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Announcement: Pakistan Ignoble Award for Journalism (PIAJ)

Let Us Build Pakistan proudly announces the establishment of Pakistan Ignoble Award for Journalism (PIAJ). It will be awarded annually to a Pakistani journalist who has flouted all the norms of journalistic decency, objectivity, and fair play. Every December starting December 2009 a journalist whose functioning qualifies to be a journalist without a conscience will be PIAJ-ed.

We would like our readers and visitors to offer their nominations for the Pakistan Ignoble Award for Journalism (PIAJ). In your comments below, please provide the following:

1. Name of the nominee
2. Your justification for his/her nomination in no more than 4 sentences (about 100 words).
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Irfan Siddiqi writes in defence of Dr Shahid Masood and against 'Let us build Pakistan'

Why is a key member of the Pakistani Taliban Union of Journalists (PTUJ) unhappy with LUBP (Let us build Pakistan). Did we steal his cow? Or perhaps he is unhappy since we have written against his sacred cow, the president of PTUJ, Dr Shatir Mossad? Here is his op-ed in Jang today:

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The Plus All Formula: Let us build Pakistan

Hasan Nisar rejects the minus-one (i.e. minus President Zardari) formula, and instead suggests that all patriotic Pakistanis should support the democratic government in order to build their beautiful country.

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Zahir Ebrahim's analysis of Hamid Mir' attack on 'Let us build Pakistan'

By Zahir Ebrahim

Project Humanbeingsfirst.org

November 10, 2009

To: letusbuildpakistan

Ref: http://letusbuildpakistan.blogspot.com/2009/11/capital-talk-and-let-us-build-pakistan.html

Let me first state up front that I have no affiliation with any political party of Pakistan, its military, its intelligence apparatus, or any intelligence apparatus in the world for that matter, its newsmedia, or their collectively providing the essential proxy services to the hectoring hegemons for the orchestrated dismemberment of Pakistan. As far as I am concerned, as a Pakistani citizen, they all leave much to be desired. And I hope that many genuinely concerned and honest Pakistanis who are directly affiliated with any of these institutions also feel the same way. All that which these institutions and their leaders as well as their foot-soldiers can improve upon, begins by loudly proclaiming the correct solution for 2 + 2. All else will follow1. That is spelled out in the new book from Project Humanbeingsfirst.org : The Pakistan Decapitation Papers.

The sudden one-sided attack on letusbuildpakistan blog by Mr. Hamid Mir of GEO TV in their Capital Talk show of November 05, 2009 is intriguing. I have seldom read that little known website, and I have even less interest in their political perspective which appears to echo the same sacred-cow axioms of their erstwhile leader Benazir Bhutto. Indeed, the blog shares the primal axiom of 'militant Islam' being the first-enemy undermining Pakistan with the entire political-military ruling establishment of Pakistan and the United States. This is immediately apparent from their dialectical ode to Pakistan military on their website: “A tribute to Pakistani soliders fighting the terrorists of Taliban, Al-Qaeda and Sipah-e-Sahaba”. Perhaps the website authors, too incestuously engrossed in their own perspectives, haven't yet had the time to read Alice's reflections when she isn't sliding down the rabbit hole in The Decapitation of Pakistan by its own Military!.

So, the public squabble among thieves is interesting, and perhaps carries some useful signal of what's to come down the pipe.

First, let's ponder upon the blatant facts of the matter before diving into deconstructing the politics behind the 'katputli tamasha' (puppetshow) on the Grand Chessboard. Despite the candid declaration by the tiny blog of its political affiliation with the Pakistan Peoples Party on its own contact page: “Abdul Nishapuri, the founding co-editor of the 'Let us build Pakistan' blog, and a member of the 'Critical Supporters of Pakistan People's Party'.”, and which largely appears to be a shoestring budget operation of ordinary individuals unable to even afford a paid hosted website, Mr. Hamid Mir could only think of picking on a tiny blog which openly advertises its affiliation to the ruling political party, to uncover all the ills which plague Pakistan?

Has GEO TV run out of more heinous criminals in Pakistan to target among those who incessantly wage war upon their own people by way of deception and are openly destroying the country on behalf of their foreign paymasters?

What's the real agenda behind the 'katputli tamasha' of attacking a tiny unknown website by none other than the mighty Mr. Hamid Mir – the “champion of democracy” and free speech – who himself shamelessly shills for the hectoring hegemons?

In order to understand that, one has to acutely comprehend the politics of Hamid Mir.

Below I reproduce a letter I wrote the distinguished 'democrat' journalist after witnessing his own brazen performance given at the Commonwealth Club of California in April earlier this year. That performance video is linked to in the following tutorial which unravels Hegelian Dialectics, how fourth-generation warfare is waged upon the public by way of deception to weaken the victim from within.

Mr. Hamid Mir's endearing performance before the largely pro-establishment American audience (and that description transcends the traditional left-right dialectics of American politics), finally convinced me that this highly regarded journalist from Pakistan made famous by his interviews of Osama Bin Laden, subsequently by being the people's street champion of free-speech and democracy under military dictatorship, and now being heralded as the hero of Pakistan's democracy in the United States by its own instruments of propaganda, is an outright intelligence asset.

Because, alternately, Mr. Hamid Mir being a mere dolt and a simpleton appears to be a rather bizarre proposition. For how can a journalist of his stature and experiences be so un-informed? Intelligence agents and assets permeate the newsmedia worldwide and are merely tunes to be played by the Mighty Wurlitzer. The fine art of the Mighty Wurlitzer is explained in the tutorial.

Therefore, anything which Mr. Hamid Mir sings is suspect, at least for the forensic mind already attuned to the hectoring hegemons' genocidal plays for “full spectrum dominance” on the Grand Chessboard. Consequently, Hamid Mir's tunes and diatribes must minimally be scrutinized from that perspective before taking them on face value. Such Machiavellian orchestration after all, is only according to the Pentagon's own recipe for fourth-generation warfare as examined in this recent editorial.

Since hearing that remarkable performance in California – whose delivery was undoubtedly most natural and very well done – I don't waste time on the melodies hummed by Hamid Mir except to extract any un-apparent signals, as the maestro directly rehearses the Mighty Wurlitzer's compositions. Which is of course most unfortunate for me because Mr. Hamid Mir used to be among my few favorite Pakistani journalists to watch in diaspora on the rare occasion that I did tune into youtube (don't watch or own a television), as the one who showed any chutzpah and boldness in questioning the ruling establishment. I thought he had wonderfully taken a page from I. F. Stone. Under forensic scrutiny however, it only turned out to be a dialectical noora-kushti among mercenaries with mindless commentaries rehearsed from the galleries, and all of it to keep the public glued to the edge of their seat distracted from the real show in town. While such diabolical narratives, both for manufacturing consent and manufacturing dissent, are highly prized by the hectoring hegemons, and of course duly rewarded by them, they are a treacherous deception played upon the wretched of the earth in the audience who always bear the full brunt of its import.

I have always known Machiavelli it seems, but certainly since I became a student of Noam Chomsky at MIT and learnt more political theory than I wanted to. But my mind was initially un-attuned to accept the role of famous people like Hamid Mir in manufacturing consent. They seemed to play the courageous dissenter's role so expertly – until I figured out the political theory of Manufacturing Dissent.

