MEDIA

Sudanese Internal Media

• 1998 Sudanese constitution guarantees freedom of expression; however, the National Press Council keeps a tight grip on the media

• Sudan’s court system is on the government’s side; it frequently upholds government decisions and jails or fines journalists

• Al Bashir has increased press censorship by declaring a “state of emergency” and suspending certain parts of the constitution in 1999

• There were many seizures, fines, imprisonments, etc. but no recorded torture or death.

• There is no “de facto” freedom of speech – a lot of it is self-imposed because journalists don’t want to lose their licenses

• Also, after a newspaper or journalist is suspended, they come back with a less critical approach

Sudanese Internal Media• There were 16 daily newspapers in Khartoum as of

November 2001 when Al Bashir lifted censorship on 12 of them hopefully a step in the right direction for their freedom of press, especially since that was at the height of the north-south conflict and from there everything got better because of the peace accords etc.

• Government has complete control over all broadcast media– o Radio– o Television– o Extreme Muslims want to ban the Internet

because they can’t control/censor it

• SUNA – official news agency, English, French, and Arabic

Foreign Press in Sudan• Foreign press is treated just like internal press –

detainment, harassment, fines, etc.• They also come under criticism from the international

community for various things, but the results are nowhere near as harsh.

• Media coverage is sparse because of drought & difficulty of travel brought on by the civil war and the genocide. Hard to travel between north and south and into Darfur

• It is difficult for the Sudanese as well as journalists to learn about the ethnic and religious differences between all of the different groups oversimplification, or just extreme difficulty in reporting.

Foreign Press in Sudan• In the past 2 months, the Sudan Tribune has published

4 stories about the censorship of the media (detained journalists, government crackdowns on the media, etc.) and 2 stories about violence directed at journalists.

• Recent crackdown on the media in order to conceal increased hostilities – Tuesday it “temporarily” stopped issuing permits for journalists to go to Darfur

• Reporters Without Borders (a media rights group) says that 15 journalists have been arrested and jailed long-term this year.

US Media Coverage

Network News Coverage of the Genocide in Sudan

Number of segments discussing each topic in June 2005

ABC CBS NBC CNN FOX MSNBC

Sudan 10 0 5 47 41 23

Runaway Bride 45 38 85 36 98 183

Michael Jackson

468 614 526 878 1753 2009

Tom Cruise

190 321 352 199 213 259

Source: www.beawitness.org

US Media Coverage

• Lack of interest because of fixation with celebrity

• Other international stories are more important• When is covered

– Sporadic– Oversimplified– Only concerns foreign victims or aid workers

• Responsibility of media to inform public?• Minutes of Network Coverage in 2004

– 18 from CBS, 5 from NBC, 3 from CBS (excepting ‘60 Minutes’) Source: Tyndall Report

MEDIA COVERAGE:RWANDA VS. DARFUR

RWANDA DARFUR

Times Cover article (wc) 533 2,764

Times Cover article (lc) 2, 685 13, 845

271

The Screamers for Darfur

• “The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” -George Bernard Shaw (Power 516)

• As Power illustrates in “A Problem From Hell” – America and the Age of Genocide, one of the most effective tools in preventing or halting a genocide is the presence of individuals whose passion and motivation is only equaled by the loudness of their voice, or as she calls them…“Screamers”(Powers 515)

Brian Steidle• Brian Steidle is an ex-marine and contributor to the

Washington Post who traveled to Darfur in September of 2004 with a coalition sent to enforce the ceasefire that was put in place after the war.

• After 6 months Steidle come to the realization that he could no longer, in good conscience remain silent.

• Upon his return from Darfur, Mr. Steidle wrote a descriptive and moving article for the Washington Post and released a number of compelling photographs.

• Mr. Steidle also testified before the House Committee on International Relations on March 17th of 2005, to view the complete transcript of his testimony click here. This testimony provides valuable first hand information about the situation on the ground in Darfur and displays Mr. Steidle’s proposal of how to stop the violence.

Nicholas D. Kristof• Nicholas Kristof is a well-known journalist for the

New York Times, who received a Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 2006, for his coverage of the tragic events occurring in Darfur. Since the conflict in Darfur began Kristof has written numerous articles on the situation on the ground and has visited the region on more than one occasion.

• Kristof’s voice being added into the equation is of great importance due to the fact that he such a renowned and respected journalists. Kristof has established himself long ago, first earning fame in his field for his coverage (in conjunction with his wife) of the pro-democracy movement in Tiananmen Square. For a detail biography of Kristof click here.

What are they screaming for?• Neither Kristof nor Steidle advocate for the use of

US troops on the ground in Darfur, Kristof say that “would be perceived throughout the Arab world as yet another misguided Neo-Con maneuver”(Or N. Rose).

• Both however, are in agreement that the best plan is for the U.S. and U.N. to help strengthen the African Union. Steidle made this argument when he appeared before the House Committee on International Relations informing stating, “this conflict can be resolved through weapons sanctions, a no-fly zone throughout Darfur and greater international support and an expanded mandate for the African Union”(Steidle).

Screaming in Vain?While the screams often go unheard or are only recognized after many years of persistent and tireless advocacy, making it very difficult for even the most devoted of individuals to actually halt genocide while it is occurring. However, with the increasing capabilities of the global mass media, especially that of the internet, it is becoming more and more possible for screamers to reach a vast audience and increasing the likely hood of inducing a shift in the priorities of the masses, which is the goal of any screamer.

Citations“Kind Words, But Not Much More.” Time Magazine. 16 May 1994. 4 Dec 2006

<http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,980732,00.html>

“The Tragedy of SUDAN” Time Magazine. 4 Oct 2004. 4 Dec 2006 <http://www.time.com/time/magazine/printout/0,8816,995247,00.html>

“Controls Tighten on Media and Aid Workers in Darfur.”  Sudan Tribune. 4 Dec 2006 edition.  <http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article18554>.

Amanda C. Quick.  Sudan Press, Media, TV, Radio, Newspapers. Thomson Gale 2006.  Retrieved 3 Dec 2006, from <http://www.pressreference.com/Sa-Sw/Sudan.html>

Kristof, Nicholas D. Interview with Or N. Rose. Tikkun. 4 Dec 2006 <http://www.tikkun.org/magazine/specials/article.2005-10-13.6394635676>.

Power, Samantha. "A Problem From Hell" America and the Age of Genocide. New York: Perennial, 2002.

Schuker, Daniel. "Nicholas Kristof." The Harvard Crimson 5 June 2006. 4 Dec 2006 <http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=513684>.

Steidle, Brian. Address. Committee on International Relations, Washington, DC. 17 Mar. 2005. 4 Dec. 2006 <http://www.internationalrelations.house.gov/archives/109/ste031705.htm>.

Steidle, Brian. "In Darfur, My Camera Was Not Nearly Enough." The Washington Post 20 Mar. 2005. 4 Dec 2006 <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A48943-2005Mar19.html>.