Advice on accessing BBC News • Hacker News Board

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#21

Post by neuroma » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:19 AM UTC

madaxe_again wrote: post #14

jstanley wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My sense is that this is incorrect. I think the law would prohibit breaking into people's computers, not circumventing internet censorship. By circumventing internet censorship you're accessing information that its owner wants you to be able to access. You're not breaking into their computer.

Unfortunately, no. Consider prosecutions of users in the U.K. for accessing TPB via a VPN - TPB didn’t prohibit access, the govt did - but using any computer to access any information on any other computer which you are not authorised to access for any reason is an offence.

Link? Can't find any evidence that people have been prosecuted in UK for using VPN for TPB.

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#22

Post by usr1106 » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:20 AM UTC

jstanley wrote: post #13

usr1106 wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Broadcasting them in EU is banned. But accessing them on the internet is not. Or in which EU country it has been blocked? (I'm in EU but have not tried. Not interested in their content even for curiosity. I can read in our media what they say: There is no war. Ukraine is no nation, but Russians suppressed by nazis that ask to be liberated. In Russian media other standpoints are not mentioned at all.) Edit: I have no…

> Not interested in their content even for curiosity. I can read in our media what they say If you're not interested in looking even for curiosity, how would you know whether your media is representing them accurately? Do you think it would be reasonable for people in Russia to say they're not interested in looking at the BBC, even for curiosity, because they can read all about what the BBC are saying in Russian medi…

I am not completely happy with Western media. They don't address the fact that stopping cars in Europe would be the hardest sanction to Russia because Russian energy exports have built a strong Russian military and continue to maintain it. Still energy is excluded from sanctions.

There are other wars were EU and NATO don't give a good picture. 1000s of people drowng in the Mediterranean.

But still I have a basic trust and know that outright lies are much less common in Western media than in Russian ones. If you don't count reports how Trump's victory was stolen. But the US is dangerously close from leaving Western democracy standards. Not the media, but 48% or so of the voters.

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#23

Post by analognoise » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:21 AM UTC

waffleiron wrote: post #18

usr1106 wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Broadcasting them in EU is banned. But accessing them on the internet is not. Or in which EU country it has been blocked? (I'm in EU but have not tried. Not interested in their content even for curiosity. I can read in our media what they say: There is no war. Ukraine is no nation, but Russians suppressed by nazis that ask to be liberated. In Russian media other standpoints are not mentioned at all.) Edit: I have no…

> In Russian media other standpoints are not mentioned at all. How would you know?

Easy: The law they're passing where if you call the war in Ukraine a war, it's 15 years in jail, and several of the last independent news organizations shutting down, as well as that they've publicly stated they have started to block or degrade several platforms - e.g. Twitter, Facebook?

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#24

Post by bhobs » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:21 AM UTC

LAC-Tech wrote: post #15

I'm always a bit perplexed when people hold up the BBC as an example of a respectable, unbiased news source - a lot of their stuff is ham-fisted, and some of it is flat-out propaganda. I wouldn't say they are noticeably worse than other media staples - everything is biased - but they don't deserve to be on the pedestal they are put on.

They go out of their way to try and represent both sides of a coin, to a fault. If it’s clearly raining, and they have a guest on to talk about the rain, they will also have a guest on who will try and argue “oh these precipitation levels don’t constitute rain” etc. A bit contrived but you get the idea.

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#25

Post by fsh » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:22 AM UTC

fulvioterzapi wrote: post #4

Interestingly, they also work for accessing RT and Sputnik from the EU that are banning them.

Neither of these websites are banned in the EU. The servers are not very responsive at the moment though. Probably someone is DDOS'ing them.

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#26

Post by neuroma » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:23 AM UTC

LAC-Tech wrote: post #15

I'm always a bit perplexed when people hold up the BBC as an example of a respectable, unbiased news source - a lot of their stuff is ham-fisted, and some of it is flat-out propaganda. I wouldn't say they are noticeably worse than other media staples - everything is biased - but they don't deserve to be on the pedestal they are put on.

