Friendly journalism

It can take months for a well-known, credible journalist to get a visa to enter Syria. Most of the times, the answer is no, no visa. Therefore, be on guard if one news person not only manages to get in but is also given a free hand to roam around as he pleases. Including to walk without a chaperon the streets of Douma, a township that remains out of reach for the UN chemical inspectors.

What do you expect from such a journalist? He is certainly a friend of the Assad circle of power. He will write stories that will go along with the regime´s narrative.

That will be highly appreciated by Assad and his supporters. And even more, if the said journalist comes from the UK or another major Western nation.

We should always keep in mind that the war is also about the way the stories are told and by whom. Propaganda is key in any war effort.  

Brussels lunches and dinners

Brussels is a lobbyists’ paradise. I am told there are close to 30,000 living around the European institutions and other entities. One can imagine how many invitations for lunch and dinner the big shots in the EU Commission, Council, Parliament, and elsewhere get every week…One should also imagine the flow of gifts and favours that is taking place on a daily basis…

It is also a spies’ heaven. Nobody knows exactly how many they are. The head of the Belgian secret service talks about many hundreds but who knows? In any case, their presence means plenty of lunch and dinner invitations too. That’s the most classical way of getting information.

It is also said the city houses the largest press corps in the world. It is true that the number of journos  has decreased during the last few years, because of the crisis and its impact on the resources made available to the media. But it is still a large number, close to a thousand people accredited with the EU alone. That is also a lot of invitations for a good meal…At least, as far as the largest papers and TV stations are concerned, because the scribblers from smaller outfits are more interested in being invited that anything else. They are always looking for a free meal…

Taking all this into account, maybe I should envisage opening a classy restaurant in the international district of Brussels. I am sure it is good business…