BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 16 Feb 03 - 10:43 AM

Sorry, I thought I was adding the BBC link, which worked better in Real Audio for me, but added the NPR link again.

Here is the BBC link:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/2753729.stm

I'm interested in reading your opinions of the program after you have listened to all of it.


Alice

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 06:28 PM

I listened again on the Real Audio file to the caller referred to, and he was able to make his point and talk alot longer than some other callers, over four minutes. He was the first caller and they needed to take time to take other calls. He made his points and I think he responded well and was able to get his opinion across before time for his call ran out. The whole program was worth listening to before making a judgement about the moderators.

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 06:15 PM

The BBC Real Audio link is working better for me than the audio link on the NPR site. You can see video and hear the audio of the two hour program at this page:

http://www.npr.org/news/specials/nprbbciraq/index.html

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 06:04 PM

You can listen to the program archived at the link I posted in the first message.

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 05:42 PM

Why would "An Iranian's letter saying the peace activists were wrong and naive" be any more relevant than an Australian's letter at this stage, since it's Iraq in the crosshairs?

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: DougR
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 05:19 PM

It doesn't seem to me that that was an unreasonable question for the moderator to ask the caller Guest. I would think anyone who would take the time and effort to call such a show should be able to handle such a question very deftly.

It's funny how two people listening to a radio show draw such different conclusions. Bobert is convinced NPR has turned to the right, and I think it is nothing except a mouthpiece for the left. Especially the Diane Rheme show!

Sorry I missed the show though Alice. It sounds like it was interesting. I'm rather surprised callers not in sympathy with the marchers were allowed to participate though. Good for NPR.

DougR

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: GUEST
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 04:25 PM

I never suggested they weren't being given equal time. I said that I believed the anti-war callers, when calling to voice their opinions, were instead being challenged to respond to ridiculous charges, like the one I heard a commentator at the top of the program issue to the caller. It went something like this: "We have an email here from an Iraqi exile, waiting for liberation of Iraq, who says that anti-war protestors are wrong, and naive. How do you answer those claims?"

Well, the caller was caught totally off-guard, because there was no indication that callers were going to be put on the spot to defend their views on something they didn't even call in to address. When the dazed and confused caller tried to gather their thoughts to answer, they weren't allowed to get a word in, but was instead cut off by the commentator with a rude, "on to the next caller".

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Deda
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 03:59 PM

Thanks to this thread I listened with interest to the last fifteen minutes or so, and then sent in an after-the-fact email (as they requested), saying that many Americans, myself included, don't like Bush or his tactics any more than many Europeans do.

I agree with Alice, I thought that those who were against the war were given pretty much equal time. It didn't seem as though the calls were being screened or vetted to eliminate any perspective.

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 03:16 PM

The live broadcast is over, but the audio file archive will be available in an hour or so. The last two callers were a woman from the US who called Bush a warmonger and a man who is an Iraqi exile waiting to return after what he expects to be a US liberation. All in all, I found it a very interesting program to hear people's opinions and points of view from countries around the world.

Alice

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 03:13 PM

Quite true.

Alice

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: GUEST
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:49 PM

And yours Alice. We need to hear and listen with more than one set of ears to hear things. You will, I'm sure, hear things I won't hear, and vice versa.

BTW, that is also the reason why eyewitness accounts are so very tricky to use as corroborative evidence in a court of law. We all see and hear things very differently.

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:38 PM

Thanks for your opinion, Guest.

Alice

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Bobert
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:36 PM

Okay, Alice, I'll bounce over there between the Pacifica feeds into WPFW. Thanks fir pushing on me. I'm listening. You don't have to set me down in the corner. No mam...

Bobert

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: GUEST
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:36 PM

I didn't hear objectivity Alice, so maybe we need to politely disagree. As I said, I wasn't trying to be negative about you giving notice to the forum that this was on.

I'm pretty skilled at interviewing techniques, and I know hostile interviewers and confrontational interviewing when I hear them. I've also been on the "hot seat" while being interviewed by media people using these techniques.

It is important that we learn to make distinctions between what the media says they do, and the reality of what they actually do. Every journalism major is taught to do this sort of interviewing "to be objective". The problem is, being hostile and confrontational to interview subjects is not being objective or impartial. One must firmly take a position to engage in hostile and confrontational interviewing. The BBC commentator, in particular, seems to have done just that. I turned it back on after reading your post, hoping that it had improved. From what I'm hearing now, it hasn't.

But as I said, I am not trying to challenge you Alice, but to respectfully disagree with the way you are portraying the program commentators. And expressing my opinion.

It is tremendously important to hear what people around the world have to say about this issue, but I don't think they are being given an opinion forum to express their opinions. Rather, they are being "moderated" into a format that privleges the commentators over the callers. I've seen that dynamic used to hold dissenting opinions in check in public forums controlled by government and/or media for a long time too.

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:28 PM

From the voice of the callers who are speaking on this RADIO call in that is a joint program of the BBC and NPR, the people are calling from Turkey, Australia, France, all over the world. There is value to what the callers are saying, forget what the hosts are doing. They are trying to just be objective and are letting the people talk. What the callers and emails are saying is worthwhile to hear.

Alice

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Bobert
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:24 PM

PBS has gone further to the right since the Bush governemnt reminded them of where they get funding. The Diane Rheme show is a good example. It is not surprise to me that the peace folk are being harranged.

America is down to one source of non government manipulated information and that is the 5 Pacifia radio stations which are trying to hold on. I am listening to WPFW as I write but unfortunately this is it's pledge week and so I'm getting about 20 minutes per hour of live coverage from New York.

There is nothing on the TV worth watching I was flipping thru the 57 corporate owned sations and they are ignoring the largest day of preotest in the history of mankind... Normal...

Maybe C-SPAN will feel guity afterwards and throw us a few crumbs but I don't expect it. Those of you with satelites I think are seeing it? Anyone seeing it? Station?

Bobert

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:23 PM

I don't find them to be baiting the peace callers at all, and I've been listening to the program from the beginning. I think what you may here is the type of questioning that journalists have to do in order to be objective (which is their job) to bring out the pros and cons of an issue. It is very interesting to hear the voices of average people from around the world - that is more important to hear than to listen to the radio hosts.

Alice

Subject: RE: BS: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: GUEST
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:09 PM

Thanks Alice. I don't mean to sound negative, but I tuned in just to listen to this, but had to turn it off after four callers. The hosts were much too hostile to the peace activists, engaging in baiting behavior (reading "An Iranian's letter saying the peace activists were wrong and naive" and asking the caller to comment blind)...it was too damn manipulative for me to be able to tolerate.

The media, including the BBC and NPR, seem to want this war as badly as the politicians do. In the "lest we forget" department...wars boost ratings and create careers for the likes of Wolf Blitzer.

Subject: BS: Iraq the world speaks call & listen
From: Alice
Date: 15 Feb 03 - 02:03 PM

You can call or email to an international discussion on NPR web site right now. People from around the world are calling and emailing to discuss their views on Iraq and war and peace.

Listen here:

http://www.npr.org/news/specials/nprbbciraq/index.html