GREECE: News bulletins are cancelled as hundreds of journalists walk out in the run-up to Greek elections

Record ID: 340803

  • Title: GREECE: News bulletins are cancelled as hundreds of journalists walk out in the run-up to Greek elections
  • Date: 29th May 2012
  • Summary: ATHENS, GREECE (MAY 28, 2012) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF JOURNALISTS, CAMERA OPERATORS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS PROTESTING IN FRONT OF THE JOURNALISTS UNION OFFICE IN CENTRAL ATHENS PROTESTERS HOLDING BANNERS PROTESTERS HOLDING PLACARDS PROTESTERS MARCHING THROUGH STREET, BANNER READING "Battling for wage agreements" VARIOUS OF PROTESTERS MARCHING, SIGN READING: "Wages, pensions,
  • Embargoed: 13th June 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Greece
  • Country: Greece
  • Topics: Business,Communications,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA9CYN93JM0YQCDLPDSO9M6RTZB
  • Story Text: Hundreds of Greek print, television and radio journalists took to the streets of Athens on Monday (May 28) in a 24-hour strike that has left the country without any news.
    Radio stations played music, television stations broadcast cooking and entertainment shows in the place of the news bulletins, while no newspapers were printed, resulting in a news blackout for the day.
    The strike comes during the pre - election period as political parties campaign ahead of a crucial election next month. The government's severe economic austerity measures have become the main issue in the election campaign.
    In order to secure media coverage of their campaign events, political parties have had to often rearrange their schedules or cancel events to fit around a recent series of strikes by journalists.
    The situation with reporters, writers, presenters, camera operators and photographers is dire in Greece, with scores unemployed since 2010 due to the economic crisis, or suffering the same wage, pension, benefit cuts and increased taxes as other workers and employees.
    The protest on Monday was to demonstrate against yet another difficulty journalists who are still working face: the passing of legislation this year that makes collective wage agreements more flexible, allowing employers to reduce wages and the minimum wage more easily. The government introduced the law to make the sick economy more competitive.
    "It is not us that is losing from this strike but the public also, because the news is priceless. We are trying to make everyone understand that with poor and uninsured workers there can be no news, and the country cannot function without it," said Dimitris Drimis, President of the Athens Journalists Union.
    The economic crisis in the country has caused advertising income to plummet for newspapers, television and radio stations, and hundreds of journalists have lost their jobs in the last two years as private television stations and newspapers suffer from diminished advertising income. Several private media outfits have closed down completely.
    Journalists in the state owned media have also suffered, with closures, layoffs or wage reductions, as the government implements budget cuts to state owned entities.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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