Mr. Hamid Mir in that highly regarded conversation at the Commonwealth Club retained all the core-axioms of the hectoring hegemons while echoing all their mantras – a matter that is fully fleshed out in the aforementioned book. In that conversation, Hamid Mir didn't even bother to play dissent, as he sometimes does in his musings in Urdu. He actually changed his role to manufacturing consent before the American audience. A very versatile asset. He may yet win his Nobel Peace Prize – President Obama unfortunately stole a march on the poor guy this year as already deconstructed.

Mr. Hamid Mir too will surely earn his own knighthood as the man of peace someday, the savior illustrious of Pakistan who helped save the world from the Pak-Nukes which were about to fall into the inglorious hands of the barbaric hordesmen of Osama Bin Laden: “[It's] Not a Clash of Civilizations, It's a Clash between the Civilized World and Barbarians”. Watch that myth-making under refined construction in the bizarre glorification of Hamid Mir at the Commonwealth Club of California by the 'whiteman' duly flattering the 'negro'.

Knowing all of that context, let's return to the question of Mr. Hamid Mir attacking the lame-duck Presidency of Mr. Zardari through the tiny blog 'Let us build Pakistan'.

GEO is really not that stupid to not know the difference between an entity trying to Machiavellianly create diabolical intrigues – which if GEO News really wanted to unravel, they could have within 5 minutes uncovered at least 20 websites, or a hundred prominent Pakistanis, who are clearly intelligence-ops and/or mouth-pieces working to directly undermine Pakistan by simply judging them for their crucial omissions and/or direct support of empire's own sacred-cow axioms – and the largely unknown ordinary individuals running the shoestring budget operation of 'Let us build Pakistan' who are even being quite candid about their political affiliation.

This is clearly indicative, at least to my mind, of some marching orders having been received by GEO TV. Hamid Mir is only executing them. It appears that a take down of the Zardari government is imminent, to be replaced by a different 'errand boy'.

They all work for the same puppetmasters. It's merely playing musical chairs to the same tune that is slowly removing one chair at a time every time the music stops. Everyone in this game parrots empire by keeping the core-axioms intact while offering variations of “Betweens”.

Therefore, it follows that they are all playing together by the same set of rules constructed by empire. Hence, they are all traitors to the state of Pakistan. If Pakistanis wish to become slaves by choice to the hectoring hegemons with a boot stamped upon their face in perpetuity, hold a referendum and ask them. Don't stab the people in the back.

Whether or not the gallows will ever welcome Pakistan's long list of traitors, stripping them naked of their thin robe to at least convict them in the court of public opinion, must suffice for an honest plebeian un-afraid to proclaim 2 + 2 = 4.

The above is an abridged version of the article. Full article is available here.

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In Defense of Let US Build Pakistan: Protect Freedom of Expression of Pakistani Bloggers

Shaheryar Ali

Source: Sherryx's weblog

It’s a very sorry state of affairs. For more than 2 years now I have been writing about the dangers of “intellectual hegemony”, “selective radicalism” and “double discourse on Rights” being prevalent in Pakistani corporate media as well in Pakistani blogging community. The Pakistani blogging community though is generally better than the media corporations but unfortunately is plagued by the same myopic intolerance when it comes to any dissenting views regarding the myths about Pakistan, its origin, its democracy and its national interests as defined by Right-of center media guru or a section of ex-Stalinists now turned liberals or centrists intellectuals.

The freedom of expression always is the freedom to express views which are deemed controversial. The demand for freedom of expression always arises for the marginalized opinion, one which is not acceptable to the state, rulers, moral vanguard of the society etc. It’s precisely this very right to differ, to challenge the dominant views that creates the issue of freedom of expression in the first place. Its so because, any other opinion one which operates within the realms of what is “acceptable” to the society or state in never in danger of suppression. Noam Chomsky for example points out that if we conceive freedom of expression as something for opinions which are acceptable than even Hitler was in favor of such freedom of expression. Freedom of expression is explicitly the freedom to be able to differ; to express opinions deems offensive, those which challenge the “fashionable conformities” weather political, nation or social in origins.

Few days back we saw one of the most heinous witch hunts in intellectual history of Pakistan. It started with attacks on the section of Pakistani columnist who have a Left wing background and who took a stand in support of democratic transition in Pakistan and tried to put forward a different perspective on Judicial Movement, war on terror and media activism. These people are a very tiny minority within Pakistan’s booming media business. Their view by no stretching of imagination can be called a dominant view in Pakistani media. The friction between these intellectuals and their opponents on the right side of political spectrum are ideological tracing its roots in the right-left polarization in Pakistan during 60s and 70s. The few left wing intellectuals who have survived the McCarthyist witch hunts by state and owners of media houses are now being put on media show trials by Pro-Taliban and Pro-Army TV anchors and columnists. Every abuse and every allegation from being an alcoholic to being a traitor have been put on them.

What these people themselves have been doing in media is nothing but shameless propaganda in name of news coverage. Mr Haroon Rashid who is on the forefront of this witch hunt against the tiny progressive element in Pakistani media , has been distorting facts and history in his columns but with a shameless face gives lectures about “modesty” and “tolerance’ to the victims of these witch hunts. I can go on and on about his academic honesty but I find it waste of my time. Simple two things can expose his dishonesty. In one of his Mccathry inspired columns against the socialist/ex-socialists intellectuals he shamelessly wrote that “Reds opposed Pakistan, once it came into being they never get out of shock”. It’s a shameless blatant lie. Communist Party of India and the Progressive Writers Association supported the demand of Pakistan. They even collaborated with Jinnah, the election manifesto of ALIML in 1946 elections was written by a communist Danial Latifi and many communists joined Muslim League as policy. Ironically it was the mother party of Mr Haroon Rashid Jamate Islami opposed Pakistan and Maudaudi compared it to “cooking of Pork” but Pakistani right forgets these historical details. After that I remember reading one of his columns against the great Urdu poets Ahmad Faraz. Every abuse and every label that Mr Rashid could think on was put on the great poet who recently died. In order declare Faraz infidel and traitor Mr Rashid quoted a verse which questioned the validity of divine revelation. Taking on the verse Mr Rashid went on and on to condemn Ahmad Faraz to great extant. What was ironic was the simple fact that the verse was not of Ahmad Faraz but of another progressive poet Mr Zaheer Kashmiri. Mr Aser Chohan wrote a column to clear the facts but Mr Haroon Rashid never had the decency to either apologies or retract the defamatory remarks.

Hamid Mir, who sadly has become a stain on the name of his great father, Prof. Warris Mir who was himself a victim of Jamate islami sponsored witch hunt in the 80s has taken this witch hunt to new heights. On his popular programme The Capital Talk he and Mr Ansar Abbasi , the pope of pro-Taliban media establishment took on the blog“Let US Build Pakistan” and put baseless allegation on it without any evidence. The language they used rings bells of alarm to anyone who is familiar with these crooks and their methods. It was said that the “blog is trying to create misunderstandings between Army and Media”. This is an open threat. It was said the blog is being run from presidential palace .etc etc. This is the most absurd thing which I have ever heard. Who has given these people the right to put baseless allegations without giving any proof? Let US Build Pakistan for the whole period of Lawyers Movement kept supporting the deposed Chief Justice of Pakistan, even when the PPP government was using delaying tactics. The photograph of his lordship the most honorable Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Iftikhar Chuadhry was prominently and permanently on display on side bar of the web site with explicit declaration: “This blog supports the restoration of deposed judges”. I bet this also came from the presidential palace?

