Today I am going to be comparing media houses. First I must say that in my regard, Belize has no independent media – such a tragedy. They either are UDP or PUP or proudly PUDP.
The issue of partiality affects Belize greatly because information or the lack of information is what directly elects politicians in our country, or should I say, Worldwide. On the 26 of November I read the article on Channel5belize.com titled Bank zeros in on Luke Espat. Before they broke the news, one sentence says: “[...] the signs of a bad economy have been hitting individual businesses very hard over the past year.” Of course this is true but my concern is why do they sugar coat the message?
The answer is very simple: Channel 5 is said to be owned by Ashcroft and anyone who follows news in Belize or follow current events knows that Luke Espat is supposedly affiliated with him. Apart from how short the article was, of course they won’t give the Belizean public the full details of the story and of course they will cloud the entire message with other news currently happening. This sort of thing just enrages me because I yearn the day when Belize has an independent media and I do not have the resources to start one myself.
The answer is very simple: Channel 5 is said to be owned by Ashcroft and anyone who follows news in Belize or follow current events knows that Luke Espat is supposedly affiliated with him. Apart from how short the article was, of course they won’t give the Belizean public the full details of the story and of course they will cloud the entire message with other news currently happening. This sort of thing just enrages me because I yearn the day when Belize has an independent media and I do not have the resources to start one myself.
I had to go to Amandala.com.bz to find the more detailed article titled Luke runs out of money? I must say that I am not stating that Amandala is in any way a more independent media house, to my knowledge I classify them PUDP - But they do have good journalists! So since UDP is presently in power, I can count on them to provide Belize with more accurate, informational news on cronies of the PUP and certainly this might be short-lived and change when UDP loses. ‘Dem no gat no shame.’
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| Li Chee Fry Chicken |
Another thing that caught my attention when reading about all the mentioned foreclosures was that one of the failed businesses was Crocland Adventure and Eco Park, and this was being managed by Troy Gabb, former Chief Executive Officer of the Development Finance Corporation (DFC). My first response was WHAT! So someone who had failed DFC and failed our country miserably was still being afforded an opportunity to run a business. I couldn’t help but assume that it was a ‘hand wash hand kinda thing’! After all, I bet a lot of rich folks who bleed DFC dry owe him favours – this is general knowledge, right? DFC was renowned to process million dollar loans like buying chiny fry chicken – To go, ketchup & peppa!
The purpose of this isn’t to attack any individual, Belize has freedom of speech and I am exercising my right. My point is to look at a basic example of how media houses sell their souls to the devil and how Belizeans need to use their critical thinking when they decide what they should look out, especially if they desire to stay informed of current events. Read more than one newspaper, check the credibility of the sources; the other newspaper might have the better story.
To anybody that is angered by this post, stop being blind, greedy and selfish, instead of being mad – think about the poverty that exists in Belize and the inequality that party politics has created, until someone who really and truly loves Belize is elected – our country and our people will continue to be raped.
By the way, thanks for the fry chicken picture Li Chee facebook fans:D
4 comments:
Hola Lencho :0)
Wow, mein I feel you on your frustrations with Belize's biased media (or more truthfully, "Peeple weh fraid fi lose dehn jab.") And if and when I have the resources to start a media company in Belize, I'll keep you in mind. lol. Fi true doh. :P
It is a really sad situation Belize is in economically and everyone is scraping by just barely. But it is good that young people like ourselves are keeping up to date with current events and through process of elimination, we are able to see things with a critical eye and think for ourselves. That is the first step for anything to change in Belize. People are being run by favors or their need to survive, but until they wake up and see that they are trapped in a cycle and changing that can happen when and if they unite and use some problem solving skills, then they will remain uninformed and frustrated.
But thanks for the post/article/blog/ bwai! It was interesting and fresh. Continue to write! big up!
Lorenzo...Independent Media is dead (supposing that it once lived).
We all have biases; the "independence" comes from disclosing those biases, and being receptive to facts. Sadly, there are those among us that dispute what the "facts" are.
It is interesting that the reporting on a "business" story has inspired your critique of the media. It seems that perhaps your politics drives your desire to hear more about Luke's "supposed" downfall?
I try to be objective and not pick sides... I don't mind your doubts and will answer your question. What drove me to write this article is the fact that ‘Ashcroft’ didn’t allow reporters to write a full article on the issue because of the ties, so what else don’t they give us a full report on? The other issue is the fact that Cronies always seem to fall after their party gets out of power. What does this mean? Shouldn't this be discussed? This means that if it wasn't for their political ties and the exploitation of Belizeans, they can't be considered savvy business men. We have the prime example of Novelo, how many times can someone go Bankrupt and still be considered reputable business men? I am sure that they will still have everything they desire for Christmas, can i say the same for the employees who are out of work? If you question when i mention that they exploit Belizeans, what do you call 43 percent of our population under poverty? This is caused by bad policies and greed. 'Greedy up the land, greedy up the money." Thank God the Maya won they Land Rights agreement - if not, some minister would be the sole owner of a whole lot more property.
p.s. There is no such thing as Luke's downfall... I am sure that Luke is just Ashcroft’s front man, those things just changed hands, ‘for public image.’
I am really a fan of your writing.I like travel blogs. Want to travel more and more. I like the way of your writing as well as photography. You are really a great person. I like to be as you.Petter Joe
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