- Amanda Farnsworth
- 19 Jul 06, 12:52 PM
Exodus - it's not a word we've really been using on the evacuation of foreign nationals from Beirut... but what we were saying was that it was akin to .
This, of course, isn't really true.
Why did we say it ? Because ... but as our Middle East editor told us this morning, in Dunkirk around 340,000 soldiers were taken off the docks and the beaches over nine days under heavy fire - and big though the Beirut evacuation is, it's not Dunkirk.
There are so many strands to this crisis that it's hard to get the balance right between covering it comprehensively and reporting other news. There's what's going on in Beirut, what's happening in the south of Lebanon where most of the bombing is, the North of Israel where Hezbollah rockets are landing, the international efforts for a diplomatic solution and the role of the US in the region.
Some have asked if we are doing too much on the British evacuation and not enough on other aspects. We are constantly asking ourselves this question and at the moment I think we're getting it about right - but we need to keep asking.
Amanda Farnsworth is editor, Daytime News
Amanda Farnsworth is editor of Inside Sport.
A guide to words and names in the news, from Martha Figueroa-Clark of the 大象传媒 Pronunciation Unit.
Today, Javier Solana, European Union foreign policy chief.
"The Pronunciation Unit recommends the pronunciation khav-YAIR sol-AA-nuh (-kh as in Scottish loch)
"People sometimes confuse the pronunciation of Spanish 'Javier' with the pronunciation of French words or names ending in -ier (such as Xavier, Olivier). The resulting pronunciation is a cross between the Spanish khav-YAIR and the French gzav-YAY. Since this individual is Spanish, the initial sound in 'Javier' is like the sound in Scottish 'loch' (not English 'lock') and the final syllable rhymes with 'hair' in an anglicised pronunciation."
(.)
Blogger John Gibbard has written from the (which took place last Thursday - 大象传媒 News report ).
He's pretty sure he was ... but if you know otherwise, leave a link in the comments.
The Guardian: "大象传媒 director general Mark Thompson will today unveil major changes to the structure of the corporation." ()
The Telegraph: "The 大象传媒 is rescuing Panorama from its "graveyard" Sunday night slot." ()
Among the audience reaction given to the 大象传媒 in the past 24 hours were several people who objected to the evacuation of Lebanon being compared to Dunkirk. And as on previous days, some people alleged bias in favour of Israel, others alleged bias against. We also received this e-mail:
I can't believe the UK comes to a stand still and we're told what we can and can't do due to the weather/heat. I'm in the British Army out in Iraq for the third time in three years working in 45+ degrees daily wearing combat body armour. The Army is forgotten about by the British public until something bad happens.
