Pillow talk
Ever wondered why journalists don't name names when things go wrong in disaster relief? I found out yesterday at an event for journalists and aid agencies sponsored by Alertnet.
Daily Mail veteran hack Ann Leslie summed it up (to a sea of nodding heads): "Smaller agencies can be quite corrupt. But they've got the Jeep, they've got the plane, they've got the access - and we need them!"
And so the hacks don't expose them. It's as simple as that. She tried to temper it with, "Of course there's a cosy relationship but we don't just repeat what we've been told!" But I think that made it worse.
Now you know.
posted by David Pitchford @ 4:47 PM
5 Comments:
What do you expect from those type of people ? They'll be hugging people in Hoodies next.
Having been one myself (I'm assuming you're referring to journalists), I expect a good mix of pragmatism and accurate reporting. Very pleased to see that Paul Vallely names names on his 'Junk Statistics' article in The Indy
It's an interesting thesis, though not completely supported by the facts. For example, several newspapers have run news articles on recent evaluations of emergency responses to the Indian Ocean tsunami. This has included criticism both of aid agencies on the ground, and the work of the DEC in co-ordinating fundraising appeals. Going further back, there has been plenty of press coverage of how aid agencies in the Rwandan refugee camps in the mid-1990s unwittingly colluded with militia members who had mingled with refugees. I actually think that aid agencies' commitment to transparency about mistakes and failings has improved in recent years.
Also, you need to think about what kinds of standard to apply. If you're an agency trying to airlift several tonnes of emergency relief (blankets, shelters, water purification kits, medicines, food rations... stuff that will start saving lives within hours), and you unexpectedly are told you need to pay a $100 'fee'for a landing permit (or whatever), how long do you prevaricate while disputing the rights and wrongs of official corruption?
When you consider that the phrase 'chequebook journalism' has entered the language in the last decade or so, it's hardly time for the Press to start posing as the last bastion of incorruptibility, is it?!?
Thanks Mark. I have also read these articles. But were names named? I don't remember seeing any. It's safer and easier to generalise, and that's what tends to happen. This is aggravating, if not utterly offputting, to the petulant donor like me who wants to back the winning horses.
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