Investigative Journalism and Enemy of the State

今天上課, 一向以調查報導聞名的記者 Duncan Campbell 來對我們演講. 他曾經好幾次揭發英國政府不欲人知的秘密, 因而聲名大譟.

他是首位批露英國政府通訊總部 (GCHQ) 的記者, 因而使自己成為1978年 ABC 審判 的主角.

1980年他調查美國國家安全局 (National Security Agency), 進而發現約克郡 Menwith Hill 基地竟是美軍用來攔截全球通訊的大本營.

1987年 Special Branch (暫譯政治部) 突襲 Mr Campbell 家, 辦公室及BBC位於蘇格蘭的總部, 因為他所製作的節目 "Secret Society" 爆出英國第一個間諜衛星---代號 Zircon.

1999 到 2000年他利用位於英國 Guildford 的檔案庫 (Guildford Depository) 揭露英美煙草公司 (British American Tobacco, BAT) 走私香菸的內幕, 並將報告呈交英國下議院健康委員會.

Guildford 檔案庫存有 BAT 及其子公司近六百萬頁的內部資料, 而另一個位於美國明尼蘇達州的檔案庫則存有超過三千三百萬頁關於 BAT 的內部資料. 該公司於1998年因訴訟案與明尼蘇達州政府和解, 條件是必須同意開放這兩個檔案庫作為研究之用, 期限為十年. (詳細報導及相關背景可參考 The Guardian, January 31, 2000)

有意思的是, Campbell 與其所屬的 International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) 成員從那六百萬頁的文件中發現 BAT 高層提及走私相關字眼時, 會使用 euphemisms. 例如: DNP (Duty Not Paid), GT (General Trade), second channel 等等

Paul Adams 自 1991 到 1998 年擔任 BAT 亞太地區執行長, 期間走私香菸 (至中國, 台灣, 越南---見 Note of Evidence by Duncan Campbell) 而爭議不斷, 2001 年再度升遷. 一名反菸團體 (Ash) 執行長 Clive Bates 就說: "走私文件上佈滿了 Paul Adams 的指紋" (見 The Guardian, December 31, 2001)

Mr Campbell 的確是調查新聞的佼佼者, 不過也許樹敵太多, 話鋒一轉, 他談到自己絕不用 Gmail. 據他說我們所有的信件內容 (包含隱私) 都儲存在 Google 的資料庫中. 就算你將信件刪除, 它還是存在, 並沒有消失, 只是你自己看不到以為刪掉了. Gmail 固然好用, 但最好別用它來傳送私密信件或隱私相關內容 (如銀行資料等).

言至於此, 根本沒有什麼免費信箱能讓人放心的, 我們隨時都可能被某公司"出賣", 不然那些擾人的廣告郵件是怎麼來的.

別說公司了, 上週英國稅務暨海關署 (Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs) 不才丟了兩張共含有兩千五百萬人的機密資料嗎?

面對未來的世界可能如"全民公敵"的情節, 我們該怎麼辦?

像 Mr Campbell 這樣鍥而不捨, 挖掘真相的人確實應該多一點. 不過令人擔心的是他能挖掘機密, 其他駭客也可以. 他就擔心用來揭發弊案的工具, 方法反而被"敵人"用來對付自己.

特別當自己是小蝦米, 大鯨魚是"國家機器", "企業財團"時, 自己該如何自保?

我們身邊其實很多大鯨魚. 在法制下, 它們也許不會咬人, 但是我們禁不起任何一撞.

往往, 大鰭一拍, 傷害已經造成...

留學英國 15 (新聞接力賽)

Warning: All names appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, real places and establishments, present or past is purely coincidental.

Online Journalism 這堂課的第一個正式測驗就是 running stories, 姑且戲稱為新聞接力賽. 老師一開始給我們極為有限的資訊 (如下), 要在四十分鐘內就這些訊息寫好虛構新聞稿, 每篇必須承上啟下, 卻又各自獨立. 每篇都必須讓讀者清楚最新發展為何, 還要交待事件原委.

