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BBC Media Bias Against Iran Investigated

CampaignIran | 05.01.2007 15:25 | Anti-militarism

The BBC and Ofcom, the regulator for the UK communications industries, will investigate alleged bias by the BBC following a large number of complaints received following a panel discussion on Iran broadcast on Radio 4 this week.

The programme, Decision Time broadcast on 3rd January, was looking at the political current situation in Iran and took as its starting point that Iran was developing nuclear weapons. The question of what should be done to stop Iran was put to an invited panel of experts, none of whom challenged the unproven allegation that Iran has a nuclear weaponisation programme. The panel, comprising Sir Malcolm Rifkin, Sir Jeremy, Greenstock, Sir Steven Wall, Reuel Marc Gerecth (ex CIA adviser) and George Pascoe-Watson (political editor of the Sun) were all in favour of punitive action against Iran, ranging from sanctions to military intervention.

Campaign Iran, an international campaign group opposed to sanctions and military intervention in Iran, requested a right of reply to correct the one-sided nature of the programme, but this was refused and the matter passed to the BBC complaints department and Ofcom. Peter Mulligan, producer of Decision Time, said that the decision not to include anyone with an opposing point of view was “not an oversight” but declined to say more pending the findings of the BBC and Ofcom investigations.

Professor Abbas Edalat of Campaign Iran, said today:
“An impression is being created that by enriching uranium Iran is defying the reasonable demands made by the rest of the world. In fact Iran is exercising its legal and inalienable right to pursue civilian nuclear technology. There is no evidence whatsoever that Iran has any nuclear weapons programme. The recent Resolution, forced through the by UN Security Council, is helping to create a false impression that Iran is in breach of its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. This false impression is being reinforced by the mainstream media and by failing to invite panelist from both sides of the argument Nick Robinsons’ Decision Time was in clear breach Section 7 of Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code requiring impartiality.

During the build-up to the invasion of Iraq, the media cravenly failed to adequately challenge the ‘conventional wisdom’ that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. We must be vigilant against similar inaccuracies being used to prepare the path for intervention against Iran, and we call on Ofcom and the BBC to safeguard the integrity and accuracy of our press and to ensure balanced reporting on Iran in the future.

To add your complaint visit  http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints/

For more information visit www.campaigniran.org
Contact: Professor Edalat on 0207 2292375
Press Office: 0797163005 or 07799650791

CampaignIran
- e-mail: stefan@campaigniran.org
- Homepage: http://www.campaigniran.org

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The Money trail

05.01.2007 18:16

I'm sure that Campaign Iran, a group formed and financed by the government in Tehran will be providing a full and fair opposing viewpoint.

Whe will it get through the heads of some here that Iran represents a threat to peace in the Middle East

frustrated


boom

05.01.2007 18:31

If you expect us to believe Iran is not working on a bomb then you must think us very naive.

The current enrichment process is not necessary if you just want to build a reactor. For nuclear power, only low level enrichment is needed.

sceptic


fuk

05.01.2007 21:13

is iran going to do with one bomb against the US?Dare it use it?It would be wiped off the map.

Whatda


Anyone who thinks

05.01.2007 21:25

Is anti-semitic.

Anyone who does not want to bomb Iran (a country of mixed persian & semitic peoples) is an anti-semite.

So, bomb the shit out of the Iranians and reduced their country to the stoneage otherwise you hate jews (who incidently want you to bomb the shit out Iran anyway).

septic


why?

05.01.2007 23:37

The last comment by septic is offensive and this persons post is wrong and i think it breches indie media guidlines and proves they are a nazi fascist! Why have the hypocracy of isreal having 200 nukes but iran none? no one should have nukes all should be dimantled before complaining of other countries geting nukes.


Also commenting on the main artical i have noticed before that on BBC panel tv and radio programes regularly have 3 or 4 people with almost the same view point and not a balance of opinions this is obviosly unacceptable.

free


Knowing they are making a Bomb

06.01.2007 00:55

... is no excuse for bombing them. It's something we'll all have to live with. But I hardly think that yet another country having nuclear weapons is going to add to the peace and stability of the world.

sceptic


never going to happen

06.01.2007 03:01

First comment is right - of course they are developing weapons. When they say they only want it for civilian power, it's like drug-using athletes saying they must have been spiked.

They will develop nukes for the same reason that Britain just renewed Trident - the ego of the country's leaders and a hope for increased influence on the world stage.and regional status quo. The question is, who are we to stop them? I don't liike the idea of nuclear proliferation one bit, but my country just proliferated, so to speak. It would be like stepping out of a Ferrari to slap a "no SUVs!" sticker on a jeep.

And anyway - Sharon was a total monster with nukes and managed not to use them, so hopefully Iran wouldn't either.

Oli


Sceptic Media

06.01.2007 09:32

I can't understand what this Sceptic dude is doing on Indymedia, surely this person could find
a nice cosy spot somewhere in between the the Sun and the Daily Mail where he/she/ it can lay his
mainstream corporate media veiws on people of the same ilk.
Iran has been No 1 enemy of the free trading west since they booted out the Shah.
Like Bob explained in "Guiltiness" These are the big fish that always try to eat down all the small fish.
Of course Israel (rogue nuke state) is one of the shoal of big fish that will be looking to grab as much as they
can from Iran and other neighbours in the up and coming hostilities.
Bob goes on to say . "an I tell you what they would do anything to meke realize their every wish "
Anyone who why are the United Masons not laying sanctions on Israel ? hasn't
read the script and therefore doesn't know that Israel are with the goodies and Iran I'm afraid
are the baddies, to put it into the moron Bush speak -

Iran is the next small fish


Israeli General urges US-Israel strike against Iran

06.01.2007 20:16

In a stark statement published on Saturday Brigadier General Oded Tira observed, "President Bush lacks the political power to attack Iran. As an American strike in Iran is essential for our existence, we must help him pave the way by lobbying the Democratic Party (which is conducting itself foolishly) and US newspaper editors. We need to do this in order to turn the Iranian issue to a bipartisan one and unrelated to the Iraq failure."