Will Mr Chief Justice take any interest in the law of Press council and rules of engagement by the media barons? Or every ones name, reputation and character is at the will of this anchrocracy? The Pakistani blogging community had previously suffered the attack by state during the 3^rd November emergency rule by General Pervez Musharaf . No one knows better about “right to dissent” than the lordship who himself exercised it in front of General Pervez Musharraf. Let Us Build Pakistan is a blog which openly supports Pakistan Peoples Party; it has never claimed to be an “independent news source”. They have explicitly mentioned their ideological ties with the largest and the only federal party of Pakistan. Last time I checked right to support Pakistan Peoples Party was not declared a crime in Pakistan. Anyone has the right to disagree with “Let US Build Pakistan” and “Pakistan Peoples Party” but no one has the right to spread disinformation. What was done on Geo TV was libelous defamation. People of Pakistan have a constitutional right to support and join any political party and to express views in its support. I would appeal to all people of conscience to support right of Let US Build Pakistan blog to express their opinion in a threat free environment.

What was most insensitive was the reaction of the Pakistani blogging community. Nothing of solidarity was observed. Pakistan Peoples Party and its support many be “out of fashion” in the class which blogs but let me tell my community that if right to have an opinion became focus of media witch-hunting none will be spared, not even the self proclaimed secular nationalists of Pakistan who are rabidly anti PPP and anti Left. The right may be busy focusing on PPP and a wider anti-PPP ideological alliance appears to be in place but as PPP govt goes many of you will be the target as well. Let US Build Pakistan is remarkable blog in many respects. It has shown remarkable strength on issues on which many of us shy away

1) This blog took a early and bold stand against Talibanization and sectarianism

2) This Blog took a conscientious stand on rights of Pakistani Miniorities

3) This blog showed a remarkable strength of conviction and conscience when it supported the restoration of judiciary against wishes of many in the Party whom they support. [I for example who is writing this article to support Let Us Build Pakistan was and is critical of lawyers movement and judiciary but this never came in way of either me or Let Us Build Pakistan]

4) This blog is pioneer in “Media Criticism” and has frequently demonstrated the “ideological biases” of Pakistani media hence upheld the fundamental right of people of Pakistan to un biased and/or alternative news and opinions

5) This blog has taken a democratic stand in support of marginalized groups and nationalities of Pakistan

6) This blog has covered the silent anti-Shia genocide taking place in Pakistan which finds no coverage any where,

I want to tell that I am proud of Abdul Nishapuri and the team of Let Us Build Pakistan, for being brave and for writing what they believe in. I also congratulate them for openly declaring them to be supporters of Pakistan Peoples Party unlike their detractors the Hamid Mirs, Shahid Masoods and Ansar Abasais who don’t have the moral courage to openly declare their political allegiance and wear the masks of being “independent” analysts and doing overtly political propaganda. I will only say to them what has been declared “greatest punch line in history of America”, it was in one of the “anti-communist hearings during McCarthy’s witch hunt. “Have you no decency Sir—-”

I would like to salute the bloggers who raised their voice in support of Let Us Build Pakistan, Rabia Shakoor, Umair Wasi and Pakistan Media Watch.

To my fellow bloggers who are indifferent and silent at plight of a blog which they don’t like because it supports PPP and Zardari and is critical of Army and agencies etc I will just say dear friends, today it is Nazir Naji and Lets Us Build Pakistan, who will be next think about it——–

Ode to Pakistani Bloggers, the poem by Pastor Martin Niemöller the poem which has become the greatest indictment of inactivity of German Intellectuals during Nazi regime.

“First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me”

The links to various articles on this issue can be reached here, here and here. here

Geo TV and Selective Freedom of Expression.

To what extant these Media Jihadis can Go and scale of abuse read this article in Saudi Gazette.

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GEO TV: Selective Freedom of Expression

Guest Blog by Aamir Mughal

Source: http://chagataikhan.blogspot.com

Every citizen shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression, and there shall be freedom of the press, subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interest of the glory of Islam or the integrity, security or defence of Pakistan or any part thereof, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, [commission of] or incitement to an offence. Every citizen, not being in the service of Pakistan, shall have the right to form or be a member of a political party,. REFERENCE: 1973 Constitution of Pakistan http://www.pakistani.org/pakistan/constitution/part2.ch1.html

One must raise objection on the comment of Mr Hamid Mir and Mr Ansar Abbasi that a bloghttp://letusbuildpakistan.blogspot.com/ carrying PPP flag!!! What does that mean? Should Pakistanis first have permission from GEO TV/Jang Group/The News International to utter something, or one has to ask for permission of GEO TV/Jang Group/The News International to exercise their Political Right that includes showing Flag of any political party. Both of the Top Journalists Mr Hamid Mir and Mr Ansar Abbasi were behaving as if we are living in Third Reich

For complete article: http://chagataikhan.blogspot.com/2009/11/geo-tv-selective-freedom-of-expression.html
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Guest blog by "Media Guru" in support of "Let us build Pakistan"

I congratulate the team of ‘Let us build Pakistan’ for thinking and writing on the right lines. Keep on the good work.

By Media Guru
PK Journalist

A bunch of right-wing TV anchorpersons aided by some of their right-of-the-centre and some broiler chicken (types of Kashif Abbasi and Moeed Pirzada) colleagues have made Pakistan hostage of their pro-taliban and eventually anti-peace agenda. They are operating like a mafia who wants every government in the country to dance on their tune. They want to dictate internal and external policies of the country irrespective of whatever tunnel vision they have of the world.

They can level all kinds of founded or unfounded allegations against anybody whom they don’t like owing to their personal and political prejudices. To extend their personal and ideological agendas, they want to spit unchecked firepower. But, they are so fragile that their glasshouse breaks into pieces if someone like this blog braves to throw a pebble of criticism onto them.

The gang of anchorpersons I am referring to are a pirated version of America’s Fox News. Fox News represents America’s right wing while our col-anchors (regards to Naji sahib for coining the term) represent Pakistan’s far right. But one thing they cannot comprehend is, because of their absolute ignorance about development of new media, the power of blogging and citizen journalism.

However, they have started feeling the heat of scrutiny by the blogsphere as their ringleader Hamid Mir was seen agitating against “Let us build Pakistan” in his show Capital Talk.

Adding to what is said in this blog about col-anchors, I would say people like Hamid Mir, Dr Shahid Masood and Shaheen Sehbai seem double agents, working both for national and international intelligence networks. While Hamid Mir’s embedding with the country’s intelligence network isn’t a secret, I would quote one episode of his journalism from where I started suspecting him of having international links as well.

After 9/11, the United States of America pounced into Afghanistan with all of its technological military might to fight the ill-equipped force of Taliban and other resistance groups. But, back home the Bush Administration was facing severe public criticism for using unproportional military firepower in Afghanistan.

To justify the scale of warfare being used against Taliban, the Bush administration was desperate to paint the enemy well equipped with weapons of mass destruction. And none other than Hamid Mir came to its rescue with Osama Bin Laden’s interview in which the Al-Qaeda chief was reported to be claiming possession of nuke arms.