Siege 1 Man believed armed in farmhouse six miles west of Wareham. He claims to hold unnamed teenager under duress. Incident began at 7.45am and police now in position around the farm. Police say some officers are armed. Psychologists and trained police negotiators are also present.

Time now: 10.15 Farm Address is Hinton Hamlet, near Wareham. Owned by Mr and Mrs AAA. They have two daughters BBB and CCC, aged 24 and 18. CCC lives at home and is not at her normal workplace day, a hairdressers, ZZZ, at 17 Juniper Road, Bournemouth.

Identity of man unknown.

Police warn public to keep away. Nearby is a farm cottage with farmhand DDD as occupant, he has been moved out by police. Area cordoned off. The culprit is reported to be shouting abuse from an upstairs window. Chief Inspector EEE of Bournemouth Police comments, "The situation is highly charged. Nobody is being allowed near. The situation is extremely dangerous." End fictitious story 1

根據這些消息, 我寫出以下虛構新聞稿:

Siege 1

Tension is escalating when an unidentified man is believed to hold a teenage hostage with arms in a farmhouse west of Wareham this morning.

The culprit is reported to be shouting abuse from an upstairs window in the house owned by Mr and Mrs AAA in Hinton Hamlet. One of their daughters, CCC, 18, lives at home and is not at her normal workplace.

The police have cordoned off the area and warn the public to keep away.

“The situation is highly charged. Nobody is being allowed near. The situation is extremely dangerous,” comments Chief Inspector EEE of Bournemouth Police.

Psychologists and trained police negotiators are present and some officers are armed just in case.

接下來老師提供新的消息, 要在十五分鐘內更新虛構新聞稿:

Siege 2 Time 11.15 Police voicebanks says a man is missing from jail, FFF, convicted in 2001 of assault causing grievous bodily harm. Jail: YYY Prison. Broke out last night. Details of escape not given.

以下是我的版本:

Siege 2

The police say a criminal broke out from YYY Prison late last night and is believed to hold a teenage hostage with arms in a farmhouse west of Wareham this morning.

The culprit is reported to be shouting abuse from an upstairs window in the house owned by Mr and Mrs AAA in Hinton Hamlet. One of their daughters, CCC, 18, lives at home and is not at her normal workplace.

The police have cordoned off the area and warn the public to keep away as tension is
escalating.

“The situation is highly charged. Nobody is being allowed near. The situation is extremely dangerous,” comments Chief Inspector EEE of Bournemouth Police.

Psychologists and trained police negotiators are present and some officers are armed just in case.

FFF was convicted of assault causing grievous bodily harm in 2001.

就這樣, 每隔一段時間, 我們就要根據老師發佈的新消息更新虛構新聞稿. 兩個小時內寫了五篇稿, 以下是我第五篇的虛構新聞稿:

Siege 5

A drunken armed fugitive from YYY Prison was shot to release a teenage girl after being tied up for hours in a farmhouse west of Wareham this morning.

The criminal, FFF, 28, pointed a gun at CCC's head and after a sound of gunshot, he “returned to the window on his own still brandishing a gun and a bottle of whisky in the other hand,” says Chief Inspector EEE of Bournemouth Police.

Marksmen covered FFF on the safe conduct he demanded to Bournemouth International Airport and had no choice but to shoot him.

MP for Dorset South-West GGG, Lib Dem comments, “I will be demanding full answers on all aspects of the escape. A shooting is a serious outcome but the hostage is safe thank goodness. The police will be reviewing their actions taken in the interests of public safety and that of the hostage.”

HHH, mother of the hostage, remarks, “To think what could have happened to the girl I think we have been lucky, and CCC was almost hysterical when police went in to get her.”

FFF forced into the house at 1am this morning while they were sound
asleep.