Seriously? Nobody beyojd a few OAPs actually thinks the BBC is a font of perfect vision. It's simply a but less crassly propaganda ridden then most other sources, and more centrist (if you believe in the 1d political tribalism meme).

The anti BBC narrative is largely political posturing to discredit one if the few remaining sources that aren't bought by private individuals to further their personal objectives. It's an obvious business move to increase their traction and value proposition.

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#27

Post by swinglock » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:24 AM UTC

fulvioterzapi wrote: post #4

Interestingly, they also work for accessing RT and Sputnik from the EU that are banning them.

No, that's false. I can access rt.com from Europe normally after a "checking your browser" screen. Using the Tor browser however, rt.com blocks access after said screen.

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#28

Post by mytailorisrich » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:27 AM UTC

bhobs wrote: post #24

LAC-Tech wrote: post #15

I'm always a bit perplexed when people hold up the BBC as an example of a respectable, unbiased news source - a lot of their stuff is ham-fisted, and some of it is flat-out propaganda. I wouldn't say they are noticeably worse than other media staples - everything is biased - but they don't deserve to be on the pedestal they are put on.

They go out of their way to try and represent both sides of a coin, to a fault. If it’s clearly raining, and they have a guest on to talk about the rain, they will also have a guest on who will try and argue “oh these precipitation levels don’t constitute rain” etc. A bit contrived but you get the idea.

That's not the case at all. They may do that for some topics but not for all. At the moment coverage of Ukraine really is "war reporting" in the classic sense, i.e, there is control and a line to follow to make sure one side is pure white and the other side pure black.

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#29

Post by harry8 » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:30 AM UTC

usr1106 wrote: post #11

fulvioterzapi wrote: post #4

Interestingly, they also work for accessing RT and Sputnik from the EU that are banning them.

Broadcasting them in EU is banned. But accessing them on the internet is not. Or in which EU country it has been blocked? (I'm in EU but have not tried. Not interested in their content even for curiosity. I can read in our media what they say: There is no war. Ukraine is no nation, but Russians suppressed by nazis that ask to be liberated. In Russian media other standpoints are not mentioned at all.) Edit: I have no…

> I can read in our media what they say.

Actually, no matter who it is, you can't and hope to get a proper sense of it. Try it sometime. Luck anyone controversial, especially if your really dislike them. Read an account of s sketch they gave in "your media" whatever that is for you. Then read the original transcript.

I tried this with Assange more than a decade ago. I had the idea he was a bedrock lunatic crazy reading the accounts. Then i read transcripts it watched video if him and decided well be may be wrong about everything but that impression about what he was was just very wrong. Cherry picked, edited, context missing to make him seem as repulsive as they possibly could in every dimension.

Always form your own view and don't let it be handed to you fully formed. Go for the source documents whenever you can /especially/ when everyone is angry and upset. You're unlikely to change 180 at all. You are likely to have a deeper understanding of nuance and who is taking advantage of the situation for their own ends and why.

This advice is the same for American media if you don't live in the US, or middle eastern, or African it Asian.

At the minimum it should take you no more than 10 minutes to confirm RT is exactly what you think it is and that is worthwhile in itself.

Re: Advice on accessing BBC News

#30

Post by smackay » Sat, Mar 05, 2022, 9:30 AM UTC

bhobs wrote: post #24

LAC-Tech wrote: post #15

I'm always a bit perplexed when people hold up the BBC as an example of a respectable, unbiased news source - a lot of their stuff is ham-fisted, and some of it is flat-out propaganda. I wouldn't say they are noticeably worse than other media staples - everything is biased - but they don't deserve to be on the pedestal they are put on.

They go out of their way to try and represent both sides of a coin, to a fault. If it’s clearly raining, and they have a guest on to talk about the rain, they will also have a guest on who will try and argue “oh these precipitation levels don’t constitute rain” etc. A bit contrived but you get the idea.

Except for viewers in Scotland.