Thailand

Media Environment | News Gathering | Practical Tips

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Media Environment

In theory Thailand has the freest press in Southeast Asia, though it came under increasing government pressure during Prime Minister Thaksin’s five-year rule. Because of its liberal press laws, relatively low cost of living, proximity to other countries in the region, good communications and efficient airport, it is Southeast Asia’s centre for foreign correspondents. Many journalists covering Burma, Cambodia and other countries for international publications and broadcasters base themselves in Bangkok. However, the Thaksin Government — overthrown by military coup in September 2006 — was more ready than previous regimes to sue or sack journalists it did not like, and to expel foreign correspondents who dared to criticise it.

Traditionally, there have been only two subjects not open for discussion — the monarchy and religion. The king, who is the world’s longest-reigning monarch, and other members of the royal family are revered in Thai society, and defamation of any member is punishable under law by a prison sentence and/or a large fine. Criticism of the King’s son and heir is particularly dangerous. Buddhism is the state religion, but other religions are also recognised. To insult religion is an offence in Thailand. In recent years the laws regarding religion have rarely been enforced and there is a relatively open discussion of Buddhism and other religions in the local media.

More likely to prompt censorship under Thaksin was personal criticism of his and his family’s extensive business interests. Several large court cases were initiated against local journalists who dared to do this, and an article in the (now defunct in print) Far Eastern Economic Review by two foreign journalists, which hinted at royal criticism of Thaksin’s growing clout, led to months of demonstrations against foreign journalists and efforts to expel the correspondents. Occasionally the government has banned foreign publications, books or foreign journalists that it found offensive.

Following its coup, the army-appointed interim government consistently blocked broadcasts by or about Thaksin, and ordered the closure of more than 300 provincial community radio stations seen as loyal to him. In March 2007, the government announced its intention to take over iTV, the country’s only independent television news station, whose majority owner, the Shin Corporation, had been established by Thaksin. Later the same month, the authorities began blocking news broadcasts by People’s Television (PTV), a new satellite television established in Hong Kong in February 2007 by politicians from Thaksin’s Thai Rak Thai party.

All of Thailand’s national terrestrial television networks and many of the country’s radio networks, including Radio Thailand, which operates a national network and external service, and MCOT Radio Network are now controlled by the government and the military. In and around Bangkok, the radio market is highly competitive, with more than 60 stations active. MCOT, a government agency, also runs the Thai News Agency.

The television channels Thai TV3 and Modernine (Channel 9) are run by government agencies, while TV5 and BBTV Channel 7 are owned by the Royal Thai Army. Television of Thailand (TVT) Channel 11 is operated by the government’s public relations department. The country’s only private television station, Independent Television (iTV) was taken over by the government in March 2007 and run as Thailand Independent Television (TITV), before being shut down in January 2008. Its assets and frequency were taken over by the newly created Thai Public Broadcasting Corporation (TPBS). Thailand’s new military-sponsored constitution contains provisions promoting public broadcasting, and it is claimed that TPBS will be modelled after the autonomous British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Though the appointment of journalist and media reform lobbyist Thepchai Yong has reassured some critics, others fear that editorial independence could be jeopardised by the station’s reliance on government funding.

Thailand has two English language newspapers, the Bangkok Post (www.bangkokpost.co.th) and the Nation (www.nationmultimedia.com). Both are of reasonable quality and have cuttings libraries which outsiders can use for a fee, although the latter has a useful, free website archive. Bangkok Metro is an English language monthly leisure and listings magazine, launched by a New Zealander. Business Day is Thailand’s only English language business paper, while Mass Communication of Thailand (MCOT) carries news in English from the Thai News Agency. The Asian Wall Street Journal, International Herald Tribune, Financial Times and most international news magazines are on sale at English language bookshops in Bangkok. CNN and BBC World screen on cable television. There are several English language radio stations in Bangkok, although BBC World Service is hard to get on shortwave in and around cities.

