Sunday, February 7, 2010

[pima.nius] TONGA: Pesky questions 'irritate' minister, media workshop told

10:17 AM |


Title – 6650 TONGA: Pesky questions 'irritate' minister, media workshop told
Date – 7 February 2010
Byline – None
Origin – Pacific Media Watch
Source – Matangi Tonga, 5/2/10
Copyright – MT
Status – Unabridged
----------------------------
* Pacific Media Watch Online - check the website for archive and links:
www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz

* Post a comment on this story at PMW Right of Reply:
www.pacificmediacentre.blogspot.com
pmc@aut.ac.nz

* Pacific Media Centre on Twitter - http://twitter.com/pacmedcentre

PESKY QUESTIONS IRRITATE INFO MINISTER
www.matangitonga.to/article/spnews/pacificislands/20090205_tonga_pacific_commonwealth.shtml

NUKU'ALOFA (Matangi Tonga/Pacific Media Watch): A three-day Pacific Regional Workshop on Communication and Good Governance was officially opened in Nuku'alofa on February 2 by Tonga's Minister of Information and Communication, 'Eseta Fusitu'a, who shared an anecdote about how foreign media asked her "irritating" questions.

The workshop at the Fa'onelua Convention Centre, was co-hosted by the Tongan government and the Commonwealth Secretariat, and was the first of its kind in the region for government communication officers.

Commonwealth member countries in the region were invited - but the only countries that sent participants were Cook Islands, Samoa and Solomon Islands.

Dr Taiamoni Pifeleti from the Commonwealth Secretariat, London, said there were no participants from Papua New Guinea because of transport problems, and the Cook Islands had two participants, but one had to return home because of a death in the family.

Dr Pifeleti said the objective of the workshop was in line with the Pacific Plan of the Pacific Islands Forum on "good governance". She stressed that the working objective of government communication officers was for quality public services and not just bureaucracy.

Irritating questions
In her opening address, 'Eseta said government since 1875 had drafted legislation and set up a local newspaper, radio and television with the sole intention to inform the public.

'Eseta said foreign media were an "irritation", and she believed Tonga's image had been damaged by some of the stories that had been published by the foreign press.

She told how she was contacted by a foreign journalist prior to the coronation of King George Tupou V in August 2008 and asked questions about the cost of sending the king's crown to the UK to be polished.

'Eseta said she asked the journalist for what she thought would be a good alternative - for the king to have a plastic crown; or for the king not to have a crown at all?

'Eseta expressed her hope that at the end of the workshop there would be a handbook on how government communication officers can improve their work and, especially, on how to handle the foreign media.

* Comment on this item www.pacific.scoop.co.nz

+++niuswire

PACIFIC MEDIA WATCH ONLINE
www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz

PACIFIC MEDIA WATCH is a media and educational resource compiled by the AUT Pacific Media Centre for the Pacific region.

(c)1996-2010 Creative Commons
http://creativecommons.org

Items are provided solely for review purposes as a non-profit educational service. Copyright remains the property of the original  producers as indicated in the header. Recipients should seek permission
from the copyright owner for any publishing. Copyright owners not  wishing their materials to be posted by PMW please contact us. The views expressed in material listed by PMW are not necessarily the views
of PMW or the Pacific Media Centre.

For further information or joining the Pacific Media Watch listserve, visit:
http://lists.apc.org.au/listinfo.cgi/pacific_media_watch?apc.org.au

Email:
pmc@aut.ac.nz
Fax: (+649) 921 9987
SnailMail: Pacific Media Centre, School of Communication Studies, AUT
University, Private Bag 92006, Auckland 1142, Aotearoa/New Zealand

Website: www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz
_______________________________________________
Pacific_media_watch mailing list
Pacific_media_watch@lists.apc.org.au

_______________________________________________
Pacific_media_watch mailing list
Pacific_media_watch@lists.apc.org.au


--
----------------------------------------
pacific islands media association
pima.nius@gmail.com
aotearoa, new zealand
----------------------------------------
The pima.nius googlegroup is a facility for discussion and distributing information. Content sent by this googlegroup are forwarded from various networks and media publications.
 
DISCLAIMER: These emails are unedited and discussions made through this googlegroup are unmoderated. Announcements made through this googlegroup do not constitute endorsement for the organisations, individuals or opinions featured. Please check the integrity of organisations and individuals before exchanging personal information with them.
 
- - - - - - - - -
comment here:
http://groups.google.com/group/pima-nius/topics?hl=en
 
send an email comment here:
pima-nius@googlegroups.com
 
unsubscribe:
pima-nius+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
 
more options
http://groups.google.com/group/pima-nius?hl=en?hl=en
 
- - - - - - - - -

0 comments: