Category: Media

More On Carnival, CNMG, Copyright and Gayelle

February 17, 2010 by Taran Rampersad

When Edmund Gall first wrote about the de facto monopolization of Carnival broadcast rights in Trinidad and Tobago (read it!), he mentioned friend Mark Lyndersay's point that it was more about control than optimization. When I wrote about the issue last night, I took the same tack.

Is it the right tack? Some may not think so. Lets consider a parallel. Let us consider broadcast rights in sports.

In sports, media companies are granted rights to broadcast and rebroadcast a sporting event - be it the Olympics, the Super Bowl, cricket, tennis, etc. A key difference between carnival and sport is that sports broadcasts are typically of people getting paid to move a ball from one place to another. This is not to diminish their ability with balls - it is in fact because they are so good with moving balls around that they get paid. Carnival, on the other hand, has people who have paid to play mas (for foreigners, that means dancing and prancing in costumes some deem artistic).

Thus, the very basis of the parallel is skewed: Sports broadcasts are of people who are typically paid to play with balls. Carnival broadcasts are typically of people who paid to play themselves. The balls joke was too easy. {Read more}

Carnival, CNMG, Copyright and Gayelle

February 17, 2010 by Taran Rampersad

I would just like to point out that I'm supporting Gayelle here in Trinidad, that someone suing for coverage of what is labeled a cultural event is reprehensible.

I'd like to see everyone who was pictured or videoed under CNMG's copyright say that they signed a document stating that CNMG could exclusively display their images and videos for profit. Let me get this straight: people pay to play in bands, then the state owned enterprise CNMG takes the images of the people who spent money and profits from them?

Copyright. The government has taken a state owned corporation and made it in charge of commercial interests of Carnival - that's basically excising private enterprise and putting it in the hands of government. So the content that is owned by the State Owned Enterprise would belong to the government of Trinidad and Tobago which is supposed to be holding it in trust of the people of Trinidad and Tobago. What a brilliant way for the government to make money and assure more control of media in Trinidad and Tobago. A stupid tax with the capacity for censorship through a state run enterprise.

Hitler would be so proud! Not only getting the propaganda machine up but having the people subsidize it with their own spending on costumes, etc. {Read more}

Blackberry and Facebook Save Life?

January 25, 2010 by Taran Rampersad

Two newspaper articles cover the same thing: 

• Blackberry, Facebook Save Child's Life
• Sleeping child rescued from stolen vehicle

While it is unclear why a mother would leave a child in a running vehicle for any length of time, the word did apparently get out through a Blackberry. How Facebook was specifically involved remains unclear.

The discrepancy in the reporting between the Trinidad Express and Trinidad Guardian is worth exploring.

Why don't T&T media professionals check facts?

November 26, 2009 by Edmund Gall

Since leaving T&T about seven years ago, I've been relying mostly on T&T daily newspapers’ websites to keep abreast of local news.  Before leaving, I never used their websites; I preferred poring over the physical newspapers instead.  My transfer from the physical to the online versions of the news had an interesting side-effect: spotting errors is easier.

I'm not talking just about typos, or more correctly typographical errors, which include incorrect use of grammar and poor spelling.  These have been around for some time in the T&T media, I guess. Otherwise the late Undine Giuseppi wouldn't have been able to sustain her long-running English language column.  I've complained to the editors of both these dailies about this several times over the past few years, to little or no avail.  While egregious and frequent, typos can cause relatively little harm to the average reader.

No, I'm referring to the more dangerous kind: the factual errors.  These cover a range of forms.  I've observed simple ones, such as when reporters get the names of persons, organisations or events wrong.  For example, go search the websites for articles on the T&T men's cricket team's performance at the Airtel Twenty20 Champions League 2009 tournament. Several reporters kept calling it the IPL Champions League, when it was clearly not.  The IPL, or Indian Premier League, is a domestic cricket league in India and just one of the seven different leagues or countries worldwide represented at this Champions League tournament. {Read more}

Media, Social Media and Trinidad and Tobago: A New Twist

November 17, 2009 by Taran Rampersad

Edmund Gall has been asking some good questions and making good observations regarding media and social media in Trinidad and Tobago - 'Can The Dinosaurs of T&T Media Accept Change?' and 'Can The Media Do No Wrong?'   are worth reading. I agree with his observations for the most part because his observations are based on facts. And while I didn't have comment for his articles, I do have some things I want to add into the mix.

With a torrent of threads within Social Media itself regarding the reporter who was recently banned from Trinidad and Tobago Parliament, it seems as good a time as any to point out a few things.

Oddly, when people are discussing the ban of the reporter, they forget that the Media Association of Trinidad and Tobago recently demanded an apology of Minister Kennedy Swaratsingh - and why. That situation, barely covered here, became an issue because members of Parliament were avoiding the media.

They also seem to forget that there was a big uproar by the media about the potential licensing of journalists within CARICOM. CARICOM's response was that it was not discussing the licensing of journalists. I expect that, as a member of the Media Association of Trinidad and Tobago, people were dismayed at my lack of stance on the topic while it was a topic.

Now I'll mix these together.
{Read more}

Can the dinosaurs of T&T media accept change?

