An interview conducted with Independence Party leader Bjarni Benediktsson for Iceland’s Morgunbladid newspaper this autumn remains unpublished because Benediktsson was unhappy with the journalist’s treatment of him.
“As happens sometimes, Bjarni was not satisfied with the interview, so it was not published. He was dissatisfied the line of questioning I was energetically pursuing,” the journalist Kolbrun Bergthorsdottir explained.
She said it is quite unusual for the subject of such an interview not to want it published; but it is not unheard of. “We went over the issue in a friendly manner and neither of us was angry and this was the final outcome. These things happen and there is no grudge on my side,” Bergthorsdottir said.
What was the line of questioning… Were you the head of an illegal property scam in Macau? Which breakfast would you prefer in prison: porridge or cereal?
Jimbo – I got a real grin out of that one :)
Since when has a newspaper interviewee had editorial control over the use or not of the interview???
I don’t know what’s more troubling: that the interviewee has the power to prevent the article from being published, or that the interviewer doesn’t see anything wrong with that.
Bear in mind I’m not Icelandic, so the following is just what I’ve read online.
>Since when has a newspaper interviewee had editorial control over the use or not of the interview???
Since the newspaper was the mouthpiece of his party :) .
>I don’t know what’s more troubling: that the interviewee has the power to prevent the article from being published, or that the interviewer doesn’t see anything wrong with that.
This interviewer has survived the recent night of the long knives, so they may be ideologically pure enough that it genuinely doesn’t bother them.
However, even if they weren’t, making waves probably isn’t the best way to keep their job.
Another sample of the poppet media
thats how it works folks,you have to ask them quistions they like,not you….free press in iceland,free if you ask nice quistions???
Also they have to be very RIGHT quistions,we dont want to rock the boat,do we ??
As with last postings on subject of Bjarni Ben+ it is always so pleasurible to see postings of eminent Icelandologists who can take sketchy post from IceNews that is based on some DV tabloid article summary and suddenly post all these expert opinions.
+http://www.icenews.is/index.php/2009/12/10/icelandic-opposition-leader-denies-macau-corruption-allegations/#comment-105366
Just to give background on this ( as you have to buy the paid DV to get the actual conversation involved here ) it is just part of ongoing attempt to smear Bjarni Ben since Independnce Party did gain its support back.
Kolbrún Bergþórsdóttir is a perfectly fine journalist as journalists go and so because Bjarni Ben was unhappy with interview and underlying assumption of questions — more on that — it was not run originally in MBL.
But then DV get hold of it and publish about it where we find that according to them it was that Bjarni thinks that the underlying question Kolbrún was asking were coming from wrong premises.
And so he refuse to answer those questions where under them is assumption that Macau property deal did burden Icleandic taxpayer with ISK 10,000 each because of its failing — that is the questions allegedly according to DV about this.
So there now you have information about what this is about.
As to posters here instead of always asking questions about MBL owner ship and editors why is not same question asked about owners of DV ?
Of course there is some one there directing the policy of they photographers at DV just as there is at MBL.
So that question should be asked also.
Jim did write :
>What was the line of questioning… Were you the head of an illegal property scam in Macau?
So you are not that far away there Jim.
But really IceNews next I am waiting for you soon to cover article that first came in Séð og Heyrt ( Seen and Heard — gossip magazine a bit like Hello! or the OK! ). It would have been far better to have made a article that had more details than to post this sketchy summary of a DV taster article.
Is it legitimate news — yes. But not without the details.
Actually Fisy, this story comes from Visir.is and is about Morgunblaðið. There is no DV link here:
http://www.visir.is/article/2009378184509
But while we’re in DV slagging mode, I’m gonna stick my neck out and say I like it. Wouldn’t have dreamed of reading it until this year, but they’ve been doing some much needed investigative journalism that others seem not to want to do. They are a usefull third newspaper with a more legitimate and transparent ownership and editor than Mogginn and Fréttablaðið put together. Altough that’s not saing very much at all to be fair!
Runestone did write :
>Actually Fisy, this story comes from Visir.is and is about Morgunblaðið. There is no DV link here:
http://www.visir.is/article/2009378184509
Even worse !
So articles post here at IceNews are not even based on first hand source but second hand one instead. ( And from site — visir.is — owned by Jón Asgeir who editors is no known for it un bias against Independence Party. )
Original story comes from Dagblaðið Vísir but that does explain in that case ( if it is true Alex ) why article is so sketchy.
>legitimate and transparent ownership and editor than Mogginn and Fréttablaðið put together
I have no negative commenting about DV owner ship but how exactly is MBL ownership not ” transparent ” ?
As to editors DV keep on losing them because it does try and be The Daily Mirror or Bild — not some thing Icelandic people welcome.
But really DV editors are really jumped up picture editors.
They just there because as tabloid news paper format is that they need some words to go with they photographs they get.
Fisy the defender of lost causes ;)
When Arvakur(MBL)was bankrupt not long ago Islandsbanki(Glitnir) took ownership of the company, Arvakur was the first company to be sold from state owned Glitni, they wrote off 80% of the debt and sold it to the highest bidder(there were some doubts about that) Þorsmork who brougt in 300 mil and took over 1,3 bn debt and 4bn were written off by Glitnir.
The owners of Þorsmork are,
Þorsteinn Baldursson former CEO of Glitnir, Þorsteinn is a quota king that recieved quota for free from the state courtesy of the IP.
Guðbjörg Matthíasdóttir who sold her share in Glitnir the same day Þorsteinn went to the CB and told David Odsson the bank was in trouble, her son Einar Sigurðsson is a top level employee at Glitnir, now Islandsbanki.
and a few other quota kings and one clown.
MBL was loosing money and lots of it before it went bankrupt, but still some how David Oddson ends up becoming the editor, every one knew that would hurt the credibility and sale of the paper,
the general idea seem to me to be a have a propaganda media against Frettabladid, who is equaly useleless, when Frettabladid goes bankrupt the taxpayer will pick up the bill, so its a joke to imagine its a free newspaper,
the best newspaper by far, and the only newspaper people actually buy by their own free will is DV,
i saw a interwiew where Benedikt, Bjarni’s father was asked about this tower in Macau, he said he didnt remember if he owned it or not, Bjarni and Benedikt are busyness partners, thats how Bjarni is involved,
You can not defend the politicians, the elite or the banks Fisy, its simply not possible, we did that for far to long.
MBL was a ok newspaper, until it was “bought” by Þorsteinn Már Baldvinsson (a quota king who was given a shedload of quota belonging to the state by the IP),