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Members of various media organisations met Sunday at the Thai Journalists Association's headquarters on Sunday and vowed to oppose state control of media proposed by the National Reform Steering Assembly's media reform panel. (Photo by Wichan Charoenkiatpakul)

Thirty media organisations are stepping up moves against a bill they say will pave the way for the regime to control the media.

The National Reform Steering Assembly's (NRSA) media reform steering panel, which is working on the bill, remains adamant the measure is not designed to constrain freedom of the press.

Media groups on Sunday slammed the bill, saying it is not based on principles of free press.

Instead, they say, the document is crafted to allow state interference and control of the media.

The measure is called the "bill on rights protection, ethical promotion and standards of media professionals", a name called Orwellian by some.

A crucial point of concern involves the proposed "national media profession council" which would have government members and is empowered to penalise media outlets who violate codes of conduct.

The council is made of 13 members,four of whom are permanent secretaries of finance, digital economy and society, culture, and the Office of the PM.

The proposed participation of the permanent secretaries has sparked criticism that they are the channel of political power to meddle in the media.

Another involves a requirement that every media professional must be licensed by the government.

The legislation draft also runs contrary to the constitution that calls for self-regulation and independence from government control or interference, according to the groups.

If passed into law, it will directly affect the media's role in scrutinising the state and hinder the public's right to gain access to information.

The groups are demanding the NRSA order a review of the draft law and are threatening to escalate their campaign if the reform body presses ahead with it.

They insist media organisations have been improving self-regulation for greater accountability and transparency.

Among them were the National Press Council of Thailand, the News Broadcasting Council of Thailand (NBCT), the Confederation of Thai Journalists (CTJ), the Thai Journalists Association (TJA), the Thai Broadcast Journalists Association (TBJA), and the Online News Providers Association.

All six major press groups in Thailand have opposed the junta assembly's plans to 'reform' the media.

"We're not against ethical regulations but they should be self-regulation. The bill will make way for political intervention because the permanent secretaries are appointed by politicians," said CTJ president Thepchai Yong.

He said the bill which empowers the council to order and guide media reform is tantamount to signing a blank cheque.

If the media is exploited as a political tool, press outlets "will be under tremendous pressure".

"It's scary that the people the media are examining will be scrutinising the media and they have the authority to approve and revoke licences ... so we have to warn the society that there is an attempt to hand it [regulatory role] to politicians," he said.

Banyat Tasaneeyavej, a former Bangkok Post senior reporter and former president of the TJA, said the press outlets need to consolidate to fight against this new push for media control.

"This is a huge step back. It totally goes against reforms," she said.

Wisuth Komwatcharapong, president of the NBCT, said government presence on the media council is unacceptable.

The NRSA's move has raised questions among media professionals of whether political influence is involved.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has often said the media reports only negative news of the government, not its achievements. He had said one problem is the media have failed to regulate itself.

The government has sent its spokesman Lt Gen Sansern Kaewkamnerd to control the Public Relations Department that owns the NBT, or Channel 11 TV station, and number of radio stations nationwide.

ACM Kanit Suwannate, chairman of the NRSA's media reform steering panel, said the draft will be more beneficial for the media than restricting its work.

"I agree with the philosophy and principle of freedom of the press. I am not touching it. This law will not limit press freedom," he said.

The regulations including the conditions for issuing or revoking licences for media professionals will be up to the national media council which will be set up later according to this law.

"We don't limit what, where or how [the media] cover stories," he said.

"It's your [national press council's] business to set up the rules, not mine. I don't even start proposing about what rules to use.

"Meanwhile, the number of government officials to sit in this council is only four, while five representatives from the media will be in.

"The media can choose among themselves and the number of council members still outnumbers government officials."

ACM Kanit said the permanent secretary of finance was proposed so he can help watching over the budget allocated for the national media council, which has been recommended at 50-150 million baht annually.

Meanwhile, the permanent secretary of the Digital Economy and Society Ministry was proposed as the agency is in charge of communication technology.

"The PM's Office permanent secretary is in charge of the Public Relations Department, he said.