November 16, 2009 by Edmund Gall

Ms Kiran Maharaj, President of the T&T Publishers and Broadcasters Association (TTPBA) issued a call to T&T’s media professionals to unite to guarantee the industry’s survival in the face of advancing technology (e.g. social media).  This was made during her feature address at the TTPBA’s 6^th Annual Dinner and Awards Ceremony for Media Excellence (see story “Unity the key to survival” by Sean Nero, Trinidad Guardian, 16 Nov 2009).

Good on Ms Maharaj to raise the issue at this forum.  From what I've heard, most of the existing media leadership have no clue what social media is and how significant an impact it will have on their businesses.  Or how to make effective use of new technology at all.

The most interesting discussion would probably be on the topic of copyright.  In the online world, Creative Commons licensing is preferred, as the intention is to share and grow knowledge; in the offline world of traditional media, more restrictive licensing is preferred, as the intention is to sell information to grow income.  It will conflict - the US music industry's RIAA is an example of how to mess up your approach to new technology (search Google for thousands of articles on this, such as this EFF report).  If they intend to maintain shareholder value, TTPBA members may wish to start chatting with knowledgeable reps from the local advertising industry and perhaps the TTCS to understand their options.  And try to survey young people in T&T, nuh - if you're intending to sell papers beyond 2020, find out what teens think about that model of distribution. {Read more}

Can the media do no wrong?

November 14, 2009 by Edmund Gall

It's being reported today that our House of Representative's Privileges Committee has recommended that Newsday reporter, Andre Bhagoo, be banned for the remainder of this Parliament's session for being guilty of contempt of Parliament, arising from premature publishing in the Newsday of the activities of a House sub-committee before it reported its findings to Parliament (which contravenes both the Standing Orders and Erskine May Parliamentary Practice).

MATT has stated that it's a bit harsh, since the Newsday's editor has taken full responsibility for the act and apologised.  Apparently, similar acts have occurred before and the trend has been to accept the apology and move on.

This has led bloggers to criticise the government for the proposed action, as the Privileges Committee is comprised predominantly of PNM members.  Some bloggers have used this as an entry point to a discussion on fascism - see the comments following the article on the Guardian.  Some are calling for other media houses to boycott Parliament in protest.  Others see it as another example of the PNM's attempts to muzzle anyone who criticises it - apparently Mr Bagoo reports frequently on UDeCOTT issues.  Most see it as a threat to freedom of the press.

Here's the thing.  The Newsday has acknowledged that it did wrong.  So why is banning the reporter for the rest of the session (about a month, since the session ends 16 Dec 2009) being viewed as a threat to freedom of the press? {Read more}

Where Is The Information?

October 30, 2009 by Taran Rampersad

One of the problems I have with the local media is that, generally speaking, I don't think the public gets what it needs for informed discussion. When I glanced over the debacle over the '2 million dollar flag' on the Trinidad Guardian, I wondered where that figure magically sprang from.

Who said that the flag cost 2 million dollars? Where's the source? Was this number dreamed up at the taxi stand or the PTSC terminal? 

La Diva's comment was pure platinum. Go read it here.

I can understand when politicians don't answer questions - but publish the questions that they don't answer and say they didn't answer them. I can understand that sort of thing.

But what I cannot understand is why the media doesn't give the public more facts. Come on, bring us facts. That's what the media is supposed to do.

Suspects?

October 30, 2009 by Taran Rampersad

I saw the headline, Suspects Flooding Sando Hospital and wondered what the hell that was about. After all, the Trinidad Express main stories today are about a foiled kidnapping, a father accidentally shot by police and Cabinet making room for 24 more senior police.

So suspects flooding the San Fernando General Hospital seems pretty interesting. Are criminals now so afraid of the police that they are trying to practice medicine without a licence? What's going on?

Let me throw you a rope here. The full title of the article is Suspects flooding Sando hospital
3 in ICU for swine flu.  Really. So first, there are no 'suspects'. 

There are people who are afraid of possibly having the swine flu. Granted, I do think that it is a crime that the government and media are perpetuating the global fear locally - with little in the way of facts to support them.

But it isn't a crime to be afraid. So why on earth are they being called suspects on a day so heavy with police related headlines? Is it that some think we should arrest people with the swine flu? 

Seriously. Sometimes I wonder.

Media Callaloo: A New T&T Blog On Media

October 22, 2009 by Taran Rampersad

When I caught this comment on The Media and Social Media in Trinidad and Tobago On The Web: The Beetham Incident, I was struck by this particular part of the comment:

...I have discoveried that Trinidadians perfer to play "Farmville" than read. Social media in Trinidad is sad to say, but a mere means of gossip, complaining and entertainment. For the very few that actual use the medium as a stage to promote social change and discuss important issues I commend you.

The link was to a site I wasn't familiar with, so I followed it to Media Callaloo and found all 3 posts reminded me of two books that I have reviewed and have influenced how I view privacy on the Internet: The Future of Reputation and The Digital Person, both by Daniel Solove. Because of that, and because of its own flavor, I recommend taking a look at Media Callaloo - and keeping an eye on it. Where they take their ideas and observations should be interesting - and they're grounded in some good stuff to start with.