Keep Calm - And Complain!

The emotional turmoil generated by the calculated atrocity in New York on 11 September has left people feeling vulnerable and unsure.

In the main the print and broadcast media were exemplary in their coverage over first few days after the attack. But since then the pundits have been in overdrive.

A welter of confusing analysis and bellicose rhetoric has fuelled fear and anxiety, especially among children who cannot avoid the dreadful imagery that has accompanied so much of recent coverage. It should hardly come as a surprise that some bigots have embarked upon their own crusades against perceived 'enemies'.

Feelings whipped up against refugees and asylum seekers over the last few years have already led to murder, arson and assaults. The massacre in America, which affected citizens from 80 countries, threatens to further isolate and marginalize those who have sought sanctuary in Britain. British Muslims, and especially Afghanis and Pakistanis, have born the brunt of the backlash with attacks on mosques, physical assaults and verbal abuse.

By Tuesday 18 September the Mirror was urging 'Stop this Madness' as reports of random attacks increased. And the Commission for Racial Equality issued its own warning to the Press: "Journalists and editors must balance news value with the need to portray all communities in the UK fairly and avoid coverage which is based on racial stereotypes or unfounded misconceptions." 

The Daily Telegraph and the London Evening Standard were among papers reported to the Press Complaints Commission in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist outrage. Fifteen complaints were received that week.

Government ministers have begun to show a lead by seeking to distinguish between Islam and suspected terrorists, but Prime Minister Tony Blair’s ‘Breakfast with Frost’ (Sun 30 Sept) statement that the Government plans to examine asylum laws to "prevent possible abuse by terrorists" will heighten hostility towards refugees and asylum seekers.

As the ‘phoney war’ continues, time and space is being filled with speculation about Bin Laden supporters ‘in our midst’, chemical and biological warfare, and the consequences of military strategies. Afghan refugees are reported to be quitting the Red Cross Centre at Sangatte near Calais because of hostility from other inmates. And now we learn that a planned media appeal for funds to help with the refugee crisis spawned by threats of military action against Afghanistan may be put on ice for fear that the public will not respond!

All the more reason for the media to watch carefully the language and the messages they publish. And for members of the public to complain if they think coverage is overstepping the mark and inflaming public feeling. 

There is a natural tendency to remain silent rather than criticise when public feelings are inflamed by images of death and destruction, especially when a press-generated furore force the BBC was forced to apologise for allowing a live audience including British Muslims to express their views openly. But silence gives succour to those wishing to stoke up race hatred.

Mike Jempson, Director, The PressWise Trust

PressWise and the RAM project urges anyone who considers that newspaper stories, or radio and TV broadcasts might encourage attacks on innocent refugees, asylum-seekers, British Muslims or anyone else to Make and Immediate Complaint.

Addresses and contact numbers for all the media regulators can be found on our website. The PressWise Trust is available to help those who wish to complain, and is willing to intervene directly with editors.

The PressWise Trust

38 EBC, Felix Road, Bristol BS5 0HE, UK

Tel +44 (0)117 941 5889

Fax +44 (0)117 941 5848

Email: pw@presswise.org.uk

www.presswise.org.uk

www.ramproject.org.uk