Arab satellite station says stock exchange retaliates for war reports
Monday March 24, 11:20 pm ET
Associated Press
DOHA, Qatar (AP) -- Al-Jazeera, the Arabic-language TV network, said Tuesday the New York Stock Exchange is banning its reporters -- a move the station attributed to its reports on the Iraq war.
"Al-Jazeera has received an official letter from the New York Stock Exchange informing it that the station's financial reporters can no longer present their reports from the exchange," the satellite channel reported on its morning financial broadcast.
The station reported that the letter said the exchange wanted to limit the number of television stations covering the exchange. But Al-Jazeera, which has been covering the NYSE for years, said it was believed to be the only channel affected by the action.
The station said the action occurred "because of al-Jazeera's coverage of the war on Iraq."
New York Stock Exchange spokesman Ray Pellecchia cited "security reasons" for the ban. He said the exchange had decided to limit the number of broadcasters in the stock exchange building and said it is "focusing its efforts on broadcasters that focus "on responsible business coverage."
However, he couldn't name any other news organization that had also been banned. He did not link the move to Al-Jazeera's war coverage.
U.S. military officials on Sunday criticized Al-Jazeera for carrying an Iraqi television images of U.S. prisoners of war and the station has given extensive coverage to widespread Arab criticism of the U.S. war effort.
The station said the exchange withdrew the press card of Al-Jazeera reporter Ammar al-Sankari and ordered its other reporter, Ramzi Shiber, to hand over his press card immediately.
Al-Jazeera is based in the Gulf state of Qatar, which also hosts the U.S. military's Central Command for the region. The station was gained a reputation as an unusually independent voice in a region where many news media are heavily government influenced or controlled.
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