Controlling influence...

There’s something strange going on.
I have already expressed my concerns that the prime minister’s office may be influencing the media. But what has recently been happening is worse: one newspaper, Bhutan Today, has started carrying every press release that comes out of the prime minister’s office as their own story, word for word, but with [...]

Digging deeper...

Business Bhutan, in their last editorial:
“A country like Bhutan would be happy to be adopted by Tata,” a press release from the government’s media cell quoted the prime minister as saying. Writing about that in his blog and opening up another debate the opposition leader took a dig at the media too.

“And to make [...]

Beware...

The short entry about the appointment of Tenzin Rigden as the PM’s media advisor generated some long and heated discussions. Very good.
But now what?
First, the media must beware. By Tenzin Rigden’s own admission he has deep connections in the media:
… here are the facts – worked in Kuensel for 10 years; started and ran BT [...]

PRESS RELEASE...

The Opposition Leader called on the Minister of Economic Affairs, His Excellency Lyonpo Khandu Wangchuk, yesterday to express the Opposition Party’s concerns on the Royal Government’s recent policy decisions on tourism. The Opposition Leader reported that, after studying the Royal Government’s Executive Order of 13 November 2009 and consulting a wide range of [...]

Free media’s other ace?...

When Dasho Kinley Dorji was appointed as the MOIC secretary last year, I hinted that that could be both good and not-so-good for our media.
Now, it appears that the government has recruited Tenzin Rigden, apparently on a short-term contract, as their “media advisor”.  Tenzin Rigden worked in Kuensel, owned Bhutan Media Services, and started and [...]

Media wars...

Mass media in Bhutan has enjoyed exceptional growth recently. During the last four years, five new newspapers – all privately owned – started operations in quick succession.  Bhutan Times, Bhutan Observer, Bhutan Today, Business Bhutan and The Journalist hit the newsstands on 30 April 2006, 2 June 2006, 30 October 2008, 26 September 2009 and [...]

Remote control...

So, BBS has not been permitted to broadcast live coverage of most of the proceedings of the fourth session of the National Assembly. Only the opening and closing ceremonies, and the discussions on the Anticorruption Commission’s annual report will be broadcast live. This is how it was in the National Assembly’s third session. And, like [...]

Year old paper...

A year ago, on 30th October 2008, the media industry in Bhutan raised their standards considerably. On that day, the print media gave us our first daily newspaper. What’s surprising is that that newspaper was Bhutan Today, then the newest paper in town.
What’s amazing is that Bhutan Today has pulled it off. Since launching their [...]

Good news...

Shortly after the editor and six reporters had collectively and suddenly resigned from Bhutan Times, Wangcha Sangey, the Chairman and CEO of the newspaper, promised that he would not disappoint his readers.  And, true to his word, he has not disappointed. In the barely two days since the mass resignations, he, with help from K4 [...]

Troubled Times...

Weak week

On 30th April 2006, Volume I, Issue 1 of the Bhutan Times hit the newsstands. If you have that first issue, treasure it. Bhutan Times was, at that time, only the second newspaper in our country. It was started by Tenzin Rigden and Tashi P. Wangdi as Bhutan’s first privately owned newspaper. So that first [...]

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