Jina Moore, I have just been reading you posting on journalism in Rwanda and the organisations that assess its nature. I have been a journalist myself, and but have now moved more into research. Coincidentally, am working on something similar to what your piece was about. Am looking at how media rights organisations have assessed press freedom in Rwanda. What would be your advise? Please contact me though my email. Mwasa Dear Jina Moore, I have just been reading you posting on journalism in Rwanda and the organisations that assess its nature. I have been a journalist myself, and but have now moved more into research. Coincidentally, am working on something similar to what your piece was about. Am looking at how media rights organisations have assessed press freedom in Rwanda. What would be your advise?

Please contact me though my email.

Mwasa

]]> By: Jean-Baptiste Ndahumba http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/#comment-1798 Jean-Baptiste Ndahumba Sun, 24 Oct 2010 15:42:38 +0000 http://www.jinamoore.com/?p=1881#comment-1798 I am not a journalist but I've been wondering about freedom of speech and its abuse (both ways). The opportunity is offered today by the publication of "War Logs" by "Wikileaks.org" to discuss it. In Belgium, Holland, Sweden, Germany, and even in the U.S., rogue politicians are on top. They express themselves, win elections and hold governments to ransom. It's just like that and it's their right. But we Africans, are we going to kill each other as it has unfortunately happened to respect the First Amendment? Quote of General McChrystal: Update 5:19pm cst: McChrystal's full response on Wikileaks: "I think it's sad. I think first the decision by anybody to leak classified information is something that not only is it illegal, it's also something that that individual is making judgements about the value of that information and the threat to comrades, that almost nobody is qualified to make that judgement. So if somebody leaks information that puts me or one of my soldiers at risk, I think that's a level of irresponsibility thats very upsetting. Then there's the decision to release them widely. I'm also not comfortable with that either. I think that a level of responsibility towards our people needs to be balanced with any argument for a need or right to know. I can't judge every single piece of information -- I wouldn't try to -- but I would say that there has to be that balance and there has to be that level of maturity because it's likely that, that the leak of some of that information could cause the death of some of our own people or some of our allies." Second quote of General McChrystal Update 7:11pm: General McChrystal on the media's scrutiny of "leaders"… "I think that media, both the amount of scrutiny, but also the speed at which scrutiny comes now, has changed the environment for leaders in ways that we don't even fully comprehend yet. For example, a leader even at a fairly junior level, will make an act. It will be in the media very quickly, it will, 'go viral,' as they say, before additional facts can be gained, before there's time for people to take a deep breath, and actually assess what has happened before people have time to put different perspectives on the story. So leaders, despite best efforts to try and project good information -- of course, most forces are trained to project only the truth, so they tend not to be as fast as someone who doesn't bear that same responsibility -- so it causes a leader to operate in an area where even a perceived problem or mistake is attacked suddenly. I would argue that theres great danger on leaders here, leadership, because I think one thing it will do it cause leaders to be overly cautious, I also think it's likely have an effect to keep people who would be leaders from entering the field simply because it becomes such a 'no fail' experience." Freedom of speech, Responsability, speed of information and leadership. [1] http://www.thedailybeast.com/reboot-america-blog/mcchrystal-slams-wikileaks/ 2010/10/24 Jina Moore - Afficher le texte des messages précédents - -- jb.ndahumba I am not a journalist but I've been wondering about freedom of speech and its abuse (both ways). The opportunity is offered today by the publication of "War Logs" by "Wikileaks.org" to discuss it.
In Belgium, Holland, Sweden, Germany, and even in the U.S., rogue politicians are on top. They express themselves, win elections and hold governments to ransom. It's just like that and it's their right. But we Africans, are we going to kill each other as it has unfortunately happened to respect the First Amendment?

Quote of General McChrystal:

Update 5:19pm cst: McChrystal's full response on Wikileaks:
"I think it's sad.
I think first the decision by anybody to leak classified information is something that not only is it illegal, it's also something that that individual is making judgements about the value of that information and the threat to comrades, that almost nobody is qualified to make that judgement. So if somebody leaks information that puts me or one of my soldiers at risk, I think that's a level of irresponsibility thats very upsetting.
Then there's the decision to release them widely. I'm also not comfortable with that either. I think that a level of responsibility towards our people needs to be balanced with any argument for a need or right to know.
I can't judge every single piece of information -- I wouldn't try to -- but I would say that there has to be that balance and there has to be that level of maturity because it's likely that, that the leak of some of that information could cause the death of some of our own people or some of our allies."

Second quote of General McChrystal

Update 7:11pm: General McChrystal on the media's scrutiny of "leaders"…

"I think that media, both the amount of scrutiny, but also the speed at which scrutiny comes now, has changed the environment for leaders in ways that we don't even fully comprehend yet. For example, a leader even at a fairly junior level, will make an act. It will be in the media very quickly, it will, 'go viral,' as they say, before additional facts can be gained, before there's time for people to take a deep breath, and actually assess what has happened before people have time to put different perspectives on the story.