News Gathering

A ‘Non Immigrant Media’ visa can be obtained from any Thai embassy. It is generally valid for three months and can be extended. Many journalists visiting Thailand choose to travel on a tourist visa. New Zealand citizens may visit Thailand for 90 days without a visa.

Any journalist intending to use Bangkok as a base requires a non-immigrant media visa and a letter from the employing news organisation. It is normally a straightforward process to get accreditation, a press card and a work permit.

For journalists intending to live in Thailand, the first step is to approach the Thai embassy in New Zealand for a non-immigrant visa. On arrival in Bangkok, go first to the Foreign Ministry, seeking the name and number given to you by the Thai embassy (staff change over time). The Foreign Ministry will check your documents — a sponsor letter from a media organisation is useful, along with CV, clippings and passport pages (all photocopied several times). The Ministry will then issue letters for you to take to the Government’s Public Relations Department for the issue of a Thai press card, and to the one-stop visa and work permit shop.

The one-stop service centre on the third floor of Krisda Plaza is a marvellous invention, easily accessible at the Suthisarn underground (MRTA) stop. The Labour Department, for the work visa, and the Immigration Department, for the one-year visa and the multi-entry visa, are here under one roof. Staff are helpful, and the process is clean and without bribes. Be prepared for it to take about five hours and start early to avoid getting caught by the 3pm payment deadline.

Anyone intending to be based in Bangkok should register with the New Zealand embassy so that in the event of a natural disaster or any other emergency they can be contacted by consular officials.

A permit is not necessary to shoot a news feature, but a documentary, or feature film officially requires permission from the Film Board, which will want to scrutinise the script. Although procedures have been somewhat streamlined, the process can still take many weeks, and the film board may demand a script re-write. Unless the production is to film in major religious or national monuments it is generally better, if possible, to avoid the Film Board process altogether.

If the news feature has a shooting schedule of less than a week, it will probably prove cheaper to hire a crew in Bangkok than to bring one from New Zealand, even though day rates are expensive. A one-man-band Betacam SP plus driver is about US$900 a day, and a sound-man another US$300. Freelance cameramen are listed in the FCCT’s Member Directory. The most popular outfit with foreign television companies is Asiaworks (www.asiaworks.com).

It is worthwhile hiring a professional fixer for television assignments, particularly if interviews with politicians, leading civil servants or military personnel need to be arranged. Good fixers generally cost US$150 a day, with car. It is best to get a recommendation before hiring. Asiaworks can help here too. Print journalists, unless on very tight schedules, need not bother, except for translation work. Most educated Thais speak reasonable English.

Reporters may travel virtually anywhere in Thailand without a permit, although military officials might refuse access to some areas along the Burmese and Cambodian borders — ostensibly because of security concerns. Separatist violence in the country’s largely Muslim southern provinces often results in border closures and controls with Malaysia to counter terrorist activities.

If local officials try to bar entry or restrict your movements, the best approach is calm, patient politeness. Getting angry or making a noise — even against a flagrant injustice — will only damage your case.

Be aware that Thailand remains a target for terrorist bombers. On 18 and 19 February 2007 a series of 38 bomb attacks and some 26 arson attacks took place in Narathiwat, Pattani, Songkhla and Yala provinces, aimed at commercial locations and infrastructure sites. June and August 2006 were also months of heavy attacks involving more than 100 explosions.
Coordinated attacks in the southern city of Hat Yai in September 2006 killed four people and injured more than 60, including a number of foreigners. Given the continued unrest and threats of further violence, travel to the southern provinces is not advised. Following the December general election, martial law remains in force in parts of the country.

