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In the coastal village of Abepura in West Papua, one of Australia and the Pacific’s great underground artists was recently laid to rest. His name was Mark Worth, although he went by a variety of nicknames, including Kurtz, Captain Kino, Captain Kaos and, affectionately, ‘Worthy’. Worth, who died of pneumonia at 45, was one of Australia’s finest frontier cameramen. He aspired to the pantheon of great Australian documentary filmmakers and conflict cameramen – Frank Hurley, Damien Parer and Neil Davis – and his contemporary peers included Dennis O’Rourke, Bob Connelly, Mark Davis and David Brill. Pictured: Mark Worth / Ben Bohane

Five years ago the Pacific Media Centre and Pacific Media Watch published a ‘state of media freedom report’—the first such documentation in the Pacific region—and the most devastating section was about West Papua (Perrottet & Robie, 2011, 2012). The harrowing account of human rights violations and abuses of freedom of speech by the Indonesian military and security forces eclipsed comparable reports from the Pacific, including Fiji which was at the time a cause célèbre for free press champions. The theme of this report echoed many articles I have written over the years highlighting the ‘black’ or ‘blind spot’ demonstrated by New Zealand media neglect of covering West Papua and the self-determination cause (see Robie, 2011). Since then much has changed.

Review of: Politics and the Media, edited by Babak Bahador, Geoff Kemp, Kate McMillan and Chris Rudd. Auckland: Pearson, 2013. ISBN 978144255826 A generaton after the capitalist roaders took over the New Zealand Labour Party, the country’s political landscape is bleak. As described in this new book, it is one in which no political party is interested in any ideology except staying in power, no party will do anything that might offend a focus group, PR hacks control policy, political party membership has all but disappeared, the public is almost totally disengaged and most of the media has neither the time, the skill nor the inclination to cover politics.

Democracy in Fiji has been top-down where primarily the middle class and the wealthy elite have understood its true merits and values. Politicians, professionals, academics and civil society organisations, rather than the grassroots population, have been at the forefront of advocating against coups. Democracy was described as a ‘foreign flower’ by ethno-nationalists for two decades. Some critics see it as having failed to work properly in Fiji because a lack of infrastructure and development means grassroots people are not sufficiently informed to make critical decisions and hold leaders accountable. This, and a lack of unity, led to a failure of widespread protests against coups. Civil society, political activists and individuals were isolated in their struggle against coups. The media has been a key player in anti-coup protests as it relayed information that enabled networking and partnership. Media censorship since April 2009 has restricted their role and violated citizens’ Right to Information. This article argues that for democracy to work, the infrastructure and communications technology needs to reach the masses so people are adequately informed through an uncensored media.

This is is a new political cartoon collection by Burmese artist and cartoonist Harn Lay. It is a revealing insight into Burma—where political resistance and traditional art and performance meet. The book demonstrates and is part of the ongoing resistance to an unjust abuse of power. Lay portrays key issues such as political prisoners, extended house arrest of pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, the military’s response to sanctions, Burma-ASEAN relations and business deals with neighbouring countries.

Fiji’s fourth armed seizure of government on 5 December 2006 delivered more than a new administration - it heralded the onslaught of a new media environment. With a heavy military crackdown on dissenting opinion and subsequent self-censorship of mainstream media, anonymous weblogs became a safe option for expressing anti-coup views. But because some anonymous blogs allowed racist, defamatory and provocative views to flourish, the role of the press and journalistic ethics was also seen as important. This article examines how a new—and uneasy—media combination kept freedom of expression alive in the months following the coup d’état. Cartoon: © Malcolm Evans

On 11 August 2003, after producing some 1600 cartoons, Malcolm Evans was controversially dismissed from his position as editorial cartoonist at The New Zealand Herald because he had refused to accept that the editor had the right to dictate the subjects he might address. This invited commentary for Pacific Journalism Review is published to further debate. Evans argues: ‘While I have always respected the editor’s right to reject a cartoon, he can never have the right to direct it – an understanding that was mutually agreed as a condition of my hire when I took the Herald job six years earlier. Rejection is an editor’s prerogative – direction is censorship. Although I have moved on personally as a professional cartoonist, I am concerned that the precedent set has the potential to affect the work of others.’

The Univesity of the South Pacific has become the centre of excellence in the region, as indeed any university of USP's nature should be. Apart from teaching and research, the university has in many ways become the critical conscience of the region.

'By sunrise, on this bloody Tuesday, June 26, 2001, Port Moresby came under siege. Four people, including two students from the University of PNG, had been shot dead. Their bodies were driven to the Port Moresby General Hospital morgue. Seventeen protesters with pellet wounds were admitted to the hospital's emergency ward.'

"Afternoon session opens debate on World Bank (WB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) intiated land mobilisation programme. Students express concern about the Government being used by the two monetary organisations to "sell" Papua New Guinea to foreign developers. By the end of the day, students declared war on the WB and IMF!"