Hamid Mir was working for little known Urdu daily Ausaf but the interview was carried in full by English daily Dawn on its front-page. Haroons’ (of Dawn Group) links with American establishment are very well know and in the past when American officials weren’t involved in micro managing Pakistan, Yousaf Haroon was used to bring American orders on difficult junctures.

Hamid Mir’s handy work published in a paper regarded in the west as the most credible of Pakistani newspapers silenced the critics of American invasion in Afghanistan because they were now made to believe that the enemy wasn’t just carrying sub-machineguns, they also had briefcase nuke arms to inflict maximum damage to American people and their interest.

Since then Taliban and Al-Qaeda have gone to the extent of even using ‘human bombs’ in the form of suicide bombers but there has so far been no incident of using nukes or even chemical weapons on their part.

Bravo … I congratulate the team of ‘Let us build Pakistan’ for thinking and writing on the right lines. Keep on the good work.

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Pakistani bloggers are united in support of the "Let us build Pakistan" blog

"Let us build Pakistan" has approached the "Committee to Protect Bloggers" in order to report the systematic and coordinated bullying of our blog by Hamid Mir, Ansar Abbasi (and other pro-Taliban anchors and journalists) in Pakistan's capitalist media (i.e., Geo TV talk show "Capital Talk").

We are very thankful to fellow bloggers in particular Rabia Shakoor, Umair Wasi and Pakistan Media Watch for raising their voice in support of the "Let us build Pakistan" blog.

Capital Talk Targeted Let Us Build Pakistan

By Umair Wasi

Source: http://pakiviewson.blogspot.com/2009/11/capital-talk-targeted-let-us-build.html

At last media has attacked the websites with all their so called "fair journalism" weapons, last night in capital talk that is hosted by Mr. Hamid Mir on "Geo News" with his 3 guests including Nisar Abbasi a "The News" journalist and Mr. Javaid Hashmi of PML(N) and Sumsam Ali Bukhari of PPP, Hamid Mir has exclusively shown the blog Let Us Build Pakistan maintained by my fellow bloggers Abdul Nishapuri, Socrates, Abbas Zaidi & Sarah, Mr. Hamid Mir and Mr. Nisar Abbasi criticized the blog through out the program with all their white journalism's' words, Mr. Hamid Mir highlight the program with the tag of "PPP members criticized army and media" and Mr. Nisar Abbasi added the statement that Let Us Build Pakistan is operated from the presidency.

This is not the first time that media is raising fingers on bloggers and webmasters, but the bloggers are ready to face the situation and will not sit quite at this time it will be dealt accordingly.

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GEO TV Bullys Bloggers, Offers No Facts

November 6th, 2009

Source: http://pakistanmediawatch.com/2009/11/06/geo-tv-bullys-bloggers-offers-no-facts/

Hamid Mir: Media Bully

Commercial media giant GEO TV has launched an attack on a small blog (compared to gigantic Geo media network) in a disturbing case of media bullying as popular TV Host Hamid Mir and investigative editor for The News Ansar Abbasi lashed out against the blog “Let Us Build Pakistan,” a blog of PPP supporters that was started in 2008 and is run on the free service “Blogger.com“.

Unlike Hamid Mir and GEO TV, “Let Us Build Pakistan” bloggers Abdul, Sarah, Abbas Zaidi and Socrates, are quite transparent about their political affiliation and agenda and do not misrepresent their beliefs. Despite the transparency of the bloggers, these commercial media giants have bashed them for being propaganda.

Unfortunately, the commercial media journalists embarrassed themselves when they accused the bloggers at different times during the show of being both puppets of the President and CIA and Mossad. Of course, the so-called journalists present no evidence of these preposterous claims. The journalists also accuse the bloggers of causing a rift between media and military as if “media” were the government. Note to Mr. Mir and Mr. Abbasi: despite your face being on TV, you are not elected by anyone to any office.

Furthermore, while Mr. Mir and Mr. Abbasi make accusations against these bloggers, they fail to report that it is the commercial media giants that are causing a rift between military and civilian government and threatening to destabilize Pakistan during wartime.

In addition to presenting no facts or evidence for their accusations, Hamid Mir and Ansar Abbasi have engaged in the sort of media bullying that can create a “chilling effect” that results in citizens being afraid to speak their opinions freely. This is a direct assault on the Fundamental Rights of free speech provided in the Constitution.

Every citizen shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression, and there shall be freedom of the press, subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interest of the glory of Islam or the integrity, security or defence of Pakistan or any part thereof, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, [commission of] or incitement to an offence.

Other Pakistani bloggers have begun coming to the defense of “Lets Build Pakistan,” in particular the “Views on Pakistan News” blog by Umair Wasi.

GEO TV and The News should immediately reprimand their two employees, Hamid Mir and Ansar Abbasi, for their irresponsible acts and poor journalistic ethics. Additionally, GEO TV and The News should require Hamid Mir and Ansar Abbasi to publicly apologize for their unfounded accusations and promise to never again accuse others without presenting any facts.

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The 'Capital Talk' and the 'Let us build Pakistan' debate

This site has moved to http://criticalppp.com, click this link if you are not redirected
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Code of conduct for Pakistani media. Don't glorify terrorism.

By: Abdul Nishapuri

The following code of conduct has been designed in view of certain segments of Pakistani media’s irresponsible behavior and projection of terrorists and militants as heroes in the eyes of fellow Pakistanis and the world. On certain occasions, it is so brazen that we have to term it as a media disgrace and national menace.

Many of us are aware of how many reporters, columnists and anchors of known channels and newspapers behave. Though some of them are apparently polite and amicable but large numbers of them are rude and Over Ambitious Angry Journalists, the people who want to do something in hurry, looking for a short cut to fame and sensation. Some of them have very obvious political or jihadi inclinations.

This code of conduct is applicable to all forms of media, including but not limited to newspapers, television channels, websites, and radio.

Pakistan is currently undergoing the most difficult phase of its history. We, the Pakistani nation, the democratic government and the Pakistan Army, are fighting a war with an enemy who is hiding within our own people, and who does not hesitate from killing our fellow Pakistanis, be they Muslims or non-Muslims, Pashtun or Punjabi, Sindhi or Baloch, Sunni or Shia etc.

Our enemy uses a false interpretation of Islam to promote its international jihadi and sectarian agenda. Our enemy kills our guests, investors, aid-workers, and diplomats in Pakistan, be they from China or USA, Iran or Egypt.

It has been noticed that some media outlets including but not limited to TV news and talk-shows, newspaper columns and websites are involved in speech or activities which are either implicitly or explicitly against the national security interests of our beloved country.

It has been noticed that some writers, speakers or anchorpersons tend to glorify or justify terrorist activities by the Taliban, Al Qaeda or their associate jihadi and sectarian groups in Pakistan.

Often terrorism against the people of Pakistan, its armed forces or its government institutions is justified in the guise of what they term as a legitimate reaction to injustices in Kashmir, Afghanistan or Palestine. Pakistan is not responsible for any injustices in any form in any part of the world, nor would it allow terrorists and their mentors to brainwash and use innocent Pakistanis against their own country and its esteemed institutions.

