Comments for An Open Letter to Johann Hari of the Independent at http://www.amazingwomenrock.com , comment 1 to 7 out of 7 comments http://www.amazingwomenrock.com Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:16:31 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.amazingwomenrock.com/503-an-open-letter-to-johann-hari-of-the-independent.html#comment-133 Something else with which to stir the pot: [url]http://www.kippreport.com/kipp/2009/04/19/do-you-think-there-is-freedom-of-speech-in-the-uae/[/url] - Susan Macaulay Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:52:06 +0100 http://www.amazingwomenrock.com/503-an-open-letter-to-johann-hari-of-the-independent.html#comment-131 If you have read Mr. Hari's article, may I humbly suggest you also read Chris Saul's parody which is absolutely priceless. It's at this link: [url]http://blogs.sun.com/christophersaul/entry/yet_another_gulf_bashing_article[/url]. I laughed out loud. It's brilliant. :) - Susan Macaulay Thu, 16 Apr 2009 18:42:01 +0100 http://www.amazingwomenrock.com/503-an-open-letter-to-johann-hari-of-the-independent.html#comment-123 Hidden agendas (well, not so hidden anymore) are very present indeed... In political articles are dangerous and in travel articles, too. It gives a whole wrong idea of perception of foreign countries and people who don't travel often will always have prejudice towards unknown destinations. Speaking of Middle East, well, it's quite clear what the agenda is and has been for years. Political articles are not even subtle anymore and it seems like in other sections they are not concerned about intelligent pieces either. On the topic one of the best books I've found is the always topical "Manufacturing consent" by Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman. Great website! Angela - Angela Corrias Mon, 13 Apr 2009 22:02:21 +0100 http://www.amazingwomenrock.com/503-an-open-letter-to-johann-hari-of-the-independent.html#comment-122 I enjoyed your open letter on the Amazing Women Rock Web site, Susan. I did find that Mr. Hari's article was the kind of on-the-fly reporting where you just generalize from a few fleeting conversations here and there. If he'd really wanted to go in-depth he would have stayed for a minimum of six weeks and really talked to everyone, government officials and laypeople and expats alike. Perhaps he would have been deported! It's funny. For about four years, all I saw was articles and essays praising Dubai's "can-do" spirit, economic miracle, open-minded atmosphere etc. etc. Now the media seems to have turned and it's all Dubai-is-a-Gulag. I notice, too, that this turnaround happened at about the time that British couple was arrested for having sex on the beach (and I don't mean the cocktail). I think although it was a stupid case it was a catalyst for changing popular positive opinion about Dubai into "It's not the fairytale land you think it is". Exposes on Panorama and all the fallout followed... - Bina Shah Sun, 12 Apr 2009 15:32:00 +0100 http://www.amazingwomenrock.com/503-an-open-letter-to-johann-hari-of-the-independent.html#comment-121 Susan, I meant to leave a link to my blog so you can read what we've been writing on the subject: http://cooltravelguide.blogspot.com/ And my husband's 'Wide angles, wine and wanderlust': http://blog.terencecarterphotography.com/ best, Lara - Lara Dunston Sun, 12 Apr 2009 05:11:03 +0100 http://www.amazingwomenrock.com/503-an-open-letter-to-johann-hari-of-the-independent.html#comment-120 Hi Susan I think you've been a bit too kind to Hari. Hari was only in Dubai 3 days - not nearly long enough for a story of this length. He admits he hates Dubai - in the story. Reason enough for him to not do the story in the first place and his editor should not allowed him to. The piece is full of historical and factual errors, as you can probably see, and as you point out, there's no balance or objectivity at all. So many people are getting so angry about this piece - people like you and I - and all the people we know. People Hari chose not to talk to because it wouldn't serve his 'argument', however, it would have provided some balance. I moved to the UAE in 1998 and I'm a travel writer, so I know thousands of people in Dubai and the UAE. Occasionally we meet people like the kind Hari meets but they are certainly in the minority. Our expat friends, from all levels, love Dubai while recognizing its flaws - if they didn't they wouldn't live there for 5, 10, 15 even 25 years as some friends have. But Hari chooses not to speak to them. His story is as flawed. I notice that another article went up by him yesterday - an attack on Al Qassemi, and yet he's doing exactly what he accuses Al Qassemi of. I'm back in Australia at the moment, and while it's been wonderful and in some ways I've fallen in love with my country all over again for its landscapes, natural beauty, flora and fauna, there are a lot of things to hate about it. I could write a story like Hari's in my sleep - inventing the stereotypical characters and corny dialogue as Hari has - and at the top of my hate list would be the "third world" (quoting Hari - I personally prefer 'developing') conditions that Australia's indigenous Australians live in - absolutely deplorable - and yet most Australians choose to ignore it, nothing is done, and the racism that exists is palpable. Do you ever see travel writers write about that? No. And yet it's impossible to ignore if you travel out of Sydney and Melbourne. Why isn't Australia, a so-called developed country made to confront these appalling social problems? Why aren't Americans made to confront the situation of illegal Mexicans and Latin Americans who also live in appalling conditions - with no passports or visas at all (let alone having their passports taken) and no access to health cover. The restaurant, hospitality and construction industries would collapse in the US without those people. The kitchens of New York's restaurants are ran by Mexicans - they are brilliant cooks. But is that ever written about when a travel writer writes about the dining scene in New York? No. There *are* agendas here you're right. The standards of journalism have also dropped considerably - all around the world - as papers struggle to stay afloat. However, I didn't realise The Independent's standards had dropped so much to print trash of the likes of Hari's. I mean really, have people really read his writing closely? Pathetic. Dubai has always been a love-it-or-hate-it destination. We've been saying this in our guidebooks and stories we've written for 6-7 years now, since Dubai first hit the world tourism stage. These stories get lots of hits, so they'll keep printing them while they do. I'm convinced also there is a measure of racism to all of this also. Nobody wants to see Arabs succeed in the way they have. I have many many Emirati friends and know these people well. I've always been astonished when I've talked to journalists based at Media City who've lived in the UAE 5 years and never met an Emirati and yet their opinion is that they're spoilt and lazy. O-kay. Many (not all) of these people come from the same mould as Hari, sadly. Great blog, Susan! - Lara Dunston Sun, 12 Apr 2009 05:09:43 +0100 http://www.amazingwomenrock.com/503-an-open-letter-to-johann-hari-of-the-independent.html#comment-117 Thank you for your astute observations, and for contributing additional perspective to the issue. You’re right, I might be naïve, and there’s no doubt that such an article would never appear in the Dubai media, at least not today. And I think your criticism with respect to the government of Dubai limiting freedom of the press/media is valid. However, I’m not privy to information with respect to the rationale and/or objectives behind the legislation, so anything I might say in that regard would be pure speculation. Your guesses are as good as any I might hazard. But they are guesses, educated perhaps, but guesses nevertheless. I think there are many more possibilities than the two you have put forth. The issue of “freedom of the press/media” is interesting, and one that we could debate forever. Having worked as both a freelance journalist and public relations professional, it’s one that I’ve had ample opportunity to contemplate. I’ve come to the conclusion, as I have with just about everything, that there are no absolutes. No black and white, just a vast spectrum of shades of grey; not either/or, but both! While I might be naïve with respect to the possibility of one individual’s ability to make change, I think it’s probably equally naïve to believe that the “western” media are as “free” as we would like to think they are – the constraints and controls under which they operate are just less obvious. Why do the media “pick” on Dubai? Your answer is a little simplistic I think. Reporters have agendas, just like the rest of us. I know. I’ve been one. And I’ve worked with them for years. Not all are white knights in shining armour (there to expose bad guys and protect a poor unsuspecting public from evil), as some of them would like their readers, listeners and viewers to believe. I’m all for truth (whatever one’s truth happens to be), and transparency. And personally, I believe Dubai would be better served by enabling a more liberal policy with respect to the media. But I don’t run the country, I’m just a guest here. I think you are 100 per cent right in saying that what we read, see and hear in the local media is biased, and bathes the country in an overwhelmingly positive light. I also agree with you that the lack of open public debate creates an atmosphere of mistrust that is potentially counterproductive. However, I don’t believe balance is best achieved by publishing stories that are equally biased, just 180 degrees in the opposite direction. Two wrongs don’t make a right in my view. That said, I can understand how you and others might see it differently. - Susan Macaulay Thu, 09 Apr 2009 15:48:30 +0100