I have been reporting on al-Jazeera’s hopes to launch a new international channel, as well as U.S. pressure on al-Jazeera. The Guardian is reporting:

“The Gulf state of Qatar is considering privatizing its satellite TV channel, al-Jazeera, because of pressure from the U.S .and a de facto advertising boycott by Arab countries offended by its critical coverage.

“Reporters at the station fear that if the channel is privatized, commercial pressures could force it to tone down its coverage.”

http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,14173,1470981,00.html

This story is a bit confusing because al-Jazeera is already a private company that has been operating on loans from the Emir of Qatar. It is not owned by the State. More to come…

POPE THANKS MEDIA

EJC reports:

“Pope Benedict XVI showed off his language skills in a meeting with journalists, but made clear he was not a carbon copy of his media-minded predecessor, Pope John Paul II. The new Pope, reading prepared remarks in four languages, thanked journalists for their coverage of the ‘historically important’ events during the papal transition, urged them to remember their ethical responsibilities and said he hoped to continue his predecessor’s tradition of openness with the media.”

http://www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/LondonFreePress/News/2005/04/24/1010387-sun.html

ISRAEL RIGHT UNHAPPY WITH BRITAIN

The Jerusalem Post reports:

“Israeli officials have expressed dismay that BBC reporter Orla Guerin, who has come under sharp attack for what some perceive as an anti-Israeli bias in her coverage, will receive an MBE honor from the British government for ‘outstanding service to broadcasting.’

“Diaspora Affairs Minister Natan Sharansky, who last year wrote a formal letter of complaint to the BBC over Guerin’s coverage, said it is a pity that the absence of anti-semitism is not a criteria.”

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1114322084286

AS GIULIANA BLASTS PENTAGON REPORT

The New York Times reports today:

“The United States ambassador to Rome, Mel Sembler, met twice with Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his top aide at the government’s headquarters to try to avert a crisis that could cost the United States one of its staunchest European allies in the Iraq conflict.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/27/international/europe/27italy.html?oref=login

ITALIAN HOSTAGE BLASTS PENTAGON REPORT

“An Italian journalist who was held hostage in Iraq has criticized a U.S. military report into the killing of the agent who helped secure her release. Secret agent Nicola Calipari was shot by U.S. forces as he escorted Giuliana Sgrena to Baghdad’s airport.

“U.S. investigators were reported to have found the troops ‘not culpable’ in a report which Italy has not endorsed.

“Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi refused to comment because he said the inquiry was not complete. Berlusconi apologized to the Italian legislature for what he called ‘an unfortunate leak’ suggesting that the investigation was completed. He said contacts were continuing with U.S. officials to try to reach agreement on what happened.

“Ms. Sgrena described the conclusion of the leaked report as a ’slap in the face’.

“‘The greatest disappointment would be if our authorities were to accept this insult without reacting,’ Ms. Sgrena wrote in a front page editorial in her newspaper, Il Manifesto. ‘All the words said about Calipari would turn into hypocrisy… and Nicola would have been our government’s hero, just for one day.’

“At the Pentagon, meanwhile, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld later told reporters: ‘My latest information is that [the investigators] have not come to a final agreement on a joint report. It was done together [with the Italians], intimately, and I think that we’ll just have to wait and see what they come out with.’”

“The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force Gen. Richard Myers, said the conclusions of the investigation were expected to be released in Iraq at an unconfirmed date.

“Although Berlusconi has been a staunch U.S. ally in the conflict in Iraq, the war is very unpopular with the Italian people. A report exonerating the soldiers involved in the shooting could prove inflammatory in Italy, and damaging to Berlusconi, BBC News reports.

“Correspondents say attempts may be made to agree on a mutually acceptable version before the report is published.

“A U.S. army official said Monday that they still disagree over the speed at which the vehicle approached the checkpoint where the shooting occurred and how much communication there was between those in the car and the checkpoint guards.

‘The United States is ready to release the report but Italy has more questions,’ the official said.

“The U.S. military said the car carrying Calipari was speeding as it approached the temporary checkpoint in western Baghdad. They said the soldiers used ‘hand and arm signals, flashing white lights and firing warning shots’ to get the driver to stop.

“Ms. Sgrena, who was hurt in the incident, said the car had not been speeding and that there was no warning before the troops opened fire, reports BBC News.

“The U.S. military said it had had no knowledge of the rescue mission, dismissing as ‘absurd’ Ms. Sgrena’s suggestion that her car was deliberately targeted.

“Just after the incident, she said it was possible the soldiers had targeted her because Washington opposed the policy of negotiating with kidnappers.

“‘The soldiers were only complying with the standard operating procedures for those checkpoints, so therefore are not culpable to dereliction of duty [charges],’ the U.S. army official told Reuters news agency. ‘Everybody feels terrible about it,’ he said.

“The soldiers involved will reportedly face no disciplinary action.”

http://freeinternetpress.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=3467

OPPOSITION WANTS DEEPER PROBE

Reuters reports:

“Opposition parties united in condemning the reported findings as an attempt to whitewash the case.

“‘A unilateral conclusion absolving anyone of blame that the Italian side does not accept is an insult to the truth and to the memory of Nicola Calipari and a serious act of arrogance toward Italy,’ one opposition lawmaker, Giuseppe Fioroni of the center-left Margherita party, said in a statement.

“Sgrena, a veteran war correspondent for the communist newspaper Il Manifesto who was wounded in the shooting, called the findings ‘a slap in the face’ and again alleged that Calipari had been killed deliberately.

“‘Nicola Calipari was murdered. Don’t use the word “accident”. Now we want the truth and we want to know who gave the order to open fire on that car,’ she told a news conference.

“The report was the latest in a series of U.S. military investigations into the killing of civilians by American forces in Iraq to have found no wrongdoing.

“The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called for ‘a thorough and credible investigation’ and said Italian-U.S. disagreement on the probe was troubling.

“‘The failure to reach an agreement would be a missed opportunity to address the serious issue of safety for civilians — including members of the press — at U.S. checkpoints,’ CPJ Executive Director Ann Cooper said in a statement.”

http://english.epochtimes.com/news/5-4-26/28202.html

AP reports:

“One report said Italians on the panel were refusing to sign off on the U.S. conclusions. Italian state TV said both sides were trying for last-minute mediation to reconcile “contrasting versions” by Italian and U.S. investigators of the shooting.”

http://www.boston.com/dailynews/115/world/News_reports_say_Italy_U_S_dif:.shtml

WHEN PAPARAZZI GO BERSERK

British wire services:

“Aides raised the matter with the Press Complaints Commission after Harry was snapped on safari with girlfriend Chelsy Davy.

“Paddy Harverson, communications secretary to the Prince of Wales, claimed the vehicle carrying the photographers was driven dangerously and put the 20-year-old royal at risk of being involved in an accident.

“It allegedly followed alongside the Prince’s jeep on a bumpy dirt track before pulling in front of Harry and his girlfriend’s car.

“The pictures of Harry and Chelsy were printed in two national newspapers — the Daily Mail and The Sun.”

http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=4459767