Attempts to contact the Free Speech Network The Free Speech Network are a campaign group comprised of UK, European and global newspaper, magazine, print and online publishers, editors and groups who have concerns over protecting freedom of expression against a statutory backstop which they feel would be ‘undermining the basic principle of a free press and internet which has been in place in the UK for over 300 years’. Their supporters include: Advertising Association, Commonwealth Press Union Media Trust The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka European Magazine Media Association European Newspaper Publishers Association European Publishers Council Foreign Press Association GQ magazine London Press Club MessageSpace National Association of Press Agencies Newspaper Society Newspaper Publishers Association News Media Coalition Newsworks Press Association Press Gazette Professional Publishers Association Professional Publishers Association Scotland PoliticsHome St. Brides Society of Editors Scottish Newspaper Society WAN-IFRA (World Association of Newspapers) World Press Freedom Committee I thought they would be good to interview for an anti censorship stand point. I asked roughly the same questions however I added in some questions which spoke more specifically about press censorship. Such as ‘do you think press conduct can ruin peoples’ life’s’. I emailed them: I'm making a documentary on media censorship which examines the morality and impact of media censorship. I want it to be a balanced documentary which airs both the negatives and the positives of media censorship and it would be great to interview someone from the Free speech Network. I have pre prepared questions but you can answer however you please and talk about anything you want, preferably recent incidents or information relevant to today however it doesn't necessarily have to be topical.
It's a BTEC media project made by Philistine Studios that will be go out online in March with hopes to maybe showing it at film festivals. We already have an interview with a journalist from the Sunday Times. We are hoping to make a documentary that is hopefully a lot more balanced than a lot of the other censorship documentaries as we will feature both the benefits and disadvantages of media censorship. For example we will question whether media censorship ruins audience’s enjoyment of media projects, then we will question whether the argument that a lack of censorship is responsible for tragedies like columbine and the batman killings. We want to spark a broader debate on media censorship. It would fit into the expository mode of documentary. I'm hoping to attract an older reformist audience as well as a younger audience also so this could be a good chance to get your organisations message to a new younger audience. The questions are quiet open broad so you can raise whatever point you would like to raise. I may ask more specific follow up questions depending on what answers you give. I also ask questions such as 'could you state the different forms of media censorship' so we can include the answers with other interviewee's answers in a vox pops style using montage editing. Don't worry if you don't have answers for all of the questions. There's a lot of questions and we don't expect everyone to answer all of them. Here are the questions: How important do you think the media is in modern society. • What is media censorship? • Could you state the different forms of media censorship? • Could you state the different bodies that impose media censorship? • Why do you think the media is censored? • Do you think media censorship harms creativity/expression and how? • Do you think media censorship has ever significantly made worse a media product and how? • Do you think media censorship can or has affected the sales of a media product? • Do you think press conduct can ruin people’s lifes? • Do you think the media is hiding anything the public needs to know and could significantly effect an election? • Do you think media censorship has the power to lead to an autocratic state? And what role does it play? • How free do you think media is in the UK? • Do you think current media censorship is effective in the UK? We hope you would send someone over for an interview it would be great to have your views in our documentary. We will send you a copy of the documentary prior to release so you can comment on anything you weren't happy with regarding the interview. We hope you can send someone to donate their time. •
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