The Media Holding the Media Accountable

In the latest Press Freedom Index 2009, compiled on the basis of questionnaires completed by hundreds of journalists and media experts around the world, Pakistan ranked 159 out of 175 countries. Although the country “has scores of privately owned television and radio stations, putting it on the path of an information revolution comparable to that [...]

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Clint(on)’s Visit: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s first three-day visit to Pakistan [as Sec of State] has not been without drama. During her tour, the most high-level visit from the Obama administration, Clinton received both praise and criticism, with some media outlets deeming it a “charm offensive”  and others calling it “a PR exercise, but who will [...]

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An Era of Citizen Resolve

On Saturday, the Pakistani Army announced it had captured Kotkai, a town “important for both its symbolic and strategic value.” Kotkai, the home of the new Tehreek-e-Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud and militant commander Qari Hussain, was reportedly taken after “intense fighting” between the military and Taliban in South Waziristan. According to the NY Times, “It [...]

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The South Waziristan Offensive 101

Day 3 of the Army’s much-anticipated ground offensive in South Waziristan was underway Monday, and Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas met with reporters to update them on the operation’s progress. According to news agencies, the Pakistan Army is “ahead of schedule” by 36 hours, advancing up to 15 kilometers (9 miles) into the mountainous area. In [...]

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KLB or Bust

Although the Kerry-Lugar Bill was in legislative purgatory for over a year and finally passed late last month, recent discussion over its conditions has inflamed the entire country. According to news agencies, the aptly dubbed “KLB,” which promises Pakistan $1.5 billion/year in non-military aid for five years, has garnered protest from a slew of camps [...]

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Wading in the Back Channels of Diplomacy

On Sunday, Pakistan and India’s foreign ministers reportedly met for 100 minutes on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meetings in New York City. According to Reuters, it was “a fresh attempt” to improve bilateral ties between the two nations since the Mumbai attacks in November 2008. However, Pakistan’s Shah Mehmood Qureshi and [...]

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The Reality of Reality Television

The death of Saad Khan, the reality television contestant who tragically drowned while performing a challenge, has generated much online discussion in Pakistan. Though still not a major story in the news media, the topic has garnered numerous Facebook notes and groups, discussion forums, tweets, and blog posts. Here are the facts – Khan, a [...]

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Exit Stage Left Mehsud, Enter Stage Right Mehsud

So it’s official. On Tuesday, Hakimullah Mehsud and Waliur Rehman, two top Taliban commanders, finally confirmed the death of Baitullah Mehsud, thus laying the seemingly endless he said-(s)he said statements to rest. The Wall Street Journal cited “reporters who said they recognized the leaders’ voices,” noting Mehsud died of injuries inflicted from an earlier U.S. [...]

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Hum Ek Hain, Pakistan

Yesterday, I visited an IDP resource center run by a local non-government organization in Rawalpindi. There, I met several Swati women and children who were still living with host families. In Pakistan, many of the people displaced from the offensive have already returned home, but some remain, wary of the tenuous security situation up north. [...]

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The He Said, (S)he Said Problem

This past Friday, news agencies released unconfirmed reports that Baitullah Mehsud was killed in a U.S. air strike in South Waziristan. Come Monday, and the situation is as ambiguous and vague than when the story first developed. Although US National Security Adviser Jim Jones put the level of U.S. certainty that Baitullah Mehsud had been [...]

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