So leaders, despite best efforts to try and project good information -- of course, most forces are trained to project only the truth, so they tend not to be as fast as someone who doesn't bear that same responsibility -- so it causes a leader to operate in an area where even a perceived problem or mistake is attacked suddenly. I would argue that theres great danger on leaders here, leadership, because I think one thing it will do it cause leaders to be overly cautious, I also think it's likely have an effect to keep people who would be leaders from entering the field simply because it becomes such a 'no fail' experience."

Freedom of speech, Responsability, speed of information and leadership.

[1] http://www.thedailybeast.com/...hrystal-slams-wikileaks/

2010/10/24 Jina Moore
- Afficher le texte des messages précédents -

--
jb.ndahumba

]]> By: Intare Batinya http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/#comment-1796 Intare Batinya Sun, 24 Oct 2010 08:19:32 +0000 http://www.jinamoore.com/?p=1881#comment-1796 Thank you so much for exposing so explicitly the underhand dealings in PSF. I am sure there is some puppeteer in the background who is pulling strings when the light falls on Rwanda. If PSF was a credible organisation they would carry out their surveys and put things in context. But thats what happenes if anything is allowed to operate without logical borders Thank you so much for exposing so explicitly the underhand dealings in PSF. I am sure there is some puppeteer in the background who is pulling strings when the light falls on Rwanda. If PSF was a credible organisation they would carry out their surveys and put things in context. But thats what happenes if anything is allowed to operate without logical borders

]]> By: Jean-Baptiste Ndahumba http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/#comment-1790 Jean-Baptiste Ndahumba Sat, 23 Oct 2010 10:59:48 +0000 http://www.jinamoore.com/?p=1881#comment-1790 I appreciate your balanced comment on press freedom in Rwanda. I was in Belgium during the genocide and in the morning we attended the briefing for NGOs on the situation in Rwanda. The source was MISNA, especially Father Theunis representing RSF in Rwanda. For the record, Father Theunis was briefly imprisoned in Rwanda on charges of genocide and to my knowledge, RSF has never provided a convincing explanation of that time. This may explain that ... Jean-Baptiste I appreciate your balanced comment on press freedom in Rwanda. I was in Belgium during the genocide and in the morning we attended the briefing for NGOs on the situation in Rwanda. The source was MISNA, especially Father Theunis representing RSF in Rwanda. For the record, Father Theunis was briefly imprisoned in Rwanda on charges of genocide and to my knowledge, RSF has never provided a convincing explanation of that time. This may explain that ...

Jean-Baptiste

]]> By: Jina Moore http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/#comment-1784 Jina Moore Fri, 22 Oct 2010 21:29:04 +0000 http://www.jinamoore.com/?p=1881#comment-1784 You mean compare press freedom across countries, or compare press freedom in a country to other freedoms in a country? Freedom House does an index, though I remember reading a rather persuasive critique about Freedom House at SIPA (not sure if they took that out of ConFound by the time y'all got there? Or if it was in fact ConFound contraband someone slipped into my discussion group...). I think the idea of measuring freedom in an index in general is pretty weird and subjective, and if you're not sharing the kinds of data sources you used -- not the names of the people who fill the questionnaire, necessarily, but their professional affiliations (generally, ie, NGO, journalist, embassy worker, missionary, analyst, dog-walker, whatnot) -- then the result is, at least for my purposes, inconclusive. The danger of a nice clean number is that it so easily masks its source. Or one of many dangers, I guess. You mean compare press freedom across countries, or compare press freedom in a country to other freedoms in a country? Freedom House does an index, though I remember reading a rather persuasive critique about Freedom House at SIPA (not sure if they took that out of ConFound by the time y'all got there? Or if it was in fact ConFound contraband someone slipped into my discussion group...). I think the idea of measuring freedom in an index in general is pretty weird and subjective, and if you're not sharing the kinds of data sources you used -- not the names of the people who fill the questionnaire, necessarily, but their professional affiliations (generally, ie, NGO, journalist, embassy worker, missionary, analyst, dog-walker, whatnot) -- then the result is, at least for my purposes, inconclusive.

The danger of a nice clean number is that it so easily masks its source. Or one of many dangers, I guess.

]]> By: Eamon http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/10/20/rwanda-bad-journalists/#comment-1776 Eamon Thu, 21 Oct 2010 19:42:16 +0000 http://www.jinamoore.com/?p=1881#comment-1776 Thanks for highlighting how arbitrary this is. At best, it seems like these questionnaires would be good for putting countries in broad categories of press freedom. Human Development Index it is not (and even that has problems). I appreciate the idea of having some way of gauging press freedom, though -- it would be a useful indicator to compare against other things in the right context. Is there a report you trust more? Thanks for highlighting how arbitrary this is. At best, it seems like these questionnaires would be good for putting countries in broad categories of press freedom. Human Development Index it is not (and even that has problems). I appreciate the idea of having some way of gauging press freedom, though -- it would be a useful indicator to compare against other things in the right context. Is there a report you trust more?

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