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Media lashes out at 'control' moves | Bangkok Post: news - Bangkok Post

WASHINGTON A resistance movement is taking shape in social media against the Trump administration, inspired by the new presidents efforts to control information.

It began after the deletion of tweets and data from official U.S. accounts and websites that proved embarrassing to him, including government reports on climate change, which have been challenged by President Donald Trump.

Some took to Twitter with alternative handles claiming to be federal employees exercising their free speech rights and the resistance mushroomed into a movement.

The seeds of rebellion were first planted by the National Park Service, which came under fire from the new administration for its photos comparing crowd size at Trumps inauguration to the event eight years earlier when Barack Obama was installed.

After those tweets were deleted, tweets from one national parks account which according to some reports came from a former employee offered links to climate change studies, and when those were removed, a new @AltNatParkSer sprung up and amassed 1.2 million followers in a matter of days.

The account is described as The Unofficial #Resistance team of U.S. National Park Service.

We dont want any trouble. We just want to keep peer-reviewed factually accurate climate science flowing out of U.S. institutions, the group said in one of its first tweets.

Over the next few days, dozens of rogue or alt Twitter accounts emerged, including @RogueNOAA (for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), @RogueNASA (for the space agency) and @alt_fda for the Food and Drug Administration.

Another account called AltEPA (@ActualEPAFacts), with more than 150,000 followers, aims to offer data that might be suppressed by the Environmental Protection Agency.

He can take our official Twitter but hell never take our FREEDOM, the account says. UNOFFICIALLY resisting.

The messages were gaining traction with hashtags such as #ResistTrump, #ClimateFacts and #Twistance, although it was not clear if the messages were coming from federal employees themselves.

Myron Ebell, the former head of Trumps transition team at the Environmental Protection Agency, says he expects the new administration to seek significant budget and staff cuts.

Ebell said it is reasonable to expect the president to seek a cut of about $1 billion from the EPAs $8 billion annual budget. He also said Trump is likely to seek significant reductions to the agencys workforce.

Some of the Twitter handles, according to various tweets, have been turned over to people outside government to avoid potential reprisals.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer denied the administration is trying to suppress free expression among federal employees.

Theres nothing thats come from the White House, absolutely not, he said when asked if the White House had ordered a clampdown.

But according to The Washington Post, Trump personally expressed anger to the head of the U.S. park service over the inauguration day photos and ordered him to produce images to show a stronger turnout for his ceremony.

Philip Howard, a professor at the Oxford Internet Institute who has studied the role of social media in the Arab Spring uprisings, said he sees some parallels to those events.

Whenever governments try to close up the supply of information, people look for new ways to express themselves and share information, Howard said.

Social media resistance was an important part of the Arab Spring, during which protesters successfully used social media to turn roiling dissent into massive street protests. It is hard to know if social media will have the same role in the U.S., because Trump and his political communication team are already actively there on Twitter and Facebook.

John Wonderlich, executive director for the Sunlight Foundation, a group promoting transparency in government, called these actions unprecedented.

Its a new kind mass resistance from employees who feel they cant talk to the public, and they are finding alternative channels, Wonderlich said.

What is amazing is the public response, which is amplifying those voices.

Still, Wonderlich said the Trump administrations efforts to suppress and control data have raised concerns about the trustworthiness of information from the government.

What we are seeing from the White House is anti-science, anti-government, anti-civil service and broad politicization of the federal workforce, he said.

All government information under a Trump administration is going to be inherently suspect.

But because anyone can create a Twitter account and claim to represent a constituency, this makes it difficult to separate truth from misinformation, Wonderlich said.

This means a new model of verification (is needed), and no one has figured that out, he said.

The environmental fight is moving into the courts as well. The night before Trumps inauguration, five environmental lawyers filed a federal court brief defending an Obama administration clean-water rule that the new president and his Republican allies have targeted for elimination, considering it burdensome to landowners.

The move served as a warning that environmentalists are prepared to battle in court against what they fear will be a wave of unfavorable policies concerning climate change, wildlife protection, federal lands and pollution.

