Media Freedom on trial amid political mire

Following the campaign of criticism launched by top-ranking officials against Lebanese TV channels’ coverage of the latest security incidents mainly those related to the 11 Lebanese abductees in Syria, the National Audio-Visual Media Council will be holding a meeting Friday at noon in the presence of Information Minister Walid Daouk, audio-visual institutions’ CEOs, heads of news department and administrators, to discuss the situation of the media, and consequently take appropriate measures.       

According to An-Nahar Daily, Daouk will remark on the performance of both LBCI and Al Jadeed TVs coverage of the Lebanese abductees’ case. If the channels accept the remarks, Daouk will consider the case done, but should the channels stick to their positions, legal measures will be taken against them.     


Sheikh Pierre Daher’s response:     

In response to the political “objection”, the CEO of the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International, Sheikh Pierre Daher, asked via An-Nahar Daily: “Did our teams act in an irresponsible way? Did they take to the streets to kidnap people and commit unacceptable acts of war?”      

“We will prepare security dossiers with serial numbers for all cameras and their origins since they undermine the state’s integrity, and we will call on an impartial team to see which security apparatus will investigate in the case”, Daher mockingly added.     

“Were the al-Mokdad Clan among others invited to the meeting as well, or is it just us?” Daher asked, adding “we refuse to participate in the meeting without representatives of al-Mokdad Clan and other clans in Lebanon and abroad, and we pledge to air the meeting live if they show up”.   

On the prospect of LBCI losing its broadcasting license, Daher said: “We will launch a military wing”. In response to a question on the impact of the fierce competition between LBCI and al-Jadeed on the loss of media restrictions, Daher asked “Did the two channels kidnap the hostages to later bask in a media scoop?”    


Stance of Maryam al-Bassam:     

For her part, the head of the news department and political shows in al-Jadeed TV, Maryam al-Bassan, stressed that the media is dissatisfied with politicians and the whole political performance, “since the state has no prestige”. Al-Bassam added that if the state wants to re-acquire its prestige then it cannot do so via the media”.            

“Defending the freedom of media is a mission in itself, and competition proves that Lebanon has a healthy media scene. It is the media’s job to chase after the fate of the Lebanese hostages at a time when the government remains absent” she said. “If it [state] doesn’t want to enter the house of the Mokdad family or to use its security grip to curb assailants, we will take on that role; we are doing our job as media professionals, unlike the state” she added.       


L’Orient Le Jour’s Ghorayeb, LU’s Media Chief’s response:   

L’Orient Le Jour’s editorialist Issa Ghorayeb stressed that the freedom of media and “the word” should take center stage, adding that while there may be some defects in the media’s performance, they would not have happened had the government been present.    

As for the Lebanese University’s Head of Journalism Department, Georges Sadaka, he reiterated that it is the media’ job to shed light on groups that are taking into hostage innocent civilians, especially in light of the “silence of the state”.