We understand that a typical 13 to 17 year old suicide bomber who explodes himself in a mosque, imambargah, market or police station is only a foot-soldier, who has been brainwashed by such pro-jihadi anchorpersons and columnists, opportunist political leaders or narrow-minded mullahs, who have convinced the suicide bomber to direct his anger against Pakistan, its armed forces and democratic institutions.

Therefore, any anchorperson, speaker or writer, who is found guilty of either justifying or glorifying acts of terrorism, will be arrested on the charges of treason against Pakistan. Such person will be tried in anti-terrorism courts and given exemplary punishment.

As a matter of rule:

1. All innocent citizens and members of security forces who sacrifice their lives in Pakistan's war on terror will be described as 'shaheed' or martyr.

2. All terrorists killed in the war on terror will be described as 'jahannum wasil' or 'killed'.

3. No interviews with Taliban leaders or their supporters will be conducted or broadcast through the media.

4. Media will refrain from inviting those black-sheep who openly speak against Pakistan's war on terror, and try to justify terrorist activities as a legitimate reaction or jihad. Such fifth columnists will not be invited in talk shows.

5. Those anchor persons or columnists who are known for their sympathies towards Taliban or Al Qaeda will be banned from conducting any TV shows or writing columns for newspapers.

6. No comments from ordinary public (i.e. terrorists posing to be ordinary public) will be allowed on media, which tend to glorify or justify acts of terror.

7. Media owners and administrators will be ultimately responsible for any violation of this code of conduct. Their media outlet will be closed down and licenses cancelled in case of any violation of the code.

8. Channels will not go overboard in the urge to increase viewers rating. They will refrain from creating sensationalism. They will refrain from giving extensive live coverage to terrorist activities.

9. Media will not force unwanted stories and television news which glorify anti-national elements, terrorists and traitors.
10. Media outlets will not race after breaking news. The concept of confirmation and accuracy of news or an event from independent sources will not be ignored.
11. Media organizations shall provide risk-awareness training for those journalists and media workers, who are likely to be involved in assignments where dangerous conditions prevail. They will also be trained on how to keep national interests in mind when reporting or interpreting news items.
12. In order to curb sensationalism and also to reward hard working and responsible journalists, media owners will distribute 50% of their profits to their employees including full time media workers and freelance journalists, who comply with this code of conduct.

We are fighting a very sensitive war, a war of Pakistan's survival. We therefore cannot afford to remain oblivious to those who are trying to weaken the very foundations of the state and the society.

Code of conduct drafted by Abdul Nishapuri.

Signed by: 15000 members of "Terror Free Pakistan" - An association of all Pakistanis irrespective of any political, religious or ethnic affiliation.

17 October 2009

......

Journalists propose code of ethics for Pakistani media

LAHORE: The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) on Monday invited comments and suggestions on a draft code of ethics adopted at a recent international media summit attended by journalists, editors, publishers and members of the civil society.

The summit was organised by the PFUJ and the International Federation of Journalists in Lahore on August 2.

PREAMBLE: The following Code of Principles for the Conduct of Journalism in Pakistan is based upon the belief that fair, balanced and independent journalism is essential for good governance, effective public administration and the capacity of people in Pakistan to achieve genuine democracy and peace. The code recognises that the creation of a tolerant, peaceful and just society depends upon the freedom of citizens to have access to responsible journalism through media that respect principles of pluralism and diversity.

For this code to be effective, journalism and media policy in Pakistan must be guided by the following principles:

* That media, whatever the mode of dissemination, are independent, tolerant and reflect diversity of opinion enabling full democratic exchange within and among all communities, whether based on geography, ethnic origins, religious belief or language;

* That laws defend and protect the rights of journalists and the rights of all citizens to freedom of information and the right to know;

* That there is respect for decent working and professional conditions, through legally enforceable employment rights and appropriate regulations that guarantee editorial independence and recognition of the profession of journalism;

* That there is credible and effective peer accountability through self-regulation by journalists and media professionals that will promote editorial independence and high standards of accuracy, reliability, and quality in media.

CODE OF ETHICS (DRAFT)

1. Journalism is a profession based upon commitment to principles of honesty, fairness, credibility and respect for the truth.

2. A journalist is obliged to uphold the highest professional and ethical standards and shall at all times defend the principle of freedom of the press and media.

3. A journalist shall ensure that information he/she provides is fair, accurate and not subject to falsification, distortion, inappropriate selection, misrepresentation or any form of censorship.

4. A journalist shall avoid the expression of comment and conjecture as fact.

5. A journalist shall protect confidential sources of information.

6. A journalist shall not distort or suppress the truth for commercial, institutional or other special interests.

7. A journalist shall not accept personal favours, bribes, inducements, nor shall he/she allow any other factor pertaining to his/her own person to influence the performance of his/her professional duties.

8. A journalist shall disclose any potential conflict of interest where they involve financial gain or political affiliations.

9. A journalist shall mention a person’s age, sex, race, colour, creed, illegitimacy, disability, marital status, or sexual orientation only if this information is strictly relevant. A journalist shall neither originate nor process material, which incites discrimination, ridicule, prejudice or hatred.

10. A journalist shall not take prior advantage of information gained in the course of his/her professional duties for private gain.

11. A journalist shall obtain information, data, photographs, and illustrations only by straightforward means. The use of other means can be justified only by overriding considerations of the public interest. A journalist is entitled to exercise a personal conscientious objection to the use of such means.

12. A journalist shall avoid intrusion into private life, grief or distress, except when there are overriding considerations of public interest.

13. A journalist shall not exceed the limits of ethical caution and fair comment because of time constraints or to gain competitive advantage.

14. A journalist shall not glorify the perpetrators of illegitimate acts of violence committed under any garb or cause, including honour and religion.

15. A journalist shall never indulge in plagiarism. Using or passing off the works of another as one’s own and without crediting the source is a serious ethical offence.

16. A journalist shall strive to ensure that his writing or broadcast contains no discriminatory material or comment based on matters of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, age, sex, marital status or physical or mental handicap.

17. A journalist shall respect and uphold principles of gender equality both in performance of his/her professional duties and in his/her relations with fellow journalists. A journalist shall not discriminate and shall avoid sex-role stereotyping and exploitation in his/her work.

18. A journalist, while reporting on communal, ethnic, or sectarian violence shall not identify victims by race, ethnicity or sect unless it is in the public interest. When this is the case he/she shall ensure that information is not presented in any manner, which may incite hatred or social disharmony.

19. A journalist, when reporting on sectarian or communal disturbance, including broadcast media, shall be aware of the danger of publishing images (or words) that may incite public discontent and anger.

20. A journalist shall not publish or broadcast extreme images of violence, mutilation, corpses or victims of tragedy irrespective of the cause unless it is necessary in the public interest.

21. A journalist shall respect the rights and needs of vulnerable members of society including women, children, marginalised communities and people suffering from disability.

22. A journalist shall not identify or photograph minor children, infants who are the offspring of sexual abuse, forcible marriage or illicit sexual union, or where they are victims of trafficking or forcible drafting into conflict.

23. A journalist shall always be conscious of the need for safety and shall take no action that endangers themselves or their colleagues in their work.

24. A journalist shall at all times respect other journalists and shall defend journalists where they suffer discrimination or are victimized for the exercise of their profession.

25. A journalist shall respect the public right to know and shall always act quickly to correct errors of fact or omission.