Because of the dramatic loss of political power of the Bush-Cheney administration, General Tira urges the Israel Lobby to, "turn to Hillary Clinton and other potential presidential candidates in the Democratic Party so that they support immediate action by Bush against Iran."

In another move designed to strengthen Bush politically, General Tira urges the Israel Lobby to exert its influence on European countries so that, "Bush will not be isolated in the international arena again."

As if all of that Israel-lobbying in America and Europe were not enough, General Tira proposes an even more aggressive political tactic, "We must clandestinely cooperate with Saudi Arabia so that it also persuades the US to strike Iran. For our part, we must prepare an independent military strike by coordinating flights in Iraqi airspace with the US. We should also coordinate with Azerbaijan the use of airbases in its territory and also enlist the support of the Azeri minority in Iran. In addition, we must immediately start preparing for an Iranian response to an attack."

Based on the urgency of General Tira's extraordinary pleas, it is immediately apparent that he has been shocked by the turn of political events inside America. By this time, he has learned from official US sources that the long-anticipated attack against Iran has been shelved because of tectonic shifts in American politics.

Apparently, General Tira did not realize that President Bush has become the most deeply unpopular president in American history and that it was his subservience to the dictates of the Israel Lobby and its demands for wars against Iraq and Iran that led him into the political prison where he now finds himself isolated and impotent.

Neither does General Tira realize that the Republican Party is no longer unified in its support of President Bush's deeply unpopular war in Iraq or his plans for expanding the war by a sustained bombing campaign against Iran. Since General Tira did not publish any remarks about the Iraq Study Group headed by former US Secretary of State, James Baker, he may be oblivious to the political facts now in place in 2007 America.

Instead of the bipartisan commitment to broaden Bush's unpopular war as General Tira proposes, there is now a broadening bipartisan movement to reign in the US losses in Iraq. No major American politician has voiced any enthusiasm for broadening Bush's war into Iran as General Tira beseeches the US to do.

General Tira's outburst suggests that the official channels for news and the analysis of public affairs in Israel are not working as efficiently as they should in the 21st century. Perhaps, someone should provide the General with a subscription to Ha'aretz and the International Herald Tribune for starters.

Michael Carmichael
- Homepage: http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=CAR20070101&articleId=4271


Everyone Welcome

06.01.2007 21:59

Surely the purpose of indymedia is to engage in discussions on current real issues (ie mostly the ones that the mainstream media dont show) It's a good thing that people from different political backgrounds know about indymedia and engage in these discussions. its should be encouraged for every1 to discuss/debate these issues. However going round in circles with basic arguments juust to try to disprove an article here should not be taken seriously. I wont mention any names as it might lead to SCEPTICism and disillusionment on behalf of the SCEPTICists who are too SCEPTICal of all the less-SCEPTIC audience here. If indymedia was only accessed by left wingers it would either mean that the world has become left wing, or its not doing its job properly as the alternative perspective for people with too many unanswered questions from the mainstream.

Just a thought

...


Israel 'has plan for nuclear strike on Iran'

07.01.2007 12:46



Israel has drawn up secret plans to use low-yield nuclear weapons to knock out Iran's uranium enrichment facilities, it was claimed last night.

According to a report in The Sunday Times, two Israeli air force squadrons are training to use nuclear "bunker busting" bombs to demolish Iran's heavily guarded enrichment programme. Israeli military commanders are said to believe that conventional strikes may not be sufficient to wipe out Iran's enrichment facilities, some of which are built beneath 70ft of concrete and rock.

Under the plans conventional laser-guided bombs would open tunnels into the targets and then mini nuclear weapons would be fired, exploding deep underground. The nuclear-tipped, bunker-busting bombs would only be used if a conventional attack was ineffective, or if the US, which also wants to halt Iran's nuclear programme, fails to act. The leaking of the "plans" may well be designed to apply pressure on the US.

Israel has already made it clear that it does not want to allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons. It fears for its own safety after the Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, said: "Israel must be wiped off the map."

Israel is said to have identified three prime targets south of Tehran, including Nantanz, where facilities are being installed for uranium enrichment underground. Israeli pilots are believed to have flown to Gibraltar recently to train for the 2,000-mile round trip to Iran.

A spokesman for the Israeli embassy in London said last night that Israel preferred to use diplomatic means to end Iran's nuclear enrichment programme. "We have an unchanged policy position on the Iranian nuclear issue. Israel prefers this issue to be resolved through diplomatic channels," he said. "We cannot comment on any other scenario."

Marie Woolf (repost)
- Homepage: http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article2132596.ece


bsbc

10.01.2007 06:06

Hey,

Why are you guys so naive as to suppose that the British (state) Broadcasting Corporation is in some way independent from the British state as such? Of course the BBC is the voice of the British establishment and the British state. Why pretend otherwise?

krs


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