Advocacy groups nationwide are hiring more staff lawyers, coordinating with private attorneys and firms, reviewing statutes, setting priorities and seeking donations.

Its going to be all-out war, said Vermont Law School professor Patrick Parenteau. If youre an environmentalist or conservationist, this is indeed a scary time.

Trumps first week in office only heightened their anxieties. He moved to resume construction of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines that the Obama administration had halted, while signaling intentions to abandon his predecessors fight against global warming, vastly expand oil and gas drilling on public lands and slash the EPAs budget.

GOP lawmakers, meanwhile, introduced measures to overturn a new Interior Department rule barring coal mining companies from damaging streams and to remove some wolves from the endangered species list.

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After Trump's move to control information, 'resistance' movement ... - The Japan Times

JEROME PUGMIRE

Last updated08:41, January 25 2017

Clive Mason/ Getty Images

McLaren F1 driver Fernando Alonso has been critical of the Grand Prix format, saying it can put fans to sleep.

When one of your biggest stars says your series sends him to sleep there are serious issues to be addressed, and this is the situation facing Formula One's new owner.

With the autocratic Bernie Ecclestone moving aside after nearly 40 years, the task falls to USsports and entertainment firm Liberty Media to win back dissatisfied fans and make the series much more fairly governed -yet unpredictable and thrilling again.

Liberty Media completed its takeover of F1 on Monday (NZT Tuesday) withEcclestonereplaced by Chase Carey as chief executive.

Here is a look at the key issues as Liberty tries to give F1 its edge back.

READ MORE: * Super Bowl buzz for F1 in mind for Liberty * EcclestoneF1 era over as Liberty takes control

BORING PRACTICE SESSIONS

F1's practice format is far from riveting.

Races have three practice sessions -usually split over two days -before Saturday afternoon qualifying. But sometimes there is little, or even nothing, for fans to see.

It is commonplace for drivers to wait in the team garage for long spells as they conserve tires for the race, thus picking and choosing when to practice. Even out on track there is little competitive driving during practice, such is the heavy emphasis on tire management.

This chronic lack of excitement prompted two-time world champion Fernando Alonso, one of F1's most popular drivers, to make the remarkable statement that F1 should be paying fans to watch.

"Fans want to see fast cars, something where you cannot close your mouth after you see the car passing. I was 30 minutes today outside the circuit and I was sleeping,'' he said after watching a practice session at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

"We should pay the people who are in the grandstands to watch the cars passing.''

A year earlier, the Spanish driver used wry humour to express his frustration, posting a picture online of him reclining lazily in a deckchair during qualifying.

Alonso's message was clear: F1 has become too predictable and sedate.

PRESEASON TESTING

One avenue for Liberty to explore could be revamping preseason testing as well.

This is split into two four-day periods, where accumulating the maximum amount of laps is the priority as teams smooth out any reliability issues.

Last year, Mercedes logged a mind-boggling 1294 laps in eight days of testing outside of Barcelona, equivalent to nearly 20 Grand Prix distances.

But fans deserve more than a slow merry-go-round of cars doing countless laps without any competition.

FAIRER WEALTH DISTRIBUTION

In recent years particularly, issues were regularly raised about the top-heavy distribution of wealth benefiting big teams and squeezing out smaller ones.

This is highlighted by the Manor team, which was rescued from administration just in time for the 2015 season.

But at the end of last year's campaign it missed out on 10th place by one point, and a subsequent windfall of nearly US$10 million (NZ$14m), and is once again battling administration.

BETTER DECISIONS

Smaller teams got less say because of the overly strong influence held by Ecclestone and big teams like Mercedes, Red Bull, and Ferrari in the F1 strategy group meetings.

The iron-fisted decision-making, often with Ecclestone having the final word, has often proved erratic and unpopular.

Ecclestone stuck with Pirelli as the tire supplier against the wishes of many teams, particularly after a chaotic 2013 campaign in which tires blew up or disintegrated.

