http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=390511677967&id=277701868&ref=mf

Dear Sirs/Madams,

Recently, CNN Thailand Correspondents Dan Rivers and Sarah Snider have  made me seriously reconsider your agency as a source for reliable and  accurate unbiased news. As of this writing, over thousands of CNN’s  viewers have already begun to question the accuracy and dependability of  its reporting as regards events in Afghanistan, Haiti, Iraq, Iran,  etc., in addition to Bangkok.

As a first-rate global news agency, CNN has an inherent professional  duty to deliver all sides of the truth to the global public who  have faithfully and sincerely placed their trust and reliance in you.  Your news network, by its longtime transnational presence and extensive  reach, has been put in a position of trust and care; CNN’s journalists,  reporters, and researchers have a collective responsibility to follow  the journalist's code and ethics to deliver and present facts from all  facets of the story, not merely one-sided, shallow and sensational  half-truths. The magnitude of harm or potential extent of damage that  erroneous and fallacious news reporting can cause to (and exacerbate),  not only a country’s internal state of affairs, economic well-being, and  general international perception, but also the real lives and  livelihood of the innocent and voiceless people of that nation, is  enormous. CNN should not negligently discard its duty of care to the  international populace by reporting single-sided or unverified facts and  distorted truths drawn from superficial research, or display/distribute  biased images which capture only one side of the actual event.

Mr. Rivers and Ms. Snider have NOT done their best under these  life-threatening circumstances because many other foreign correspondents  have done better. All of Mr. Rivers and Ms. Sniders' quotes and  statements seem to have been solely taken from the anti-government  protest leaders or their followers/sympathizers. Yet, all details about  the government’s position have come from secondary resources. No direct  interviews with government officials have been shown; no interviews or  witness statements from ordinary Bangkok residents or civilians  unaffiliated with the protesters, particularly those who have been  harassed by or suffered at the hands of the protesters, have been  circulated.

Why the discrepancy in source of information? Why the failure to report  all of the government’s previous numerous attempts to negotiate or  invitations for protesters to go home? Why no broadcasts shown of the  myriad ways the red protesters have terrorized and harmed innocent  civilians by burning their shops, enclosing burning tyres around  apartment buildings, shooting glass marbles at civilians from high  altitudes, attacking civilians in their cars, and worst of all,  obstructing paramedics and ambulances carrying civilians injured by M79  grenade blasts during the Silom incident of April 24, 2010, thereby  resulting in the sole civilian casualty? The entire timeline of events  that have forced the government to take this difficult stance has been  hugely and callously ignored in deference to the red ‘underdogs’.

Mr. Rivers and Ms. Snider’s choice of sensational vocabulary and  terminology in every newscast or news report, and choice of images to  broadcast, has resulted in law-abiding soldiers and the  heavily-pressured Thai government being painted in a negative, harsh,  and oppressive light, whereas the genuinely violent and law-breaking arm  of the anti-government protesters - who are directly responsible for  overt acts of aggression not only against armed soldiers but also  against helpless, unarmed civilians and law-abiding apolitical residents  of this once blooming metropolis (and whose actions under American law  would by now be classified as terrorist activities) – are portrayed as  righteous freedom fighters deserving of worldwide sympathy and support.  This has mislead the various international Human Rights watchdogs to  believe the Thai government are sending trigger-happy soldiers out to  ruthlessly murder unarmed civilians without just cause.

As a current resident of "war zone" Bangkok who has experienced the  effect of the Red protests first hand and is living in a state of  constant terror and anxiety as to whether her family, friends, and home  would get bombed or attacked by the hardcore anti-government  vigilantes/paramilitary forces - I appeal to CNN's professional  integrity to critically investigate and scrutinize the misinformed news  reporting of your above-named correspondents. If they are incapable of  obtaining genuine, authentic facts from any other source except the Red  Protest leaders and red-sympathizing Thai translators or acquaintances,  or from fellow non-Thai-speaking journalists who are similarly ignorant  of Thai language, culture, history, and society, then perhaps CNN should  consider reassigning field correspondents to Thailand.

I implore and urge you to please take serious action to correct or  reverse the grave injustice that has been done to the Thai nation, her  government, and the majority of law-abiding Thai citizens and expatriate  residents by having endorsed and widely circulated  poorly researched  and misrepresented news coverage of the current ongoing political unrest  and escalating violence in Thailand.

Copies of this open letter have also been distributed to other local as  well as international news media and social networks for public  information. Please feel free to contact me further should you require  any additional concrete and reputable evidence in substantiation and  corroboration of my complaints and claims stated hereinabove.

Thank you.


Yours faithfully,

Napas Na Pombejra, B.A., LL.B. (Lond.)
Bangkok, Thailand
May 17, 2010


Addendum

Enclosed herewith for your attention and information some examples of  other quality international news bulletins by respectable foreign  journalists so you may assess at your leisure the sub-par quality and  misleading nature of Mr. Rivers and Ms. Sniders' journalism:

1. New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/16/world/asia/16thai.html
2. Fox News/Associated Press:
(i) http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/05/16/chaos-continues-thailand-govt-rejects-talks-continues-crackdown-killed/
(ii) http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/05/17/thai-red-shirt-general-dies-chaos-continues/
3. Global Post: http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/thailand/100514/thailand-protests-bangkok
4. NHK: http://www.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/17_15.html
5. Al Jazeera: http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes/listeningpost/2010/04/2010423171540981286.html
6. Deutsche Welle (English media in Germany):
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,5575254,00.html
7. Local English daily newspaper’s chronology of events on Day 3 of “War  in Bangkok”:
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/home/2010/05/17/politics/What-went-down-30129533.html


Youtube Videos, images, articles showing what CNN has failed to  circulate:

1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_xg0l6-oHY
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rGqZDvRa_U
3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3tfBBSVJdU&feature=player_embedded
4. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=4hmSPbugDAA&feature=related
5.
6. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=XRi6m7QG06M&feature=related
7. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=Aws3ZMXzNjs&feature=related
8. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=giuEOQ62n6E&feature=related
9. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=yy3a73Y6fBg&feature=related
10. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLuffqnszIY
11. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqnXV2ltUlE
12. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=LXMmQReCKVg&feature=related
13. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=FWN7zYV7_Bo&feature=related
14. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=005jYjmEAVE
15. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioOrreuQ94c
16. http://tweetphoto.com/22647514
17. http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/37395/put-an-end-to-this-rebellion?awesm=fbshare.me_AMdZh
18. http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=333752&id=118996168116475
19. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=El-zPySi9cQ&feature=related
20. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=KzcVcHokaVM&feature=related
21. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agLBIWDKWkI
22. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=34hSEPOC71g&feature=related
23. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=kuAQyc5d1HY&feature=related
24. http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=Pv9Hpfb6gNE&feature=related
25. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7yAVunxw1g&feature=player_embedded
26. http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=328250&o=all&op=1&view=all&subj=122351831122683&aid=-1&id=1785951766
27. http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=5959829&o=all&op=1&view=all&subj=122351831122683&aid=-1&id=506055218
28. http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=5960844&o=all&op=1&view=all&subj=122351831122683&aid=-1&id=506055218
29. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8684405.stm
30. http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=428905841067&ref=mf