The Poet and The Liar
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
The AcidFlask affair spins in a widening gyre. Today, the national newspaper Straits Times publishes a report on it. I have no access to my national newspaper online anymore so I have not read the article. Go to A Singapore Angle for comprehensive coverage of the affair.
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
What is apparent now is the concerted use of the traditional media force to foment an opinion, an opinion that pre-judges the case. From the quotes and drabs which have appeared in the mainstream media, it is clear that while there is stunning accuracy in highlighting the faults of AcidFlask, there is an equally stunning inaccuracy in any merits AcidFlask have whatsoever. Even the most partial of the reports, a column by Lim Boon Hee in TODAY fails to fully understand the injustice apparent here.
The politics of this is certain. First, extend legal control into blogosphere and cyberspace. No one is beyond the nomos empsuchon. Strike the fear and mute the others. Second, mobilise the mainstream via the traditional media and influence a pre-judging, a pre-determination of the wrong-doer. Third, extend an "olive branch", a spin doctor flourish move, of solving the matter amicably by having "tea". Fourth, hijack a precedent of Convex Set to divide what is good and what is not good.
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
I list below the reasons why A*star is politicking this way:
1) The pre-judging and pre-determination of AcidFlask as having committed a moral wrong is necessary because the "threat" of defamation never reached the court. In this case, it has not been tested as being defamatory in the legal sense. Hence, the pre-judging.
2) Note that A*Star refuses to address the exact "defamatory" contents issue. Its stated reason for refusing is because it cannot utter something defamatory and hence, open themselves to litigation by themselves (?) Utterly illogical. It is in A*Star's interest to remain silent on the "defamatory" contents because having it in the open, creates a greater vulnerability that they could be in the wrong, that it was potentially NOT defamatory in the eyes of the many.
3) A*Star's peace call is nothing but "spin", again to mitigate its Goliath perspective. From what Convex has mentioned, he was not threatened with a legal suit first before going for tea. He was invited for tea and "persuaded" thence. The precedent cited by A*Star is than contextually wrong. Hence, it is developed as a spin to soften A*Star's image.
4) The softening is not for blogosphere. The softening is for the traditional media. Note, that A*Star initially declined comment and subsequently developed its spin story only in latter reports. It is commandeering the fight in traditional media.
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
I dare the traditional media to go to their computers and pick any one blogger in local cyberspace and ask them what they think. Singapore Angle, Mr Brown, Ivan's Chimera, Shianux and Convex Set.
The story is here. Come if you dare.
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
The AcidFlask affair spins in a widening gyre. Today, the national newspaper Straits Times publishes a report on it. I have no access to my national newspaper online anymore so I have not read the article. Go to A Singapore Angle for comprehensive coverage of the affair.
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
What is apparent now is the concerted use of the traditional media force to foment an opinion, an opinion that pre-judges the case. From the quotes and drabs which have appeared in the mainstream media, it is clear that while there is stunning accuracy in highlighting the faults of AcidFlask, there is an equally stunning inaccuracy in any merits AcidFlask have whatsoever. Even the most partial of the reports, a column by Lim Boon Hee in TODAY fails to fully understand the injustice apparent here.
The politics of this is certain. First, extend legal control into blogosphere and cyberspace. No one is beyond the nomos empsuchon. Strike the fear and mute the others. Second, mobilise the mainstream via the traditional media and influence a pre-judging, a pre-determination of the wrong-doer. Third, extend an "olive branch", a spin doctor flourish move, of solving the matter amicably by having "tea". Fourth, hijack a precedent of Convex Set to divide what is good and what is not good.
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
I list below the reasons why A*star is politicking this way:
1) The pre-judging and pre-determination of AcidFlask as having committed a moral wrong is necessary because the "threat" of defamation never reached the court. In this case, it has not been tested as being defamatory in the legal sense. Hence, the pre-judging.
2) Note that A*Star refuses to address the exact "defamatory" contents issue. Its stated reason for refusing is because it cannot utter something defamatory and hence, open themselves to litigation by themselves (?) Utterly illogical. It is in A*Star's interest to remain silent on the "defamatory" contents because having it in the open, creates a greater vulnerability that they could be in the wrong, that it was potentially NOT defamatory in the eyes of the many.
3) A*Star's peace call is nothing but "spin", again to mitigate its Goliath perspective. From what Convex has mentioned, he was not threatened with a legal suit first before going for tea. He was invited for tea and "persuaded" thence. The precedent cited by A*Star is than contextually wrong. Hence, it is developed as a spin to soften A*Star's image.
4) The softening is not for blogosphere. The softening is for the traditional media. Note, that A*Star initially declined comment and subsequently developed its spin story only in latter reports. It is commandeering the fight in traditional media.
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
I dare the traditional media to go to their computers and pick any one blogger in local cyberspace and ask them what they think. Singapore Angle, Mr Brown, Ivan's Chimera, Shianux and Convex Set.
The story is here. Come if you dare.
I am XenoBoy. I am the Political Savant.
Quote of the Day --
"The world condemns liars who do nothing but lie, even about the most trivial things, and it rewards poets, who lie only about the greatest things." -- Umberto Eco, Baudalino
posted by xenoboysg at 2:02 AM
3 Comments:
who is the poet and who is the liar then? Highly contentious I must say.
The traditional media came to me and asked me what I thought.
I gave a fairly detailed written reply.
They have not yet published any article using my comments. Of course, they may never.
gilbert,
I can guess what you said to the newspaper and i def do not think they will ever publish your views ... probably contrary to the angle of their article
ghost
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