Censorship

[fountainhall]

Purely for interest, in the last few days the censors have quite literally had their fingers on the buttons. As soon as any news item on the BBC, CNN and Al Jazeera news sites starts with a mention of Thailand, it is blacked out in less than a couple of seconds.

[Up2U]

They're playing it safe..... the news items are usually about the royal succession.

[Oliver]

What's the situation with Facebook?

[Nirish guy]

Im not surprised, the BBC news site has been strangely "to the point" regarding the above matter and how it's all going down and why the delay and what really might be the reason etc ( they don't give an answer to that but are point blank openly asking the question now, whereas normally they've towed the line more or less so as not to cause offence, it appears now they're being a bit more " this needs to be said" type thing. And good on them for that - just a pity the people in Thailand will probably never get to read that though eh :(

[arsenal]

There are $30bn reasons why the army wanted to be in charge when the succession took place.

[gerefan2]

You think it was bad recently...wait until they have the funeral, then the coronation.
That will completely break the tourist industry in no time flat!

[latintopxxx]

Gerefan look at the plus side...there will be an abundance of cheap hotel deals....and lots of eager to please hosts awaiting...be a half glass full person...not a half empty...

[fountainhall]

You think it was bad recently...wait until they have the funeral, then the coronation.
That will completely break the tourist industry in no time flat!
I disagree. I think it will bring in a flood of tourists to see what all be truly unique and rarely seen events. Maybe short-haul more than long-haul.

[catawampuscat]

Gloom and doomers have been completely wrong so far..

[latintopxxx]

fountain...u really must live in lala land...really ...do u think people r gonna travel to thailand to participate in a funeral...what planet do u inhabit...or wtf r u smoking...I want some!!!

[scottish-guy]

I think there *will* be tourists who will travel short-haul to see the events, as Founty suggests - and many of those will be Thais from outside Thailand.

I don't think there will be *millions* - but who knows

[fountainhall]

do u think people r gonna travel to thailand to participate in a funeral...what planet do u inhabit...or wtf r u smoking...I want some!!!
You really are a joke Sexually Deviant Latin! It's not a funeral in the sense of either a western version or a normal Buddhist one.

Have you even the faintest idea what really happens? A massive funeral pyre will start to be constructed on Sanam Luang on January 10th and not completed until a month or two before the cremation at the end of next year. The pyre itself will be 50.49 meters tall and centred in a huge complex of other temporary teak structures. Many hundreds of thousands of people will come, many from overseas, long before the cremation actually takes place to inspect the constructions and watch the various elaborate processions beforehand.

4137
photo: Thanarak Khunton, Bangkok Post

No doubt you paid zero attention to the last amazing Royal cremations when the King's older sister Princess Galyani had another elaborate ceremony in 2008, or that of the Princess Mother in 1996.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5R1NT3l9DY

[frequent]

I disagree. I think it will bring in a flood of tourists to see what all be truly unique and rarely seen events.

Like Disneyland?

[Dalewood]

You really are a joke Sexually Deviant Latin! It's not a funeral in the sense of either a western version or a normal Buddhist one.

Have you even the faintest idea what really happens? A massive funeral pyre will start to be constructed on Sanam Luang on January 10th and not completed until a month or two before the cremation at the end of next year. The pyre itself will be 50.49 meters tall and centred in a huge complex of other temporary teak structures. Many hundreds of thousands of people will come, many from overseas, long before the cremation actually takes place to inspect the constructions and watch the various elaborate processions beforehand.

4137
photo: Thanarak Khunton, Bangkok Post

No doubt you paid zero attention to the last amazing Royal cremations when the King's older sister Princess Galyani had another elaborate ceremony in 2008, or that of the Princess Mother in 1996.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5R1NT3l9DY

Thanks for enlightening us. I dare say few people outside of Thailand saw either of those cremations, though I did hear about one of them.

[Couple]

Thanks for enlightening us. I dare say few people outside of Thailand saw either of those cremations, though I did hear about one of them.

I saw a documentary on it quite a while ago and from seeing that, it will be a big event now as it's the king himself this time.
I'm not going to travel there, but I can imagine Thai people doing so.