“Suddenly there was a violent banging on a window. I went to look and as I opened the back door a bearded man rushed at me with a piece of wood. Eventually we were shoved out of the door into the back yard,” remembers AAA.

FFF was wounded in the arm, but not serious, and was taken into police custody. He was convicted in May 2001 for offences of armed robbery and assault that he committed in June in 2000.

新聞接力賽, 緊張又刺激, 不但要快還要準. 更重要的是法律面, 這是老師"再強調也不為過的了." 也因此, 我已將人名, 機構名置換為英文代號, 再三強調以上內容完全虛構, 若有雷同, 純屬巧合.

Hail in Bournemouth Out of the Blue

Tony Jian, Bournemouth

19 Nov 2007

Hail the size of pearls fell suddenly in Bournemouth around 10.00 this morning. Some people were caught without umbrellas and waited inside buildings for more than 30 minutes.

The hail, first since October, lasted for around an hour and was followed by showers. Even some attempted to walk in the hail with umbrellas got their shoes wet inside out.

The weather turned cloudy at noon.

(article, pictures by Tony Jian)

Sony Partners with BU to Deliver the UK's First Sony HD Media Studio

picture taken from Bournemouth University Bulletin Issue 21, October 2007

See news release on Sony's website
See news release on BU's website

About Bournemouth University (source: Bournemouth University Bulletin Issue 21, October 2007 and Sony's website)

The Media School at Bournemouth University is the largest centre of professional higher education for the media industries in the UK, offering high-quality, industry-recognised courses in Media Production and Media Management, Journalism, Computer Animation, and Communications; including Public Relations, Advertising and Marketing.

The Media School is the UK's only Centre for Excellence in Media Practice (as designated by the Higher Education Funding Council for England) and an accredited Skillset Screen Academy. These endorsements firmly establish the School as a major training and education centre for the media industries.

"Pier Pressure" Premiere at Bournemouth International Centre

"Pier Pressure" Premiere: 3 Nov 2007
News Video, Editing by Tony Jian
Interview by Kyriaki Karadelis

Church Launches "Money Matters" Course

Tony Jian, Bournemouth, 24 Oct 2007

A Free "Money Matters" course is starting at Lansdowne Baptist Church next week.

It runs for six weeks and addresses issues such as debt control and money management. "Debt is a serious problem. Lots of people are very much in debt. The church can not help people get out of debt but can teach them not to get into debt," says churchgoer Sam Whitelaw.

This is the first ever course of this type the church has launched since its establishment in 1876.

Lansdowne Baptist Church is a daughter church from Boscombe Baptist Church. It was set up by 40 Baptists who wanted to spread the gospel to people of Bournemouth, a smaller town than Boscombe at the time.

The church became independent and had its own pastor eight years later. It started with only 20 members in the beginning but the church was later full of faithful followers after Pastor Francis Dixon initiated a series of Bible classes in 1945.

"The first thing he did was to start a Bible school. We had meetings in this church every Tuesday night," remembers Mr Whitelaw, 87, who was 25 at the time.

Dixon was famous for the classes and the sermon notes he prepared. "He taught the Bible and people came to listen," states Mr Whitelaw, "Because the notes were very organized, they were then spread out throughout the world."

By the time Pastor Harvy Kilbride took the position in 1970, the church had been very successful. Hundreds of people, in particular, young people crowded into the church.

The Hub (picture above), a building right next to the church, was purchased during the term of Pastor Michael Buss in 1980s. It is a venue for socialising activities such as "the Mustard Seed Coffee Bar" for international students on Friday evenings.

"The asking price was £80,000 and the congregation contributed £104,000 so that allowed us to do lots of work," Mr Whitelaw explains.

Pastor Christ Kelly took up his post in 2002 and continued ever since. The church has just celebrated its 130th anniversary last year and also keeps up with the times by offering practical courses such as "Money Matters", which is not limited to Christians.