The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (FCCT) is located on the Penthouse Floor of the Maneeya Centre Building, 518/5 Ploenchit Road, Patumwan, Bangkok 10330. Tel: (2) 652-0580. Fax: (2) 652-0582. It holds weekly speaker programmes and special events. Non-members may also drink here. Friday nights are usually without formal events and are worth attending for purposeful mingling at the bar. Competition between freelance journalists in Bangkok is intense, but club members are friendly and helpful to newcomers. The club is a hotspot for wireless Internet. The quarterly magazine is a popular outlet for stories (largely unpaid) and the volunteer board management is receptive to ideas.

Thailand plays host to hundreds of NGOs, most at least partially funded from abroad. Whatever the issue, there will be at least one NGO working on it with an English-fluent PR officer. Some are very well managed. A word of caution: NGOs in Thailand, almost without exception, run to specific agendas. They rely on foreign aid donations and are likely to push Western guilt complexes in order to get funding. As an example, commonly quoted NGO estimates on prostitution, child prostitution and HIV infection appear to be way off-target. NGO contact details can be obtained from the FCCT’s Annual Directory.

Practical Tips

• The official language is Thai, though a variant of Malay called Yawi is widely spoken in the southernmost provinces as a first language. In Bangkok, Chiang Mai and other major tourist centres English is spoken. Many senior politicians, civil servants and military officers speak fluent English, but taxi drivers and store keepers often don’t.

• Thailand has a good telecommunications network, though inland toll calls are expensive and international calls cost almost twice as much as in New Zealand. When calling overseas, try the dial code 007, or 001-809, ahead of the area code for access to much cheaper Net-based phone services.

• It is a good idea to buy a local SIM card for your mobile phone, so that people will more readily call you back. This can be done at Seven Eleven convenience stores and elsewhere, along with charge-up cards to pay for calls without bills. Major networks include AIS, Orange and CAT. A telephone directory service is available to the patient caller on 1133.

• Computer needs can be met at Fortune Mall (at the Rama IX underground station) or at the Pantip Plaza near the Indonesian embassy on Petchaburi. Both malls have certified Apple computer shops as well as many PC, camera and printer stores. Be aware that some guarantees are valid only from the store the goods were purchased from. Electronic and other goods are subject to VAT which, with proper paperwork, is refundable at the airport on departure.

• A strangely difficult item to buy in Thailand is a good quality reporting notebook. It is best to bring your own supply.

• Bangkok now has a Skytrain (BTS), with two lines, one of which goes from the Chatuchak weekend market in the north to the suburbs and bars of Sukhumvit out to the east. The other line, which intersects with the first at Siam (a hub of shopping malls), takes passengers to the river. Key stops include Chitlom, for the Foreign Correspondents’ Club, and Phrom Pong for the Emporium Shopping Mall (which has the best bookshop, Kinokuniya). The New Zealand embassy, in the All Seasons Mall, is a short walk down Wireless Road from Ploenchit BTS station.

• If within reach of the Skytrain or Underground, up to four appointments a day can be scheduled. If you must use taxis to areas you don’t know well, reduce that to two or three appointments a day.

• Eating out in Bangkok is cheap, but alcoholic drinks, especially at upmarket bars, can be relatively expensive unless you patronise the Foreign Correspondents’ Club or the iconic ‘Cheap Charlies’ on Sukhumvit Soi 11.

• Anyone planning on settling in Thailand should buy the Australian and New Zealand Women’s Group’s The Bangkok Guide. This has been produced for decades and is an invaluable source of information on everything from finding homes and schools to shopping for specific items. Check its website (www.bangkokguideonline.com/general-information.html) before leaving New Zealand.

• Travelling mosquito nets are advisable for anyone going upcountry or travelling to neighbouring countries. The best type is the ‘spider’ net, available at the Central Department Store.

• Journalists travelling to border areas would be wise to get a full set of shots, and either take a malaria prophylactic or use mosquito repellent. The northern border areas play host to some of the world's most virulent malaria strains. Medical insurance is also worthwhile and, if travelling to distant areas, evacuation insurance (to get you to a hospital) is a good idea.

Contributor: Vaudine England
Latest update September 2008

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