[cb editorial note: a bit bothersome but no real surprise as AlJazeera moves into it’s “new community” in NYC.] <\/p>\n
Al Jazeera Changes Plan to Rerun Documentary
\nTuesday, August 9, 2011 – The New York Times
\nBy Brian Stelter<\/p>\n
Al Jazeera English has quashed several planned rebroadcasts of \u201cShouting in the Dark,\u201d an hourlong documentary about Bahrain\u2019s crackdown on pro-democracy protesters that had its debut last week and brought complaints from Bahraini authorities.<\/p>\n
The decision this week to halt the repeats raised concerns among Al Jazeera\u2019s staff members that the channel was succumbing to political or diplomatic pressure from Bahrain and its ally Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n
In response to inquiries by The New York Times, a spokesman for Al Jazeera said Tuesday that the documentary would be rebroadcast on Thursday and would be paired with a round-table discussion.<\/p>\n
The episode illustrates the thorny issue of independence for Al Jazeera, one of the world\u2019s biggest satellite news organizations, which is financed by the emir of Qatar and is perceived by some people to be a diplomatic tool of the country. Al Jazeera insists that the Qatari government does not interfere in the network\u2019s editorial operations.<\/p>\n
Al Jazeera\u2019s Arabic and English language channels both came under scrutiny in February and March for their coverage of Bahrain, an island kingdom just north of Qatar in the Persian Gulf. Viewers perceived that the Arabic channel, in particular, paid less attention to the Bahraini protests than it did to the earlier protests in Tunisia and Egypt. Qatar joined Saudi Arabia in sending troops into Bahrain to violently quell the protests in March.<\/p>\n
Bahraini authorities helped to limit news coverage of the crackdown by blocking journalists from entering the country and expelling some who were already there. …more<\/a><\/p>\n