26. A journalist shall honour the decisions of the Media Complaints Commission. pr (Daily Times)

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008\09\09\story_9-9-2008_pg7_71

Violence and terrorism are plagues afflicting society and state in present-day Pakistan. The media should ensure that no programme has the effect of condoning or glamorizing violent or dangerous behaviour. Militant groups or individuals who are notified by the government as terrorists should be clearly identified as terrorists. Efforts should be made to ensure that there is no live coverage which gives publicity to terrorist goals or which could endanger lives or prejudice the attempt to deal with a on going terrorist incident or investigation. Many broadcasters have already gone through the learning curve in respect of restricting graphic scenes of violence, however, clear restrictions in this respect must be guaranteed for the viewers.

Religious programming should be screened by every broadcaster to ensure that it does not deprecate the religious views and beliefs of those belonging to a particular religion or sect or justifies or promotes sectarian hatred and violence. More generally, broadcasters must ensure that comment or opinion which has the capacity to incite hatred and contempt against any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, caste, nation, ethnicity, linguistic origin, colour, religion or sect is not only restricted but also condemned. Mixing religion with crass commercialism has dangerous consequences. Therefore, broadcasters need to assess whether advertising sponsorship of religious programming is in larger public interest.

http://fletcher.tufts.edu/news/2009/op-eds/Ebrahim_May31.shtml

Guidelines (by Zafar Abbas)

There are several guidelines agreed to and published by various news organisations like the BBC, CNN and others to deal with the coverage of a range of sensitive issues. Some of them can be useful for our TV networks to evolve their own working codes.Hijacking, hostage-taking and sieges

• We must be aware that anything we broadcast may be heard by the perpetrators.

• Always report demands in context. If it is a hostage situation, mention the nature of the threat to captives in case the demand for money or release of imprisoned militants is not met.

• Consider carefully the ethical issues raised by providing a platform to perpetrators of such crimes.

• Ensure a perpetrator is not interviewed live on air.

• If possible, install a time delay when broadcasting sensitive stories live, for example a school siege or plane hijacking. This is particularly important when the outcome is unpredictable.

• When reporting stories relating to hijacking, kidnapping, hostage-taking, etc, listen to advice from the authorities about anything which, if reported, could exacerbate the situation and place lives at risk, but of course without becoming the authorities’ mouthpiece.

Reporting terror

• Acts of terror should be reported in a timely manner, accurately, fully and responsibly. But there is no value-addition if severed limbs of victims of bomb explosions or bodies are shown.

• Credibility is undermined by the careless use of words which carry emotional or value judgment.

• Instead of loosely using the term ‘terrorist’, words which specifically describe the perpetrator — bomber, attacker, gunman, insurgent, militant — may be preferable.

• It is usually inappropriate to use terms like ‘court martial’ or ‘execute’ in the absence of a clear judicial process. There have been many examples in recent months of media reporting events under labels such as ‘Taliban execute American spy’. This is plain and simple killing, even murder, but not execution.

• The idea is to move away from using other people’s language, and to remain objective and report in ways that enable viewers to make their own assessments about who is doing what to whom.

The one rule of thumb a senior journalist used to mention was that while airing images always put your own self in the shoes of the victims’ families. Would you like to discover from a TV image that a brother or sister has fallen victim to a terror attack? And how would you feel if the broken, shattered and easily identifiable body of someone close is aired on TV without family consent?Then there are very clear guidelines for covering other sensitive issues like violence against women, demonstrations and riots, disasters and accidents. These have been adopted by almost all major media organisations like the BBC, and after every major incident some international media bodies, informed by the latest experience, usually review and improve these guidelines to ensure better and more responsible coverage.

Indeed these are challenging times for everyone, and the media is no exception. For instance, I could have lived without reading the news of a possible attack on a media organisation or press club. It provided no added information to those who are already in the news business, but could give a cue to militant groups to view the media as one of their enemies and hence fair game.

A more circumspect approach may help exclude hysteria in our news coverage, improve credibility without affecting circulation or a news channel’s rating.

(The writer is Resident Editor of Dawn in Islamabad and has also spent many years in broadcast journalism with the BBC)

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/covering-terrorism-live-809#

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Contact

This site has moved to http://criticalppp.com/about, click this link if you are not redirected
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Contribute

We welcome your contributions to this blog whether in the shape of a letter, article or column. Please send your piece to: pakistanteam@gmail.com

Please note that we will accept and publish a well-written and well-argued piece even if you do not agree with the opinion or the aim of this blog.

If you wish to hide your identity as an author, you may wish to use a pseudonym, anything other than 'anonymous'.

Saving a copy of your article on your computer may save you the trouble of re-writing if there is an error in mail or publication.
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Abdul's Interview with The Pakistani Spectator

تعميرپاکستان

The following interview was conducted by Ghazala Khan of "The Pakistani Spectator" regarding my journey as a blogger on "Let us build Pakistan".

Source:
http://www.pakspectator.com/interview-with-blogger-abdul-of-let-us-build-pakistan/

Interview with Blogger Abdul of 'Let us build Pakistan'

Abdul, Sarah and Paindoo are the three brains behind the “Let us build Pakistan” blog. The Pakistani Spectator invited Abdul for an interview on behalf of their blog.

Abdul is a research student in the field of social policy at a university in Lahore. Before that, and after his graduation, he worked as a waiter at a fiver start hotel in Islamabad. According to Abdul, “My father is a famous politician in Pakistan; he kicked me out of the house while I was 18 because of what I term as my non-conformist ideas and attitude.” Abdul joined the ‘Let us build Pakistan’ team in June 2008.

We are so happy to present this interesting as well as insightful interview to the TPS readers.

Could you tell us what made you decide to blog, and what was the inspiration behind it?

“Let us build Pakistan” was more an accidental than a planned project. One of our co-bloggers started this blog as a non-serious blog, kinda joke. Over time, he realized that some visitors were taking this joke seriously, and that there was considerable traffic. That’s when we decided to build upon this project as a meaningful contribution to the socio-political blog-sphere in Pakistan. The main inspiration was to provide critical, non-mainstream reflections on Pakistani politics and media.

What do you think sets Your blog apart from other blogs?

“Let us build Pakistan” does not claim to be neutral. We are a bunch of critical supporters of secular and left-wing parties in Pakistan, particularly the Pakistan People’s Party. At the same time, we are sympathetic to the more inclusive Sufi tradition of Islam. We however endeavour to maintain a balance in our critique and analysis of various social and political issues and news items pertaining to Pakistan. We believe that our blog offers a credible source of critical and non-right wing news items and analysis. This has been confirmed by various visitors who have provided feedback to us through emails and comments.

If you could choose one characteristic you have that brought you success in life, what would it be?

Personally, I have yet to meet something I might call ’success’ in my life. I can’t say this on behalf of my co-bloggers Sarah and Paindoo, who are much more successful in life I must say.

What was the happiest and gloomiest moment of your life?

The happiest moment is when I am with my family members. The gloomiest is…I am pretty optimistic generally, however, remembering a regrettable event of the past may be saddening once in a while.

Urdu Blogs have got huge potential, when do you think they will really take on the online horizon in Pakistan?

I don’t know much about Urdu blogs except only a few. However, I have immense respect for all Urdu bloggers. I think they are pursuing a very important and challenging project, a great service to Pakistan and the Urdu language.

