UPDATED - ColdType

tiques. Without passing judgments, I would only
say that at least in the UK, there are debates
about these issues in many newspapers. They
are taken seriously. This is less true in the
USA. ●
APRIL 24: WAR COVERAGE UNDER
FIRE FROM BBC CHIEF
JUST I was wallowing in the thrill of victory as
more wanted Iraqis experience the agony of
defeat, just as I thought it was safe to eat French
food again – as I did last night with fava beans on
the side. Shades of Silence of the Lambs – word
comes that secretary of State Powell intends to
“punish” France. Sorry Colin, the food has
already been recycled. And then there was this
morning’s shocker coming from the land of coalition
cronies and Blair Baathists: Our TV System
is under attack.
BBC: Shock, no awe
A NEW front in the media war erupted across
the Atlantic when the “topper” (to use a Varietyism)
of the BBC opened up on American television.
Embroiled in some criticism in the home
counties for less than objective war coverage,
Greg Dyke is shifting attention across the seas.
And in this case, hitting his mark in a gutsy manner
that we have yet to hear from most of his U.S.
counterparts. The Guardian reports:
“BBC director general Greg Dyke has delivered
a stinging rebuke to the U.S. media over its
unquestioning coverage of the war in Iraq and
warned the government against allowing the UK
SO, THIS IS VICTORY
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media to become Americanized.
“Mr. Dyke said he was shocked to hear that the
U.S. radio giant Clear Channel had organized
pro-war rallies in the U.S., and urged the government
to ensure new media laws did not allow
U.S. media companies to undermine the impartiality
of the British media.
“We are genuinely shocked when we discover
that the largest radio group in the United States
was using its airwaves to organize pro-war rallies.
We are even more shocked to discover that
the same group wants to become a big player in
radio in the UK when it is deregulated later this
year,” Mr. Dyke said.
“Mr. Dyke singled out Fox for particular criticism
over its pro-Bush stance, which helped the
Rupert Murdoch-owned broadcaster to oust
CNN in the U.S. to become the most popular
news network.
“Commercial pressures may tempt others to
follow the Fox News formula of gung-ho patriotism,
but for the BBC this would be a terrible mistake.
If, over time, we lost the trust of our audiences,
there is no point in the BBC,” he said in a
speech delivered at Goldsmiths College in London
today.”
Targeting the Middle East
EVEN as the BBC blasts U.S. broadcasting, a U.S.
government TV venture is good to go in the Middle
East. It’s run by a man who comes out of
Infinity Broadcasting, the radio monopoly owned
by Viacom and known for the wit and wisdom of
Howard Stern. Again, it is a British newspaper
we must turn to for a report on an American
Media venture:
“Washington’s battle to win public support in