Tuesday, April 26, 2011

No Foreign Correspondent Showed Up On April 25 Press Conference But the Show Must Go On

NISA's Nishiyama, representatives from other government agencies and TEPCO's representatives gave their regular press conference in English for the foreign correspondents in Japan, except on April 25 no one showed up. They went ahead anyway, reporting the details of Fukushima I Nuke Plant status, asked for questions, and ended the presser.

I find it immensely sad.

(Screenshot from Nico Nico Live video (members only)):

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Robbie001 sez:

Well the nuclear mafia has finally gotten what it wanted... foreign apathy. Nuclear boosters don't need to attend pressers because they already "know" everything is "fine" and they don't want any facts getting in the way. Nuclear critics know the dribs and drabs of conflicting information at the presser is better massaged than Kobe beef. Maybe the audience is full of Ostriches burying they heads.

From what I understand the SFP in #4 is getting hot again even though they have increased the water injection from 70-200 tons. I seem to remember NHK originally reported the SFP's held about 1400 tons of water when full. If that is true then they are concerned about increasing the injection by only 1/7 of its full weight capacity that sounds like the poll is pretty weak.

Well at least the NYT is still looking behind the curtain:

"In Japan’s Insular Nuclear Nexus, Safety Is Left Out

Given the fierce insularity of Japan’s nuclear industry, it was perhaps fitting that an outsider exposed the most serious safety cover-up in the history of Japanese nuclear power. It took place at Fukushima Daiichi, the plant that Japan has been struggling to get under control since last month’s earthquake and tsunami.

In 2000, Kei Sugaoka told Japan’s main nuclear regulator about a cracked steam dryer that he believed was being concealed. The regulator divulged his identity to Tokyo Electric, effectively blackballing him from the industry.

In 2000, Kei Sugaoka, a Japanese-American nuclear inspector who had done work for General Electric at Daiichi, told Japan’s main nuclear regulator about a cracked steam dryer that he believed was being concealed. If exposed, the revelations could have forced the operator, Tokyo Electric Power, to do what utilities least want to: undertake costly repairs."

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/27/world/asia/27collusion.html

netudiant said...

Stunning.
Hard to believe that all the foreign correspondents are so busy that none can attend.
Really raises the thought that maybe there has been an agreement to downplay this disaster.

arevamirpal::laprimavera said...

Many Japanese took this to mean that foreign correspondents knew they would only hear lies and misinformation, so didn't bother to attend.

I have a different interpretation. It's a very small community, foreign correspondents in Japan. The dominant meme there probably was that TEPCO and NISA withheld information and even lied. "I wouldn't go to those pressers for such disinformation," says one correspondent. Then a peer pressure, and another one followed suit. and another. Their Japanese colleagues attend Japanese pressers. If foreign correspondents attend the English pressers and get their information independently from their Japanese colleagues, well that's encroaching on the turf of their Japanese colleagues!

From what I've watched, TEPCO or NISA did not actively lie, and in many cases they couldn't figure out what and how to present. The Japanese reporters who attend these pressers are all relatively young, probably too young to ask probing questions or read between the lines.

Foreign correspondents could attend the English presser and ask serious questions, but no, they don't bother. They'd rather fit in with their colleagues and with fellow foreign correspondents.

My opinion, no factual basis.

taro yamada said...

Thank you for your non factual basis opinion, it was duly noted as it was disregarded for what it was, an opinion based on no factual information.

arevamirpal::laprimavera said...

@taro, you are quite welcome. Bye.

Oops said...

Was this news conference only for the Japanese journalists then?

http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201104260119.html

arevamirpal::laprimavera said...

@oops, that was for the journalists in Japan. Foreign correspondents were allowed to attend as long as they're member of the press clubs listed on the announcement (most likely the foreign correspondents club). But no translation was provided. I don't know if any foreign correspondent attended the event. I don't think they did, I don't remember hearing any English questions in the portion I watched, but I'll ask around.

Thanks for the Asahi link by the way. Interesting it's quoting Fleishman-Hillard, and the word "with one voice". Oh boy have we heard that recently over and over again, by the US officials from Prez Obama down, by the world leaders, about Lybia. http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/02/obama-speak-with-one-voice-on-libya.html

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