Two other of Ecclestone's inventions -the double points rule on the final day of the 2014 season and confusing changes to qualifying at the start of last season -were both quickly scrapped.

A greater democracy and a wider input from F1 will help soothe the bitter in-fighting that plagues the series.

PROTECTING F1'S IDENTITY

Some track owners must be breathing a sigh of relief.

Faced with rising track costs and a ruthless negotiator in Ecclestone, much-loved races like the Italian GP in Monza and the German GP have been under severe threat.

This year's German GP to be staged at the Hockenheimring was scrapped due to financial problems and dwindling attendances. The British race at Silverstone is also at risk.

Ecclestone has been heavily criticised for overlooking historic popular races to develop new financially attractive ones in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Russia, and Azerbaijan.

The growing uncertainty over which tracks would make the calendar turned into a season-long debate, sending out a negative message.

Storied venues are a valuable part of F1's identity.

MORE DRIVER SKILLS

Anyone watching an F1 race these days will regularly hear drivers being told -and sometimes firmly ordered -by their teams to save tires and not race too hard.

This only adds to the predictability as the better drivers are less vulnerable to the unexpected. But fans want more uncertainty.

Dramatically limiting the amount of times engineers can directly communicate with drivers would add to the drama and the spectacle.

Liberty must also resolve the Pirelli issue, and decide whether it wants to move back to harder tires that last longer and limit dull pit-stop strategy.

Gimmicks such as DRS -designed to help drivers overtake at certain times during a race - would no longer be needed if drivers were allowed a purer form of racing without so much team intervention.

THE BRAWN EFFECT

Who better to help revitalse F1 than a widely admired strategist who helped Michael Schumacher win all seven of his F1 titles?

Liberty has appointed Brawn as managing director of motorsports in a highly popular move.

Brawn helped Ferrari win 11 world titles and seven with Williams and Benetton.

Brawn also won the 2009 F1 title against all odds with his own BrawnGP team, and helped Mercedes develop a car that easily won three straight titles from 2014-16.

SPICING UP RACE WEEK

The iconic Monaco GP has no problem attracting fans every day. That is due to its notoriety as a playground for the rich and its spectacular location, with the glitzy circuit designed around the crystal blue waters of Monaco's harbor.

Other races are not so geographically blessed and struggle to keep the appeal going from Thursday until Sunday.

Liberty has a chance to spice up race week with a more glamorous, fun-filled US-style approach to buildup and fan interaction.

GETTING CONNECTED

Digital media was an alien concept to Bernie Ecclestone, who viewed it as futile and flatly refused to engage in it.

For Liberty, improving the series' connection with social media is a top priority.

Liberty sees it as a key way to massively broaden the global audience. This would ideally help to enhance F1's presence in the US, where a new street race is planned, and boost flagging races elsewhere.

-AP

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Key issues for a new era in F1 as Liberty Media take control - Stuff.co.nz

Miller also noted on Saturday that Trump administration officials are discussing the possibility of asking foreign visitors to disclose all websites and social media sites they visit, and to share the contacts in their cell phones. If the foreign visitor declines to share such information, he or she could be denied entry. Sources told CNN that the idea is just in the preliminary discussion level. The social media posts calling for jihad by San Bernardino terrorist Tashfeen Malik -- made under a pseudonym and with strict privacy settings -- are part of this discussion. How such a policy would be implemented remains under discussion.

Miller praised the State Department on Saturday, sources tell CNN, but argued that the government needs to do better job of making sure the people who come into the US embrace American values.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer did not respond to a request for comment.

Trump's executive order bars citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States for the next 90 days and suspends the admission of all refugees for 120 days.

Trump's unilateral moves, which have drawn the ire of human rights groups and prompted protests at US airports, reflect the President's desire to quickly make good on his campaign promises. But they also encapsulate the pitfalls of an administration largely operated by officials with scant federal experience.

It wasn't until Friday -- the day Trump signed the order banning travel from seven Muslim-majority countries for 90 days and suspending all refugee admission for 120 days -- that career homeland security staff were allowed to see the final details of the order, a person familiar with the matter said.

