Lanka Citizen

The Sunday Times (16.10.2005), essential reading for all UNP supporters!! Why?

by Zoon Politikon

If one wants to know the real status of the UNP campaign one needs to go to the real sites that is, the mirror sites of the UNP, the mirrors being more than simply a reflection of the original, but more real than the ‘reality’ of the UNP site itself: The Daily Mirror and The Sunday Times. There you find political commentary regularly appearing under News and without by-lines, in other words as, in-house productions. (Just like, most of the ‘comments’ appearing on the original site itself, appear to be.) The Daily Mirror in fact produces headline political ‘news’ without a by-line. While some may want to attribute these practices to either the Ratnatunga or the Alahakoon School of Journalism, others may argue that these are ‘standard’ practices even in USA. So, why not us, especially if that is what we want to emulate? Even there, at times of national significance, newspaper owners, not the editors on behalf of the public, convey their own opinions. Ghost writers of course will produce the copy. It is as if the Newspaper itself decided to write for itself. In that case, why should there be a name, it is on the masthead. The newspaper is ultimately its owner. (Oh, no! we are not inviting, what some call, Sunanda’s Partial FMM or whatever, here to picket in front of the Times!) Noam Chomsky, despite him being branded as a comie, then, is not finally wrong? So, don’t blame the poor editors, they are just earning a living, one might say. (It is not that we believe entirely, the Lanka Truth story about the list of journalists including some editors, who have been enlisted for the UNP campaign.)

Well, politically speaking, at least the Times has its saving grace, in the independent mind of Rajpal Abeynayake. Well, what about the Times political columnist who criticizes Ranil as well? Sure, it makes interesting reading when he is not ‘pro- nephew’s party man’ all the time. What about the Mirror inviting Malinda or Thanuka to write a column. Sure, all-party newspapers can hardly sell nationally, can they?

More to the point, after all if the Uncle is eager to see the Nephew wins at least his thirteenth or whatever election, he has to somehow tell the nephew to overcome his shortcomings, at least in public. Perhaps, Uncle only knows too well how the heart of the Sinhala electorate beats.

Next: Why is that “Ranil’s message not getting through”?
(The Sunday Times, News section, 16.10.2005)

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