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    The joy of irony... Archived Message

    Posted by Ken Waldron on July 13, 2019, 2:14 am

    Well, at least its in the "Entertainment" section of the news...

    BBC director general warns against 'assault on truth'

    The BBC's director general has warned that the world is facing "the biggest assault on truth since the 1930s".

    Speaking at the Global Conference For Media Freedom in London, Tony Hall said: "An assault on truth is an assault on democracy."
    He compared the spread of fake news to propaganda used by the Nazi party in the build-up to the Second World War.

    "All those who believe in integrity in news must work together to turn the tide," he said.

    Lord Hall added that the BBC had a role to play in battling fake news and press repression across the world. "We are ready to do even more to promote freedom of expression worldwide," he said.
    He told the conference: "We need to reassert the core principles of good journalism like never before. In a sea of disinformation and partisan reporting, we need to stand up for independence, impartiality, and reporting without fear or favour."

    He added: "I'm determined that we use that unique reach and trusted voice to lead the way - to create a global alliance for integrity in news."

    Also on the conference panel were UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, as well as human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, who has represented WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

    Clooney said: "The current media crisis involves both the silencing of truth and the amplification of misinformation to levels we have never seen before.

    "I believe the way the world responds to this crisis will define our generation and determine whether democracy can survive."

    Last month, Assange's legal team branded the US extradition case against him "an outrageous and full-frontal assault on journalistic rights", as a court ordered him to face a full extradition hearing next year...

    https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-48948591


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