CNN refused access to Red Mosque in Pakistan

Reporters Without Borders has condemned the decision of the Pakistan government to ban access to the Red Mosque to journalists from the US network CNN. While nearly 200 Pakistani and foreign journalists were on 12 July 2007 allowed inside the mosque complex in Islamabad, where fighting between the Army and the Islamic militants inside left nearly 100 people dead, journalists from the Atlanta-based channel were kept away.

The decision to discriminate against CNN staff followed a broadcast on the channel on 7 July of a documentary entitled "The threat within", which dealt with the presence of the Taliban and al-Qaeda inside Pakistan. A crew from CNN was also refused access to a press conference given by the Pakistani prime minister on 10 July.

Source: IFEX

User comments

"CNN not allowed into Red Mosque"

Author: Green Views

Time: 24.07.2007 20:31

Comment: Hundreds of journalists were allowed into the mosque. ARYOneWorld (Pakistani 24 hour news channel), Geo, and Aaj TV (24 hr Pakistani news channel) provided superb live reporting all through the past several weeks. CNN did not.

Here are my personal opinions about CNN. CNNs reporting on the invasion of Iraq and the invasion of Afghanistan has been atrocious. It's propaganda on Afghan women was demonizing. CNN is not showing the misery of Afghan women today.

CNN does not have Muslim or Pakistani reporters and does not allow the Pakistani point of view to be aired. It constantly brings on the bigots on the air. CNN can buy/borrow footage from any of the 50 Pakistani channels, BBC, VOA or other media outlets that were allowed into the Red Mosque. Pakistan every right to ban an outfit that is brazenly aniti-Pakistani in its reporting.

CNN has been anti-Pakistani and it's reports are based on the Neocon agenda. It was instrumental in creating the hysteria of war against Iraq and the WMD fantasy. Now it is continuing its non-stop propaganda on Pakistan with the OBL fantasy (that he is in Pakistan(. Justification is being created to invade another country-Pakistan.

We don't get our news from CNN, we get it from ARYOneWorld, Aaj TV, Geo TV and the internet.
CNN will not change, and we don't even want it ot change. In all this, CNN is becoing more and more irrelevant.