The result was widespread confusion across the country on Saturday as airports struggled to adjust to the new directives. In New York, two Iraqi nationals sued the federal government after they were detained at John F. Kennedy International Airport, and 10 others were detained as well.

Trump on Sunday defended his recent executive order on extreme vetting, saying in a statement: "We will continue to show compassion to those fleeing oppression, but we will do while protecting our own citizens and voters."

He added: "This is not a Muslim ban, as the media is falsely reporting. This is not about religion -- this is about terror and keeping our country safe."

He said his first priority "will always be to protect and serve our country, but as President I will find ways to help all of those who are suffering."

CNN's Eric Bradner, Evan Perez, Pamela Brown, Kevin Liptak, Jeremy Diamond and Steve Almasy contributed to this report.

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White House discussing asking foreign visitors for social media info and cell phone contacts - CNN

BEIRUT Syrian government forces took back control of an area near Damascus that provides most of the capital's water supplies after reaching a deal for rebel fighters to withdraw, pro-government media and a monitoring group said.

The Syrian army and its allies launched an offensive last month to drive insurgents from the Wadi Barada valley, which they have controlled since 2012, and to recapture a major spring and pumping station.

Syria's mainstream rebel factions are under intense pressure after losing areas they held in the northern city of Aleppo to government forces at the end of last year, and now face a fierce assault by Islamist militants elsewhere.

Wadi Barada, which lies northwest of Damascus, has become one of the fiercest battlefronts in Syria's civil war. Disruption to water supplies, including infrastructure damage, has caused acute shortages in the capital this month.

Government forces entered the village of Ain al-Fija, where the spring and pumping station are located, early on Saturday, a military media unit run by Lebanese group Hezbollah, an ally of Damascus, reported.

"The Syrian army has entered Ain al-Fija ... and raised the Syrian flag over the spring installation," a statement by the unit said, adding that the development was due to a deal reached with insurgents by which the rebels would leave the area.

Teams were preparing to enter Ain al-Fija to fix the pumping station and the army had secured control of the village, it added.

INTENSE FIGHTING

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based war monitoring group, said government forces had begun moving into the spring area as rebel fighters withdrew.

Under the deal reached between the government side and local representatives, rebels hailing from outside the Wadi Barada area would leave for the northwestern province of Idlib, an insurgent stronghold, carrying light weapons, the Observatory said.

Rebels from Wadi Barada would be allowed to leave too, but could also opt to stay and serve with pro-government forces, it added.

The Syrian government has struck similar local ceasefire deals with the opposition in several western parts of the country, usually involving the transfer of rebel fighters and their families to Idlib.

The opposition has said the process amounts to forced population transfer.

Intense fighting raged for weeks in Wadi Barada, and knocked the water spring out of service in late December.

The United Nations has said "infrastructure was deliberately targeted", without saying who was responsible, leaving four million people in Damascus without safe drinking water. It warned the shortages could lead to outbreaks of waterborne disease.

Rebels and activists have said government bombardment damaged the spring. The government said insurgent groups polluted it with diesel, forcing the state to cut supplies.

Rebels in Wadi Barada had been allowing government engineers to maintain and operate the valley's pumping station. Fighters have, however, cut water supplies several times in the past to put pressure on the army not to overrun the area.

(Reporting by John Davison and Kinda Makieh in Damascus; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Helen Popper)

GENEVA The United Nations refugee agency and International Organization for Migration (IOM) called on the Trump administration on Saturday to continue offering asylum to people fleeing war and persecution, saying its resettlement program was vital.

BEIRUT Several Syrian Islamist factions including al Qaeda's former branch in the country said on Saturday they were joining forces, as clashes between jihadists and more moderate rebels raged on in northwestern areas.

ANKARA British Prime Minister Theresa May on Saturday signed a $125 million defense equipment deal with Turkey and promised to push for more trade between the NATO allies, but cautioned Ankara on human rights following last year's failed coup.

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Syrian army seizes Damascus water source as rebels withdraw - pro-government media, monitor - Reuters