[latintopxxx]

fountainhall...last thing i want when on holiday is to be caught up in some never ending funeral ceremony...its their King let them mourn as per their fashion and custom. I actually think its a bit rude to treat it like some sort of entertainment, disrespectful. And no, I really cant see non Thais travelling to Thailand because of this, quite the opposite, its when one avoids being anywhere close, imagine the crowds. Its not songkran...

[latintopxxx]

But anyway...fountain u think its a must do..I dont...so yeah...whatever..

[fedssocr]

I think Jonathan Head has been on the edge of getting himself in trouble for quite some time. Perhaps he expects that since he works for the BBC he will be safe. For sure his reports on the succession have been quite frank so it's no surprise he's being blacked out.

I agree with Fountainhall. The funeral will be an enormous, historic event and it will draw some interest and tourists. I visited the crematorium and other buildings built for Princess Galyani's funeral. It's all very colorful and quite beautiful. I am hoping to see the one to be built for Rama IX before the cremation but since they haven't set a date yet, who knows. I booked a trip for early Nov next year.

[frequent]

I think Jonathan Head has been on the edge of getting himself in trouble for quite some time. Perhaps he expects that since he works for the BBC he will be safe. For sure his reports on the succession have been quite frank so it's no surprise he's being blacked out.

For reporting the truth? Surely not! Has anyone told arsenal?

[arsenal]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%A8se-majest%C3%A9

For frequent (the enemy within) who is clearly struggling to understand everything apart from his own long standing personal agenda.

[frequent]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%A8se-majest%C3%A9

For frequent who is clearly struggling to understand everything apart from his own (long standing) personal agenda.

Why do you assume I don't understand it? The topic of this thread is, after all, censorship

[arsenal]

So if you understand it why do you persist. What are you hoping for? What is your endgame?

[frequent]

So if you understand it why do you persist. What are you hoping for? What is your endgame?

Why does the BBC persist?

[arsenal]

I'm not asking about the BBC. I'm asking you directly. Why are you hoping to achieve? In short and bearing in mind your history under different handles what result are you aiming for?

[frequent]

I'm not asking about the BBC. I'm asking you directly. Why are you hoping to achieve? In short and bearing in mind your history under different handles what result are you aiming for?

What a bizarre question. Why would I be aiming for a "result"? Isn't sticking up for the truth sufficient?

[arsenal]

Dress it up how you like frequent. Only an absolute moron would fail to see what you're doing. One wonders what an innocuous message board must have done to you to warrant such childish nonsense. Anyway just like your previous self your time here is so clearly limited that you'r probably thinking about your next reincarnation.

[Surfcrest]

We avoid this topic out of respect for Thailand and Thailand's wishes with respect to that topic. Most everyone knows this very well and yet it continues to be brought up. Fortunately, what I'm reading in International publications on the topic comes no where close to what we've discussed here already on these two posts (one deleted) and the Protest thread. We are not based in Thailand and so I'm not concerned about us being shut down, but I am concerned about us being Blocked in Thailand again, because that was costly to navigate around. Costly for me. So I would kindly ask you all once again, have fun with any and every topic out there, but not this topic and nothing to do with anything underage.

Thank you

Surfcrest

[fountainhall]

I write this bearing in mind Surfcrest's concerns in the previous post. And I bring it up only because the topic has already appeared in The Nation newspaper and continues to appear on its on-line site.

As a result of the law of the land, censorship of the news in Thailand is understandable. Yet what, I wonder, is the purpose of censoring fishball eating contests and weather forecasts? I am not the only one to ponder this important issue. A letter published two days ago in The Nation highlighted exactly the same point. Here is part -


The other day I was watching CNN when a news clip started. It was about a fishball-eating contest somewhere in Thailand.

I anticipated an amusing little sequence that would feature happy locals gulping down fishballs, probably accompanied by snappy morlam music and dancing upcountry maidens. I was looking forward to seeing it when BANG! Down came the heavy hand of the junta, cutting off the sequence with the now-all-too-common notice, “Programming will return shortly.”

It did, but by then all the fishballs had been eaten . . . Is the junta so paranoid about criticism that they have to block every news item that even mentions Thailand?
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/opinion/letter_to_editor/30303754

The writer made a couple of much more scathing comments which I do not quote but which can be read in the above link.

