Cribbing right...

Responding to “Government awards media awards” kikisoso called me a cribber. This is what kikisoso wrote: The easiest job in the world is to crib. The task at hand is to provide beter and viable alternatives. OL, let us hear your alternative plans that are more well thought out than just wishful thinking. media people [...]

Investigating rewards?...

The First Annual Media Award’s prize for Investigative Report of the Year, the award’s most prestigious category, went to Kuensel’s Phuntsho Choden. This came as no surprise. Phuntsho is good. Well done. But what did come as a surprise was Tenzing Lamsang. I dare say that Tenzing has contributed significantly to the development of a [...]

Media awarded...

14 different prizes were up for grabs during yesterday’s First Annual Media Awards. Of them, I was especially interested in seeing who would bag the prize for the best editorial of the year. Editorials, after all, are important: they express a newspaper’s stand or opinion on issues. And editorials are powerful: many readers, especially in [...]

Government awards media awards...

Today, on World Press Freedom Day, our government organized the first Annual Media Awards. Yes: the government organized the event. This is good, but could also be dangerous. This is good because our government’s sponsorship of the annual media awards could be seen as support for the media. After all, the government is recognizing and [...]

Free media...

On Sunday, March 22, Bhutan Times reported: The most direct evidence of our new democratic freedom this past year is the ease with which the kingdom’s young media professionals can now get hold of government leadership including, even, the Prime Minister himself. Good. On Saturday, April 11, Kuensel reported: The prime minister said that the [...]

Opposing the oppostion...

My last entry made Di demand that the opposition leader oppose the government’s decision directly and firmly. This is what she said: “dear OL, are u not going to say anything to oppose this directly to the cabinet? this is wrong wrong wrong. this goes against every morals, values and ethics we have ever been [...]

Free media’s ace...

The ministry of information and communications finally has a secretary. Dasho Kinley Dorji, the former Kuensel MD, assumed his new office this morning. Dasho Kinley, popularly called “Ace”, has a big responsibility. On the one hand, as the champion of a free media, journalists will expect him to continue leading and defending our still nascent [...]

Not much to cover...

I have no problem that Bhutan Times featured me on its front page today. Frankly, I’m flattered. But everybody else should have a problem with that. The article is definitely not front page news. While some readers may find the opposition leader’s New Year resolutions interesting, they are of no national significance. Not the stuff [...]

Watching BBS...

Consider this: The BBS has already televised the prime minister’s speech during the National Day celebrations in Pema Gatshel on four different days – 23rd December, 25th December, 28th December and 31st December. Now consider this: The BBS has televised His Majesty the King’s address to the nation during the National Day celebrations in Thimphu [...]

More pay hike talk...

Kuensel’s Tenzing Lamsang is amazing. He’s done it again. He’s written yet another story almost entirely based on government “sources”. And he is thorough – his account is packed with names, dates, places, amounts and important quotes. He seems to know too many details about the confidential debate that the government has been having on [...]

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