If you could pick a travel destination, anywhere in the world, with no worries about how it’s paid for - what would your top 3 choices be?

Moon (if we consider it a part of our world);

Almost all countries in the Middle East;

Amazon.

What is your favorite book and why?

Divan-e-Ghalib; the best piece of Urdu poetry and philosophy.

What is your favorite meal, dress, and sport?

Aaloo Qeema; sports gear; squash.

What’s the first thing you notice about a person (whether you know them or not)?

The face, I think.

Whose Future is more bright in Pakistan; English blogs or Urdu Blogs?

Both have a long way to go, in my view.

How Pakistani bloggers can benefit from blogs financially?

Not sure. Our blog has not explored this option yet.

Do you think Pakistani bloggers tend to remain somewhat self-centered and really don’t go out of their shells? Is it the oriental style of blogging, or they are still unsure about it?

I don’t know much about the word ‘oriental’. However, by virtue of its very design, a blog seems to represent one’s true-self. I think bloggers should be commended for being brave enough to expose at least part of their inner shell to the outer space.

What do you think where the Pakistani blogosphere is right now?

Still budding; tightly superordinated by certain powerful mafia in the cyberspace. I will keep my further comments reserved.

Who are your top five favourite bloggers in Pakistan?

All those bloggers whose perspectives are closer to “Let us build Pakistan” are my favourites. Names such as Shaheryar Ali and Rabia Shakoor come to mind.

Have you ever become stunned by the uniqueness of any blogger in Pakistani blogosphere?

Many of them are unique in certain ways.

What is the future of blogging in Pakistan?

Will depend upon the capacity as well as commitment of Pakistani bloggers.

You have also got a blogging life, how has it directly affected both your personal and professional life?

I take blogging as a break from my professional life. My personal life remains unaffected.

What are your future plans?

I would like to forge an influential network of secular bloggers in Pakistan.

Any Message you want to give to the readers of The Pakistani Spectator?

Try to visit “Let us build Pakistan” once in a while. If you are a blogger, do consider providing a link to this blog on your blog roll.

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About

Let us build Pakistan

Welcome to our critical reflections on Pakistan's politics, society and arts. In the main, the blog offers a selection of editorials and op-eds from the Pakistani and international press. The blog is a project of 'Critical Supporters of Pakistan People's Party' (CSPPP); syndicated since June 2008.

Editor: Abdul Nishapuri

Co-editors: Sarah Khan, Omar Khattab, Jarri Mirza, Ahmer Asif

Critical Supporters of Pakistan People's Party (CSPPP)



Formed in June 2008, this group is committed to providing constructive criticism on the policies of Pakistan People's Party while remaining committed to the original 1970 manifesto of the party based on the following four principles:

Islam is our Faith
Democracy is our Policy
Socialism is our Economy
All Powers to the People

For further details or to be a part of this endeavour, contact: pakistanteam@gmail.com

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An overview of Pakistani blogs; Choose your own top ten Pakistani blogs from this list

---work in progress---

Here is a simple and candid review on Pakistani blogs. If you would like to add your blog to the list or offer a perspective on your or other blogs, please comment.

……

All Things Pakistan

http://pakistaniat.com/

We hope that ATP (All Things Pakistan) will be about discussion, not rants.

Our aspiration is to indulge in a conversation with others - Pakistanis and non-Pakistanis - about Pakistan as a living, breathing, vibrant, vigorous, multi-dimensional, complex society. This is in direct retaliation to the dominant discourse on Pakistan that tends to be about various versions of ‘Pakistan - the cardboard cut-out’.

The purpose of ATP is to talk about the problems constructively and to celebrate enthusiastically that which deserves to be celebrated. To embrace Pakistan in all its dimensions - its politics, its culture, its minutia, its beauty, its warts, its potential, its pitfalls, its facial hair, its turbaned heads, its shuttlecock burqas, its jet-setting supermodels, its high-flying bankers, its rock bands, its qawalls, its poets, its street vendors, its swindling politicians, its scheming bureaucrats, its resolute people - in essence, all things Pakistani.

ATP is about ‘all things’ but it cannot be about ‘everything.’ There is always a choice about what to put in and what to focus on. ATP wants to be balanced but also eclectic. We will focus on things that are primarily about Pakistan, will do so from a primarily Pakistani perspective, but we will also try to talk about things that others are not talking about. This is not a ‘news blog’ that simply comments on the headlines of the day. There are plenty of those already. Our criteria is to find interesting topics, neglected topics, and pertinent topics about, you guessed it, all things Pakistan.

.......

Sherryx's Weblog: De-realization of Pak Tea House!
By Shaheryar Ali

A great source of alternative, critical reflection. Rich is leftist and secular ideas and resources.

http://sherryx.wordpress.com

……..

Metroblogs

What is Metroblogging?

Metroblogging started off as a more locally focused alternative news source in Los Angeles and has turned into the largest and fastest growing network of city-specific blogs on the Web. We got sick of reading local news that was syndicated from the other side of the country, or was just repurposed national chit chat that had nothing to do with our city. We created our first blog as a throw back to the days when a local news paper focused on local issues, and you could walk down to the corner coffee shop and chat up the reporters whose column you read earlier that day. This idea didn’t stay in one city for long and before we knew it there were Metblogs in Chicago, Portland, Karachi, and Vienna. Today there are over 50 Metblogs in countries all over the world. Local politics, event reviews, lunch recommendations and ways to avoid that big traffic jam downtown. If it’s happening in our cities, we’re on it.

We are bloggers first and foremost, and we love our cities.

islamabad.metblogs.com/

karachi.metblogs.com/

lahore.metblogs.com/

………..

Bloggers Pakistan

http://bloggers.pk/

Bloggers.pk is the first and only blog aggregator of Pakistani origin and Pakistan based blogs. It was founded by the ALVI-E Team (Dr. Awab Alvi [Teeth Maestro] and Omer Alvie [the olive ream] as part of their continuing efforts to ensure freedom of expression of Pakistani bloggers.

Its inception was the result of the blogspot ban and the subsequent step after the launch of Dont Block The Block campaign to ensure promotion of Pakistani blogs and to encourage free expression of personal views via the tool of free web logs (sites).

The ALVI-E team are committed to ensuring further improvements on bloggers.pk to create an online, interactive community of Pakistani bloggers.

…….

Friends Korner

http://www.friendskorner.com/
A relaxing place with healthy environment where you can chit chat with members in reference to daily life issues

…..

PK Politics

http://pkpolitics.com/

This site was developed with good intention of providing access to popular Political Talk Shows and News Clips to those who don’t have access to these TV channels, or miss these programs due to travel or other engagements. Since all programs are archived on this site, you can watch your favorite programs at your own convenient schedule.

…….

Teeth Maestro

http://www.teeth.com.pk/blog/

Teeth Maestro, the blog name of Dr. Awab Alvi a Pakistani dentist practicing in Karachi. he graduated with a dental degree (BDS) from de’Montmorency College of Dentistry, Lahore. and then proceeded to Saint Louis University for a Masters Degree (MSc) in the field of Orthodontics (Braces) he later went for an extensive study at the University of Pennsylvania for a certificate in Endodontics (Root Canals). Dr. Alvi is now presently presently practicing at the Alvi Dental Hospital which is located at 23-B Sindhi Muslim Society, Karachi Ph: 4524371 / 72 or website @ www.alvidental.com

Teeth Maestro has blogged from July 2004 where initially he was based off a Blogspot address specifically orthodontist.blogspot.com - Due to constant connectivity issue he migrated to his own domain in 2005 and has now maintained his own blog URL.
Contacting Teeth Maestro is quite simple, no lengthy protocols, no lengthy spam filters, just simply use the contact form provided below or pop an email to the Gmail account attached. He is sure to respond…….

