YANGON — People in Myanmar’s main city, Yangon, banged pots and pans on Wednesday in a show of defiance against the ruling junta during a visit to Yangon by a news crew from CNN traveling in a heavily armed convoy.
Opponents of the army’s February 1 coup voiced concern that the journalists would not be shown a full picture of the situation in Myanmar, where security forces have killed more than 500 civilians in attempts to suppress anti-junta protests.
“The phone doesn’t pick the sound well but people were banging pots and pans as our heavily armed convoy drove past,” CNN Chief International Correspondent Clarissa Ward said in a social media post.
A junta spokesman did not answer a call to request comment.
Israeli-Canadian lobbyist Ari Ben-Menashe, who has been hired by the junta, told Reuters he had arranged the CNN visit and that the team would be free to report what they want.
CNN did not respond immediately to a request for comment on whether he had arranged the visit and whether the reporters would be able to present a full picture.
Ben-Menashe said the security convoys were only escorting the CNN crew to interviews with officials and to factories destroyed this month.
“We feel that people should go in and report what they report, whether it’s good or bad. What was being reported until now is really nonsense,” he said.
Myanmar journalists have complained of restrictions under the military authorities.
At least 48 journalists have been detained by the junta since it overthrew elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, according to figures from the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners monitoring group. Some 25 of them are still in detention.
The licenses of several independent news outlets have been canceled. Most newspapers have ceased operations. Media have been instructed not to describe the authorities as a junta or the army takeover as a coup.
Opponents of the junta voiced fears the CNN team would be shown false evidence and given the impression life in Myanmar was back to normal.
“We are banging pots and pans simultaneously at 1PM to show her peacefully that we all are against military coup and we are actually not OK!” wrote one Twitter user who identified as San San.
Myanmar pots ring out for CNN crew escorted by army
https://arab.news/6h4tj
Myanmar pots ring out for CNN crew escorted by army
- Israeli-Canadian lobbyist Ari Ben-Menashe, hired by the junta, told Reuters he arranged visit of CNN that would be free to report what they want
- 48 journalists have been detained by junta since overthrowing elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, according Assistance Association for Political Prisoners’ figures
Saudi Media Forum urges ethical coverage as crises redefine Arab journalism
- Raw news without context can mislead audiences and distort credibility, experts say
RIYADH: Arab media was born in crisis and shaped by conflict rather than stability, Malik Al-Rougi, general manager of Thaqafeyah Channel, said during the Saudi Media Forum in Riyadh on Wednesday.
Al-Rougi was speaking during a panel titled “Media and Crises: The Battle for Awareness and the Challenges of Responsible Coverage,” which examined how news organizations across the region navigated credibility and professional standards amid fast-moving regional developments.
“Today, when you build a media organization and invest in it for many years, a single crisis can destroy it,” he said.
Referring to recent events, Al-Rougi said that he had witnessed news channels whose credibility “collapsed overnight.”
“In journalistic and political terms, this is not a process of news production. It is a process of propaganda production,” he said. “The damage caused by such a post … is enormous for an institution in which millions, perhaps billions, have been invested.”
When a media outlet shifts from professionalism and credibility toward “propaganda,” he added, it moves away from its core role.
“A crisis can work for you or against you,” Al-Rougi added. “When, in the heart of a crisis, you demonstrate high credibility and composure, you move light-years ahead. When you fail to adhere to ethical standards, you lose light-years as well.”
Abdullah Al-Assaf, professor of political media studies at Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University, said that in many crises across the Arab world, agendas and directives had often prevailed over professionalism.
“Credibility was buried,” he added.
Hasan Al-Mustafa, writer and researcher at Al-Arabiya channel, said that raw information could be subject to multiple interpretations if not placed within a proper political, security, historical or geographical context.
He added that such an approach was urgently needed during periods of political and security volatility in the Middle East.
When, in the heart of a crisis, you demonstrate high credibility and composure, you move light-years ahead. When you fail to adhere to ethical standards, you lose light-years as well.
Malik Al-Rougi Thaqafeyah, Channel general manager
“This objectivity, or this reliability, is a great responsibility,” Al-Mustafa said. “It is reflected not only in its impact on the audience, but also on the credibility of the content creator.”
Al-Mustafa warned against populism and haste in coverage, saying that they risked deepening crises rather than providing informed public perspectives.
He also said that competition with social media influencers had pushed some traditional outlets to imitate influencer-driven models instead of strengthening their own professional standards.
“Our media has been crisis-driven for decades,” he said, describing much of the region’s coverage as reactive rather than proactive.
During a separate panel titled “The Official Voice in the Digital Age: Strategies of Influence,” speakers discussed how rapid technological and social changes were reshaping the role of institutional spokespersons.
Abdulrahman Alhusain, official spokesperson of the Saudi Ministry of Commerce, said that the role was no longer limited to delivering statements or reacting to events.
“Today, the spokesperson must be the director of the scene — the director of the media narrative,” he said.
Audiences, he added, no longer accept isolated pieces of information unless they were presented within a clear narrative and structure.
“In the past, a spokesperson was expected to deliver formal presentations. Today, what is required is dialogue. The role may once required defense, but now it must involve discussion, the exchange of views, and open, candid conversation aimed at development — regardless of how harsh the criticism may be.”
He said that spokespersons must also be guided by data, digital indicators and artificial intelligence to understand public opinion before speaking.
“You must choose the right timing, the right method and the right vocabulary. You must anticipate a crisis before it happens. That is your role.”
Abdullah Aloraij, general manager of media at the Riyadh Region Municipality, said that the most important skill for a spokesperson today was the ability to analyze and monitor public discourse.
“The challenge is not in transferring words, but in transferring understanding and impact in the right way,” he said.