(article and pictures by Tony Jian)

Friends International Rolls Out "Visa Course"

Tony Jian, Bournemouth, 21 Oct 2007

A ten week free course for international students is being held by Friends International at town centre every Tuesday evening.

The course offers not only an opportunity for international students to practice English and meet new friends but also an entrance into Christian faith, hence the name visa course.

“We usually have many students from Korea, Japan, Taiwan, China and some from South America and Europe”, says international student worker at Friends International Sue Burt.

Julie Lee from South Korea states that she felt depressed before joining the course. “I worked for a company. I had a successful life but I felt helpless and empty.” Ms Lee attended the course in the autumn last year and seven months later she was baptised.

Visa course is only one out of many English learning activities that Friends International launches. Others include Wordsearch, A Meal at Richmond Park, The Mustard Seed Coffee Bar, Compass, iMeet, Wellspring Café, and Friday Evenings at West Cliff, just to name a few.

Friends International is a Christian organization that works with many churches across the UK to welcome international students. It aims to "help students of all faiths, or none, during their stay in the UK" and facilitate cultural exchanges.

The local origins can be traced back to summers in 1960s when there were many language schools in Bournemouth. Local churches found language students had no where to go so they decided to "welcome them, shelter them with hospitality and also give them an opportunity to find out about Christianity," explains Ms Burt.

The churches then cooperated with Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF) but no formal organisation was formed to coordinate the issues about international students as yet.

In mid 1980s, the precursor of Friends International, International Student Christian Services (ISCS), was established and continued to work with UCCF, the former responsible for international student affairs while the latter mainly that of British Christian students.

"To reflect the nature of our work and for the ease of memory, ISCS was renamed Friends International in 2002," Ms Burt explains.

Friends International borrows the Hub (see picture below) from Lansdowne Baptist Church as the venue for some of its activities, the visa course being an example.


The course starts at the Hub, 7 Lansdowne Rd. Bournemouth, from 7:45pm to 9:45pm every Tuesday.

(article and picture by Tony Jian)

Russell-Cotes Museum Showcases Victorian drawings

Tony Jian, Bournemouth, 18 Oct 2007

Victorian drawings by Frederic Lord Leighton have just been showcased on October 16 in Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum, one of the last Victorian buildings ever built in Bournemouth.

Russell-Cotes museum exhibits in six sections the works of Leighton, the President of Royal Academy for almost two decades, from the drawings he made as a student to the final works in his life.

The museum has also collaborated with Text + Work, the gallery at the Arts Institute at Bournemouth to create Meeting Place, a contemporary artwork exhibition inspired by the time, space, and displays inside the museum.

Peter Harvey is a member of staff at the service counter and has been working in the museum for 15 years. "We try to bring in different types of art as much as we can," says Mr Harvey. "The museum is like a book needs to be written."

The museum has invited many local artists, Abi Kremer for example, to display their works. It is a Grade 2 listed building steeped in history and yet full of energy and dynamics, made lively by the dialogue between contemporary artists with a wide repertoire of collections, from Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Tibetan, to Middle East, just to name a few.

"It is a cosmopolitan place," Mr Harvey comments.

It is also a "meeting place" where East meets West, and modernity juxtaposes with antiquity. It is a venue where artists can unleash their creativity, the public can engage in an intellectual discourse and children can have fun.

"Once I saw a kid forced in the door by his parents but ended up holding to the door without wanting to leave," reminisces Mr Harvey.

One of the museum's missions is to "increase audience for the arts and participation in arts activities, with particular reference to young people" and to "make arts activities accessible to everyone."

To accomplish the above mission, the museum has launched a series of activities for all age groups. Contact Marion Cavanagh Learning Officer for further information.