……..

Light Within

sajshirazi.blogspot.com/

This is a blog on business, experiments and proposals.

……..

Raza Rumi

http://www.razarumi.com/

A travelling soul with diverse interests ranging from Urdu, literature to music and from psychologyand Sufism to cinema. History is another unwavering passion of mine. Lahore is my janam bhoomi and Pakistan is what defines me in its entirety. Yet I am a citizen of the world and my Muslim identity, howsoever fractured in these times, is central to my being. I have created this space to prompt a conference of words where people sharing my interests could contribute their thoughts and writings. I have also posted my recent writings on diverse topics - some of these have been published in a Pakistani weekly publication.

And, yet ki janaa mein kaun? for I do not recognize myself…

Raza Rumi is a freelance writer from Lahore, Pakistan. He regularly writes for the Pakistani weekly The Friday Times, The News and Daily DAWN on myriad topics such as history, arts, literatue and society. Raza blogs at Jahane Rumi - a website devoted to Sufi thought, the arts, literature, and cultures of South Asia. Raza also edits a cyber-magazine Pak Tea House; and manages Lahore Nama . He is also a self-taught painter and his works can be seen at the online Saatchi Gallery. Check him out on flickr too. Raza’s interests include writing, literature, world civilizations and cultures, travel, painting and mysticism. Academically, he is trained in economics and social development.

Raza is also regular writer at All Things Pakistan, Desicritics, and Global Voices. Raza has worked in Pakistan and abroad in various organizations including multilateral institutions such as the United Nations.

……

Chowrangi

www.chowrangi.com/

A blog on Pakistan Politics, Current Affairs, Business and Lifestyle

Chowrangi is a crossroad of lifestyles. Chowrangi cover topics related to business, entertainment, current affairs, religion, sports, technology and other aspects of our daily lives.

……

Pak Tea House

http://pakteahouse.wordpress.com/

Pak Tea House is a little corner in the blogosphere that will endeavour to revive the culture of debate, pluralism and tolerance. It has no pretensions nor illusions but the motivation of a few people who want to see Pakistan a better place - where ideas need to counter the forces of commercialism, adverse effects of globalisation and extremism. And, ideas must translate into action that leads us to an equitable, just and healthy society. Please join us - through writings, contributions, discussions, and spreading the word…Raza Rumi - editor/founder Pak Tea House blog-zine

……

Watan Dost

http://watandost.blogspot.com/

WATANDOST: Inside News About Pakistan and its Neighborhood

Watandost in Urdu and farsi means "friend of the country". The blog contains news and commentaries about Pakistan (and its neighbors) that are intriguing and insightful but often are not part of the news headlines. Issues related to "Islam and the West" are also covered here.

Hassan Abbas
Occupation: Academic
Location: Boston : Massachusetts

……

The Pakistani Spectator

http://www.pakspectator.com/

We at TPS are so grateful to you that you have taken time out of your precious life and have visited us. We treasure you and your time, and strive hard to make your visit here as much worthwhile as possible.

We take a candid look on everything happening in and for Pakistan.
We render views, news and opinions on Pakistani Politics in specific and world politics in general with respect to Pakistan.

We also throw a fair light on the blossoming Entertainment industry of world, and gather best of the breed quality information in that regards for you.

In order to let you know that how passionate the bloggers and webmasters of this planet are, we regularly conduct their interesting interviews from all over the world.

We also present the political content in Urdu language.

We want to be at your service all the time in every possible way. Please do keep visiting us and bestow your comments upon us, for our welfare.

…….

Pro Pakistani

http://www.propakistani.com/

Welcome to ProPakistani - a website that consistently updates you about latest happenings from Pakistan’s Telecom and IT Industry – A Resource that you can Trust!

At ProPakistani, we are committed to:

• Unbiased Reporting: supported by facts and figures instead of fiction
• Inform & Educate: you by notifying you latest cellular packages, tutorials, telecom FAQs, reviews, tips, tricks and anything that encircles Telecom and IT
• Protect Consumer rights by bringing those elements to front that incline to violate consumer laws.

….

Chowk

www.chowk.com

Chowk is a platform to publish, discuss and debate writings on a variety of issues that are important to the people of India, Pakistan, and other South Asian countries.

It is a place to:

• express and exchange ideas
• discover eclectic thoughts
• get useful information
• meet new people
• engage in social change
• enjoy and educate yourself

Chowk is committed to promote the right to express. It nurtures ideas and voices that are original, investigative, and independent of doctrine and dogma. Chowk does not propose, favor or defend any ideology. Readers and writers arrive at their views through debate in an open and free environment.

Chowk does not claim to solve the political or social problems of Pakistan and/or India. Rather, it provides a platform for dialogue, introspection, and familiarity amongst the people to break taboos and facilitate a climate for lasting peace and understanding.

Chowk is a not-for-profit publication, managed by a self-directed staff of editors, associates, and correspondents. All of Chowk content is contributed by its members. In essence Chowk is an ecosystem of hyper-writing, an emergent form of journalism. At Chowk, writers and readers interact to give birth to new ideas, sometimes diminishing and other times enhancing the original message.

…..

Chapati Mystery

http://www.chapatimystery.com

Chapati Mystery(CM), a “quaint” publication, started out wondering what T. E. Lawrence and Bhagat Singh would talk about, over dinner. And it kinda went downhill from there. Over the last four years, you would have read examples of ‘Cool History’ from South Asia ['cool' being a subjective term, here], wrong analysis of US domestic politics [I thought Kerry would win], many, many rants against journalists and historians who write about Islam, Middle East or South Asia, some sober assessments on Pakistan’s political and religious scene, a few ruminations about public intellectuals and digital history and finally enough snark to overcome a room full of Wicker Park hipsters. Do be aware that CM’s only qualified expertise is in medieval South Asian history. You should take our guided tour.

……..

Let us build Pakistan

http://www.letusbuildpakistan.blogspot.com

Welcome to Sarah, Abdul and Paindoo's reflections on Pakistan's politics, society and arts. In the main, the blog offers a selection of columns (editorials, op-ed pieces) from the Pakistani and international press. Syndicated since June 2008.

".... a really good blog on Pakistan Let Us Build Pakistan. Apart from the honest look at the Pakistani role in the Mumbai attacks there’s also some good poetry and videos of Pakistani music." Highly recommended!

………

Ahmed Quraishi

http://www.ahmedquraishi.com/

Ahmed Quraishi has hosted various political talk shows from PTV News and Geo TV. This site is a platform projecting Pakistan’s foreign policy priorities as well as an analysis of Pakistani politics.

…….

Pakistan Defence Forum

http://forum.pakistanidefence.com/

A site related to Pakistani politics in particular issues related to army, navy and air force.

……

Grand Trunk Road

http://www.grandtrunkroad.com/

A blog by Rabia Shakoor. It has some good links and interesting commentary on the nature of Pakistani politics.
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