Frankly I have no interest in fishball eating contests, but from time to time I do like to hear about the weather, the more so given it has been so erratic this year. Yet as soon as the CNN weather forecaster starts to talk about the flooding in the south, the signal is cut and that "Programming will return shortly” notice appears. Often it lasts for little more than 10 seconds. What makes this so seemingly stupid, it seems to me, is that the dreadful weather in the south has been so bad it is front page news for days in every news organisation not only in Thailand but also much of the world. I have no idea if this is a result of government instructions or self censorship by True Visions. Whoever, are they totally unable to distinguish between weather and political news when it is clear those with their fingers on the button are able to speak English well?

[arsenal]

Bad weather (in all countries) usually ends up being blamed on the government because they are usually very slow to react and when they eventually do their ability to do much is usually very limited. Think Hurricane Katrina, Tsunami Trump (I made that up), A light dusting of snow in The UK which brings the entire country to a standstill. But fishballs? Beats me.

[bkkguy]

are they totally unable to distinguish between weather and political news

perhaps the editor of the Bangkok Post can help you as to where to draw the line between the political and the merely meteorological - they did after all publish this as an op-ed piece rather than news:

Floods that shouldn't kill - Bangkok Post 11 Jan, 2017
http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1178001/floods-that-shouldnt-kill

bkkguy

[fountainhall]

The TV weather forecast is still being censored and there's yet another letter specifically about it in today's The Nation. I continue to wonder on whose behalf it is being censored when the news is so freely available everywhere else in the Kingdom!

[scottish-guy]

Putting the Thai situation to one side, I'm struggling with the idea being expressed that the BBC tells the truth.

You'll often find more impartial news reporting from Russia Today and Al Jazeera than you will from the BBC these days

:stop_mini:

[fountainhall]

I've all but given up watching the BBC News.

[Moses]

You'll often find more impartial news reporting from Russia Today and Al Jazeera than you will from the BBC these days

:stop_mini:

In comparing with CNN - BBC is true mirror.

Do you remember explosion in airport in Istanbul? BBC and Fox were the only big foreign mass-media which told to world what head of terrorist group been formerly Chechen from Russia who left Russia 15 years ago and had residence in Austria. Also they mentioned what Russia been searching for him over 12 years. The rest "honest-overhonest" medias cried: "Head of group of terrorist is Russian".

[arsenal]

Scottish wrote:
" You'll often find more impartial news reporting from Russia Today and Al Jazeera than you will from the BBC these days"

Would you care to give us some examples.

[Oliver]

Scottish is right; AL J nor RT aren't frightened of the Israel lobby. The BBC is so terrified that it refused to broadcast an appeal for the child victims of the "Cast Lead" attack on Gaza. Even the unspeakable Murdoch's Sky did .
In the last four years , it has appointed three extreme Zionists to senior posts to make sure that Tel Aviv is kept happy. It has become a by-word for cowardice.
Many of Al J's senior staff are ex-BBC people, trying to keep traditional values alive.

[latintopxxx]

funny thing this...the only county where gays can live freely...so freely that even arabs occasionally seek asylum there and a whole bunch of venomous creeps are trying to pry open the gas chamber doors...

[scottish-guy]

Scottish wrote:
" You'll often find more impartial news reporting from Russia Today and Al Jazeera than you will from the BBC these days"

Would you care to give us some examples.

BBC is the only broadcaster under law not to be regulated by OFCOM for bias, instead they regulate themselves.

You'll find lots of examples of BBC lying and propaganda here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_controversies

[arsenal]

OK Scottish, fair points. However the BBC is supposed to be unbiased according to its charter but no other organisation has that obligation. I have always found Al Jazeera to be a very good if rather dry news channel.

[scottish-guy]

Yes the BBC has a Charter obligation to be unbiased - but judgements on whether its Charter has been breached are taken by the BBC Trust who rely for their existance on (guess who) the BBC.

[arsenal]

For sure the BBC gets it wrong sometimes. But for what the license fee costs and for what you get I think the BBC is the best value for money product in the world.

[Moses]

For sure the BBC gets it wrong sometimes. But for what the license fee costs and for what you get I think the BBC is the best value for money product in the world.

Reuters and Bloomberg have better quality products...

unfortunately they aren't in broadcasting worldwide, also they aren't cheap