A thread on something from yesterday’s events in Scarva that I feel isn’t getting nearly enough attention.
There has been plenty of discussion about the protests themselves. Plenty of discussion about individuals, groups, politics and blame.
What I haven’t seen much discussion about is the treatment of journalists and media workers who were there to cover the event.
Yesterday, I was stopped and surrounded on two separate occasions while carrying out my job. I was questioned, challenged and told I should leave.
To be absolutely clear, I wasn’t intimidated.
I’ve covered enough events over the past 3 years to know exactly what these situations are. I’ve been singled out before. I’ve been pointed at before. I’ve had people attempt to take cameras. I’ve had people try to block coverage. None of it is new.
If being surrounded by a handful of people was enough to intimidate me, then I’d be in the wrong profession.
The point isn’t whether I was intimidated or not.
The point is that intimidation was clearly the intention.
The purpose of stopping journalists, surrounding them, challenging them and telling them to leave isn’t to have a friendly conversation. It’s to make them uncomfortable enough to go away.
That didn’t work yesterday and it won’t work in the future.
I was told to leave. I didn’t leave.
I stayed and continued documenting the event for hours afterwards.
Like many journalists covering contentious situations, you find ways to continue doing your job. You take different routes, position yourself elsewhere and keep reporting on what’s happening.
That’s part of the job.
What shouldn’t be part of the job is the acceptance that journalists being harassed is somehow normal.
Photographers had stones thrown at them. Other media workers were challenged, harassed and pressured to leave areas they had every right to be in.
And the reaction is often a shrug of the shoulders and a “that’s just how it is.”
It shouldn’t be.
Nobody has to like the media. Nobody has to agree with every report, every headline or every journalist.
But a free press has every right to be present at public events.
We’re not there to participate. We’re not there to support one side or the other. We’re there to document what is happening and allow people to see events for themselves.
What I find particularly strange is that many of the people involved in protests want attention for their cause. They want coverage. They want the public to know why they’re there. They want their message heard.
Yet some of the same people then turn their frustration towards the journalists who are there to provide that coverage.
It makes little sense.
This isn’t about me. I’ll continue doing what I’ve always done. Yesterday won’t stop me attending the next event, and neither will the next attempt at intimidation.
What concerns me is how normalised this behaviour has become.
No matter who is protesting, what cause they’re supporting or what side of an argument they’re on, harassment and intimidation of journalists should never be accepted as simply “part of the job.”
The right to protest matters.
The right to report on those protests matters too.
@GAHargan Maybe, the fact they have voiced concerns about "people marching where they're not wanted" might set a precedent for upcoming marches this summer. After all, there are 1000s of marches taking place in areas where they are not wanted. Anything else would be hypocritical. No? 🤷♂️
@GAHargan Once again, unqualified elected councillors think they know better than highly qualified planners who spent years at university studying Town Planning.
As seen by @The42_ie, letter signed by 5 members of FAI General Assembly calls for an Extraordinary General Meeting as soon as possible to bring forward motion calling on the FAI to boycott Israel games. Need 10% of 145 members. Expect to have numbers by tomorrow. More to follow.
@GAHargan Hmm, just what is going on in the council that they wish to hide so much? NDAs have a habit of being breached/leaked so maybe one day we'll find out
@GAHargan I always say that I admire and support all impacted families' quest for the truth but the harsh reality is it'll never happen. The government will never allow the truth to be told as it'll expose their involvement in so many incidents.
@derry_group@RCampbell88@CArchibald_SF@ColeraineChron Well, she's late to the party but better late than never. Now. What's she going to do about it? Full of good intentions maybe, but too close to an Assembly election to achieve anything. Unless the Shinners take the same Ministerial portfolio in May next year. Watch this space