(article and picture by Tony Jian)

留學英國 14 (十月、十一月上半)

九月二十五日早晨五點二十五分，初次踏上英國的土地。在機場等到八點才看到學校派來的代表，舉著大大的 Bournemouth University 的招牌迎接我。之後，來自加拿大、美國、德國等各地的國際學生陸續到齊，一行人拖著厚重的行李，走出機場大門。雖然博恩茅斯 (Bournemouth) 在英國南端，理應較為暖和，不過迎面吹來的風卻仍是寒冷難耐，恰似寒流來襲，我趕緊坐上巴士，望著半陰半晴的天空。

從倫敦希斯洛機場到博恩茅斯約兩個多小時的車程，一路上看到許多令我吃驚的事物。例如路邊清澈乾淨的大水溝裡有許多鴨子；高速公路兩旁就是寬廣的大草原，有的牛隻甚至就在公路中間巨大的安全島上吃草；博恩茅斯很多圓環，車子要過圓環時都會先禮讓右側來車，直到圓環右側沒有車子才進入圓環；一個不怎麼樣的三明治就要一磅多到兩磅，算成台幣的話真不敢買下去；坐公車也很貴，從學校坐到市區 (大約是台北火車站搭15號到和平東路的距離) 就要一磅六，同樣的價錢跟距離在台北可以坐五次以上了。

到學校後第一件事就是去宿舍辦公室報到，領鑰匙，買床具組後走到我的房間。我住在 Student Village 一間二樓的套房 (學校稱Studio)，景觀很好，每天一開窗就可看到日出。不過我還沒閒情逸致欣賞美景，就要先清點回報房間缺少受損的物品。

燈一盞不亮、房間沒有椅子、書架隔層木板斷了、網路不能用、床墊上有焦印等等都跟舍辦報告，負責人竟然說不知道什麼時候會修好。不過我還有更重要的民生問題要解決，趕緊在日落前問人才找到附近的ALDI買些米油鹽醬，一股無助與孤獨感頓時襲上心頭。這一天起，開始要獨立生活，洗衣做飯。還得趕緊買國際電話卡，去銀行開戶，這些都要花許多時間比較打聽，好在學校安排了一連串的講座 (ISOP---International Students Orientation Programme)，我也慢慢熟悉環境，不安感才逐漸降低。

以下是 ISOP 的活動內容：
九月二十五、二十六兩天學校安排了各校區的校園導覽、超市團 (像是旅遊團一樣，有領隊帶路)、免費咖啡及點心。
九月二十七重頭戲：警察局與人身安全、銀行開戶、簽證延簽講座、報名週末踏青 (Purbeck Trip)、行人、自行車安全、學生社團及晚上的Welcome Party。
九月二十八：CV講座、面試技巧、英國學業準備等講座。
九月二十九 Purbeck Trip：經過以下景點
Brownsea Island, 俯瞰 Poole Harbour, Poole area, 及 Bournemouth
Corfe Castle
Swanage Bay
Durlston Country Park
Durdle Door 及 Lulworth Cove


趣聞
*侏儸紀海岸---為英格蘭第一個列為聯合國世界遺產之處，東起 Purbeck (Old Harry Rocks) 西到 East Devon，上述景點從Swanage Bay到Lulworth Cove都屬於侏儸紀海岸的範圍
*白金漢宮和聯合國大樓的建材之一就是Purbeck 的石灰岩

這次的Purbeck Trip令人難忘。我去了英國本島南端的海岸，景致壯麗，站在陡峭的海崖上面對著英吉利海峽，不敢相信遙遠的另一邊就是法國……

十月一日開學後隨即感到極大的功課壓力，每週平均上課時數為22.5小時，週一到週五都有課，跟大一沒什麼兩樣。

有學術性的課 (Frontiers in Journalism)也有實務的課 (Core Skills for Journalism、Digital Broadcasting: Radio & TV、Online Journalism、Legal and Ethical Context)，也有技術性的課 (Photoshop、Webstructure、Premier)。每週有兩個早上必須模擬新聞室作業，在一小時內完成老師指定的編輯或寫稿工作。另外課餘還要自己出去採訪廣播、網路、或電視新聞，對於我這個外國人來說，難度之高可想而知。


