President George W. Bush's "new type of war" on terrorism has revived tensions between reporters and government officials over secrecy.
Bush laid out ground rules two days after the Sept. 11 attacks: "Let me condition the press this way: Any sources and methods of intelligence will remain guarded in secret. My administration will not talk about how we gather intelligence, if we gather intelligence and what the intelligence says. That's for the protection of the American people. It is important, as we battle this enemy, to conduct ourselves this way."
Administration officials say they are clamping down on information about military movements because the speed with which news travels around the world means crucial details about the US response can fall into the wrong hands.
The Defense Department sched-uled a meeting yesterday to discuss the possible deployment of a media pool to cover any hostilities. Reporters in such pools have covered military actions from Panama to the Gulf War, working in tandem with the Defense Department.
The administration also declined on Monday to release examples of evidence implicating the prime suspect, Osama bin Laden -- despite promises from Secretary of State Colin Powell a day earlier.
White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the evidence Powell promised must be kept under wraps because it will go to a grand jury investigative panel, which operates in secret, and because the evidence is derived from intelligence, which is classified.
"We just want some kind of broad information ... to show why the United States is so confident that he's the one responsible," said Lawrence McQuillan, White House reporter for USA Today. "I don't want to go telling Pentagon secrets, or reveal the next attack. But I do think a basic openness is essential at a time like this."
"That's what makes us the good guys," he said, referring to the US.
Officials also have not been entirely forthcoming about Bush's consultations with other world leaders as he tries to build a global anti-terrorism coalition. Aides offered vague, upbeat assessments about Bush's talks Monday with Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien.
"Canada's a close NATO ally, obviously, but in terms of what we're talking about with all our friends and allies around the globe in terms of military support, military planning, we're not talking about it," said national security spokesman Sean McCormack.
Joshua Meyrowitz, professor of media studies at the University of New Hampshire, said the current atmosphere gives journalists a chance to bolster their reports with historical context, thereby truly informing the public.
"There should be less of an emphasis on the daily schedule of officials, and what their announcements are. They no longer hide the fact that they are concerned with shepherding and guiding the press," Meyrowitz said.
Fleischer said most Americans support the need to withhold certain information. He told reporters Monday, "I think you all will be the judge, if you believe the government has gone too far."
Journalists, however, said the secrecy makes that job tougher.
"It's something our republic depends upon, journalists playing the role of questioner," said Bob Deans, White House correspondent for Cox Newspapers.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique