LOCAL
The news cycle
The election heats up as tsunami coverage remains strong
A month after the tsunami, news coverage is still heavy. Now, however, much of it focuses on restoration efforts. Here, fishermen and students of the Technology and Shipping Industry College of Nakhon Si Thammarat push a repaired boat out to sea at Ban Thap Lamu in Thai Muang district, Phangnga province.
— SAROT MEKSOPHAWANNAKUL |
The news is never constant. Typically news stories gain our attention for a while and then they fade from sight. Sometimes this is abrupt – a story may have a life of only a day – and sometimes this is gradual, very gradual as in the troubles in Thailand’s deep South.
The subway accident is a good example. It came into the news with a flash, received massive local coverage for a couple of days, and then quickly began to fade. Now we are averaging about one story a day. Perhaps it is because no one was killed.
The main focus at the moment is how to get the subway safely back into operation. Hopefully, that will come fairly quickly. But there is another aspect of the story that is also receiving attention. People want to know who was to blame and what will happen to them.
At the moment it appears that four subway staff members are likely to be charged with negligence, two members of the control staff and two drivers. It will be interesting to see what kind of defense they will be provided with.
It might be very difficult to convict them if they have a good lawyer. Certainly, they didn’t intend to do anything wrong and it is appears there was considerably uncertainly about the proper procedures to use in the situation that preceded the crash. Making sure procedures are clear in all situations should be the responsibility of the company running the subway. Watch to see what happens.
One story that has gone considerably beyond the typical news cycle is the tsunami. All last week, more than three weeks after the tsunami hit, the Bangkok Post was still devoting the equivalent of three or more full pages to tsunami-related stories.
Locally, there were reports on the restoration of the affected coastal areas in Thailand, the continuing search for the missing and the painstaking identification of the corpses already found. There were also stories on the future commercial use of Phuket’s beachfront and the ongoing fundraising efforts, including a “star-studded” MTV concert scheduled here in Bangkok for February 3.
Internationally, there were stories on the tsunami’s economic fallout on the region but the main focus was still on the horrendous situation in Indonesia’s Aceh province where authorities now believe 150,000 people may have died.
Coverage of the tsunami was not confined to the news section either. The Outlook section has covered the tragedy extensively with features on the victims and those people involved in the relief effort.
Democrat candidates for the general election in Bangkok, led by deputy leader Abhisit Vejjajiva and Khunying Kalaya Sophonpanich, show election pamphlets with the party's new campaign slogan: "At Least 201". The party is targeting 201seats in the House to ensure it is an effective parliamentary watchdog. — KOSOL NAKACHOL |
While reports of the subway crash and the tsunami have clearly peaked, the general election coverage is still on the increase. It will remain that way until February 6 election results are known.
As is typical of Thai elections, there has been considerable coverage of alleged violations of the electoral law. This has put the five election commissioners under public scrutiny with critics warning the if they do not act forthrightly, the Election Commission (EC) may become a paper tiger.
The charges against Deputy Agriculture Minister Newin Chidchob could be an interesting test case. The Democrats have accused him of offering local officials a bonus of 100,000 baht for any southern constituency that opts for a Thai Rak Thai (TRT) candidate and they have a submitted a 32-minute video tape to the EC as proof.
The case is unlikely to trouble the TRT nationally, however, and some analysts believe the party may even exceed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s goal of 400 seats in parliament. That would make government ministers immune from opposition censure.
The Democrats, on the other hand, are imploring voters to give them an opportunity to launch a no-confidence motion against any wayward minister, including Mr Thaksin himself. To do that, they would need at least 201 votes and last week that became their campaign theme.
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Know these words and phrases
fade
to disappear gradually
abrupt
sudden
with a flash
suddenly
massive
huge; very large
negligence
carelessness
convict
to prove guilty of wrongdoing
devoting
to give an amount of time or attention to
equivalent
equal in amount or value
restoration
making something as good as it once was
painstaking
needing a lot of care, effort and attention to detail
identification
the process of finding out who someone was
corpses
dead bodies
beachfront
the area next to a beach
star-studded
including many well known stars, especially singers, movie and television stars
fallout
bad effects
horrendous
terrible; extremely shocking
confined
limited
tragedy
a very sad event or situation, especially one involving death
peaked
reached the highest point
alleged
stated as a fact, but without being proven
scrutiny
careful and thorough examination
forthrightly
directly and honestly
paper tiger
something that seems to be powerful but is not really powerful
opts
decides; chooses
immune
unable to affected by
censure
to formally criticise a minister in parliament
imploring
asking for, especially in an anxious way
no-confidence motion
a proposal for a debate, followed by a vote in parliament to censure a government minister
wayward
acting improperly
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