By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, April 29 -- What is UN Television and why and under what rules does it show outside-produced propaganda shows?
That UNTV produces its own propaganda had become a UN fact of life.
It produces shows like "21st Century," paying its hosts how much it will not say, to describe for example its good works in Haiti without mentioning that it brought cholera there, killing over 7,000 people.
But why does UNTV repeatedly show outside shows, most recently one in which UN Correspondents Association president Pamela Falk gushes about the overthrown of Gaddafi in Libya and claims that UNCA is a "trade association of all the correspondents of the United Nations"?
That claim is patently false, and Pamela Falk - or Pamela False, her new name -- knows it. Back on February 22, in an on the record session in front of the official who run UNTV, Stephane Dujarric, Falk screamed at Inner City Press not to write about her, and not to dare write to her employer, CBS. (She would, however, send Inner City Press a censorship threat from her CBSNews.com e-mail address.)
Now she has appeared in an “interview” with Global Connections Television, a venue which says its interviews “UN agencies and their ambassadors.” Again, which one is Falk?
After Falk filmed the segment on April 3, multiple sources told Inner City Press she demanded in advance no questions about the Press or the Free UN Coalition for Access. Inner City Press wrote about that on April 4, here.
Global Connections was asked, back then, for a review copy of the show. None was provided. Now it is online, and is being broadcast propaganda style in the UN's lobby.
So on April 29, Inner City Press asked the Department of Public Information's chief -- who was himself interviewed by Global Connections Television's Bill Miller earlier this year, a seemingly conflict of interest causing segment we have yet to review -- to provide FUNCA "a similar 15 minute broadcast slot on UNTV. Please say when (soon) or explain why now, and the applicable content neutral rules."
The response came from, who else, Dujarric. Instead of explaining any rules, or why this propaganda is on UNTV, he snarked "If you would like to appear on Bill Miller's show, you should contact him directly."
That is obviously not the point. Rather, why is UNTV showing (repeatedly) an outside show, which is now promoting UNCA, which sought to get media thrown out of the UN?
FUNCA noted to DPI's chief with its request for rules, "the broadcast on UNTV also again raised the question of DPI's lack of impartiality or of allowing space for more than a one party system."
As noted, earlier t
his month, Dujarric threatened Inner City Press about a single tweet that mentioned World War Two and UN Peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous who owes his JOB to France's veto power won in WW2.
Dujarric has refused to explain how photos taken during a non-consensual raid of Inner City Press' office on March 18 were leaked to BuzzFeed on March 21, right after that publication contacted Ban's spokesman with questions about the raid. We will continue to push on all this. Watch this site.
Dujarric is UNCA's main supporter (and even an opponent of anything more than a one party system) and here are just a few reasons. Dujarric complained when Inner City Press published audio of UNCA president Pamela Falk screaming in an on the record meeting, audio here and here. What next? Watch this site.
