Ethics and Freedom

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee ruled on Thursday that English daily The Pioneer had committed breach of privilege by publishing a "grossly libellous" article earlier this month, but did not take any action, saying it would be "beneath the dignity" of the House to take further note of "motivated imputations". "I believe that the disapprovation by large sections of this Hon'ble House, of the...

When George Freeman, assistant general counsel for the New York Times, makes his way to his office at the Times' Manhattan headquarters, his colleagues usually raise the same topic of conversation: Judy Miller. As one of the attorneys working on Miller's behalf, Freeman says his co-workers are never-ending in their curiosity about the case. "People ask me about it every day, on the elevator...

HYDERABAD: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy yesterday said journalists were not above the law and asked them to stop interviewing Maoist guerrillas, which he said was a crime. Shocked and anguished at the killing of senior Congress legislator C Narsi Reddy and eight others by Maoists on Independence Day, he said journalists interviewing Maoists were committing a "major crime"...

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said on Tuesday that he will give his ruling this week on the breach of privilege notice against the author and the daily Pioneer, containing critical references against him. Raising the issue during the Zero Hour, Devendra Prasad Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal said the issue should be referred to the privileges committee since a deliberate attempt had been...

New Delhi, 12 August (asiantribune.com): Notwithstanding the sudden dip in the relations between the two countries, and the daily accusations of infiltration from across the border into Kashmir, India would like to keep the ‘news channels’ open with Pakistan. There is a ban on Indian TV news channels in Pakistan besides the channels that dish out sitcoms daily. That has not prevented people from...

There being precious little enlightenment on the subject in Marxist literature, it is instructive to look to Westminster for guidance on parliamentary practice. More so, at a time the Lok Sabha Speaker says it is "grossly defamatory" to suggest his decisions are politically-influenced and CPI(M) MPs move privilege motions against those who dare argue otherwise. In October 2001, the British...

NEW YORK The board of The American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) has voted unanimously to not endorse an earlier decision to give a Conscience in Media award to jailed New York Times reporter Judith Miller, E&P has learned. The group's First Amendment committee had narrowly voted to give Miller the prize for her dedication to protecting sources, but the full board has now voted to not...

Out of excuses? It sure seems like it. In the not-too-distant past, journalism sages, columnists and otherwise rational old people were quick to condemn the ethically lax, morally inept, not-able-to-handle-the-pressure-of-the-big-time "kids these days" as the root of the plagiarism and fabrication problem. Young journalists--whom one newspaper columnist I interviewed defined as anyone under the...

Ken Paulson strolled across the stage, a wireless mike in his hand and an affable expression on his face. I'd heard his style at monthly staff meetings compared to both Phil Donahue's and Mister Rogers'. When I attended one in June, the editor of USA Today didn't take off his shoes, wear a cardigan or sing about the beautiful day in the neighborhood. But he did flash PowerPoint pictures (to oohs...

New Delhi: Urging the country’s media houses to professionalise and institutionalise the concept of press freedom, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said that visibility and multiplicity of publications did not automatically guarantee credibility, and that there was a need to project the Fourth Estate in a more transparent manner. Daily News and Analysis (DNA) newspaper here this morning...