Trinidad media association raps CNC3, Alexander and police over Ian Alleyne clash
By Richard Lord – guardian.co.tt From Trinidad and Tobago News Blog
The Media Association of T&T says CNC3 breached journalistic ethics in airing an edited video clip of Tuesday’s clash between Crime Watch host, Ian Alleyne and Inspector Roger Alexander.
According to MATT, “It was CNC3’s duty to inform the public that the video had been altered. Not having done so, CNC3 omitted essential features of the confrontation and that omission amounted to misrepresentation.”
MATT said the “breach of duty requires CNC3 to make amends with the public it serves and the industry in which it operates.”
MATT turned some of its fire on the police, saying that there is the potential for ethical conflicts by the commingling of the TTPS with the commercial interests of private sector media. It was a reference to a revelation by a police spokesman, that Beyond The Tape is an official police programme.
MATT said law enforcement and the media serve the public interest in different ways and, consequently, the public should be furnished with detailed information on the protocols that govern the Beyond the Tape programme.
MATT said: “The degree of force used by the arresting officer appears disproportionate to the offence and the circumstances (and) MATT questions the refusal of the TTPS to investigate these allegations of excessive force,” their statement added.
It said the right of media workers to reasonable treatment from the police while pursuing a story must be respected. MATT said another potential breach of conduct by the police related to a recent video on social media which appears to be recorded by police officers at the Chaguanas Police Station. The video shows Alleyne being taunted and ridiculed.
IMAGE: Ian Alleyne and Inspector Roger Alexander
For more on this story go to: http://www.trinidadandtobagonews.com/blog/?p=9366
See iNews Cayman related story published February 17 2016 “Trinidad television crime show host arrested in confrontation with police” at: http://www.ieyenews.com/wordpress/trinidad-television-crime-show-host-arrested-in-confrontation-with-police/
Related story:
CNC3 apologises for Ian Alleyne video edit
CNC3 has issued an apology over the airing of a news report on Crime Watch host Ian Alleyne’s clash with TV rival Roger Alexander, in which a brief segment of the videotape of the incident had been cut.
In the segment that was edited out, Alleyne could be heard swearing at Alexander, once, briefly.
The did-he-or-didn’t-he mattered, because Alleyne charged that Alexander had used unreasonable force and was unjustified in physically removing him from a suspect’s yard, where he’d gone to shoot a segment for his Crime Watch show. Alexander’s accusation that Alleyne had used coarse language was central to the policeman’s defence in justifying his removal of Alleyne.
Last Friday, a news report by TV6, on which Alexander co-presents his Beyond The Tape programme, highlighted the edit. On Sunday, the Media Association of Trinidad and Tobago (MATT) weighed in, saying that CNC3 had breached journalistic ethics by not informing the public that the video had been altered.
CNC3 yesterday insisted that there was no intentional deception with the edit, and it had been done on the grounds of good taste and decency.
“In our desire to abide by the provision of the Telecommunications Act, we removed offensive material from the video of Mr Alleyne, which was not lawfully fit to be published in a newscast,” the CNC3 statement read.
“In hindsight, we recognise that we should have also publicly indicated that an obscenity was used. If any of our viewers were misled, we unreservedly apologise.”
The accusations stung journalists at a station which hosts the most-watched TV evening prime time newscast in T&T, fronted by some of the most respected names in TV journalism. CNC3, however, defended its reputation for fair and accurate reporting.
“Since its inception, CNC3 News has always upheld the highest standards of journalism, and we recommit ourselves to those,” the statement began by saying.
It added: “We wish to make it clear that at no point did CNC3 intend to deliberately mislead the public in our reporting on the arrest of Alleyne.”
For more on this story go to: http://www.guardian.co.tt/news/2016-02-22/cnc3-apologises-ian-alleyne-video-edit