仔細分析，這些工作的難度源自以下因素：

1. 週遭環境
   我到博恩茅斯還不到兩星期就開始要自己出去採訪新聞，剛開始連警察局、法院、遊客中心等重要據點在哪裡都不知道，花許多時間查地圖，看公車路線。


2. 交通因素
   我十月二十日才買腳踏車，在那之前都是坐公車出去採訪，然而公車不是每條路都有，腳踏車能到的地方也不遠，行動受限，只能採訪小範圍內的新聞。


3. 語言文化
   學了許久的英文，仍舊遇到許多溝通理解上的挫折。許多人英式口音很重，說話速度又快，提到沒聽過的人名、地名、事件名時根本聽不懂。這就好像我們用台灣國語跟外國人聊斗六市某里長伯政績一樣地令人氣餒。garage 這個國中就學過的單字, 在這裡的發音截然不同, 讓你以為是新字. 我參加一個 Revision Techniques for Exams 的講座, 心想考試卷交了就交了還可以 revise 的喔, 原來英式英語的 revise 是美式英語的 review.
   
4. 新聞線索
   博恩茅斯說小不小，說大也不大，狗咬人的事比人咬狗的事多。更別說我的採訪區(Patch)了---Wallisdown 盡是 bungalows 跟 residential area。不過其他的 Patch 倒是蠻有趣的, 像是 Charminster 就有很多不同特色的餐廳 (泰國, 中國, 土耳其, 印度等)，The Square 有遊客中心，靠近 Bournemouth Pier 及 Bournemouth International Centre。
   
5. 採訪技巧
   這是需要不斷訓練累積的。我的身分很尷尬，有人知道我只是學生，就不太想理我；有人知道我是學生，反而願意幫我而多說一點。所以在開口之前都要先觀察一番，揣測對方希望我是學生，還是所謂的 trainee journalist，猜錯的話就很難從這個人口中問出個什麼了。另外一個困難就是要取得受訪者的基本資料如姓名、年齡、電話等。我們都很不願意給陌生人這些資料，更何況重視隱私的英國人，這使的我的工作格外艱難。
   
6. 撰稿技巧
   除了基本的新聞架構外，不同的媒體有不同的要求。例如廣播稿要比網路新聞口語，資訊也不能像網路新聞那麼密集。電視新聞稿則要配合畫面說故事。除此之外，很重要的是英國的新聞相關法規，例如青少年犯罪案由少年法庭開始審理後，就不可以報導任何足以指涉該少年的資訊，否則會被冠上藐視法庭 (Contempt of Court) 的罪名，要是不注意，很容易吃上官司。

誰 說 記 者 很 好 當 ?

於是，這些種種的困難加上繁重的課業實在壓得我喘不過氣來，但也逐漸適應而找到生存之道。上週總算擠出一天的時間到倫敦去，不巧剛好遇到有人「搞軌」，只好從Richmond坐公車晃到倫敦。 (picture taken at Horse Guards Parade)



博恩茅斯大學多媒體新聞學程最吸引我的就是能到英國各種不同媒體實習的機會。該學程由英國 Broadcast Journalism Training Council 認可，所上講師與業界關係良好。我們現在起就要開始申請到BBC或Sky News等電視、廣播、平面或網路媒體實習，並在第二學期結束和第三學期開始之間完成。

本校的媒體學院另一個好處是有24小時的專屬剪接/電腦室，我都是到這裡用數位電視看免費新聞 (在英國買電視來看要交執照費) 學費那麼貴，當然要好好利用囉。

另外值得一提的是採訪新聞的過程中我遇到一個英、西、法語的盲人口譯員，他在博恩茅斯大學教西語，平時也接口筆譯的案子，跟我分享很多經驗。我現在在學校教中文，每週一小時，為期六週，這也是沒意料到的事。