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March for the Alternative

Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Video Rush: March for the Alternative

Saturday 26 March saw 500,000 people march through London to oppose the coalition government cuts, one of the largest public oppositions this country has seen since 13 February 2003 when people marched against the impending war on Iraq.

Since that day many news outlets have focused on the damage done by the "violent minority" in the protest and news reports coming out began looking increasingly less like news and more like investigation and intimidation tools of the state.

This has led the NUJ to issue a statement urging the BBC not to give up their footage of the day, as requested by the Metropolitan Police Force. The London Photographers' Branch (LPB) committee also passed a motion and published an article condemning media outlets acting as intelligence gathers for the police and reiterated the role of journalists - to document for public record. This motion will go forward to the LPB members in the April meeting.

(c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Please contact Report Digital to access this material and the extensive six-year video archive.

March 26 Media Liaison Officer - Commander Bob Broadhurst

Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Commander Broadhurst at 2009 NUJ Photographer's Conference

Tomorrow the Metropolitan police force's media liaison officer will be Commander Bob Broadhurst. In this video, shot on 18 May 2009 at the NUJ Photographer's Conference, he upsets a few journalists by questioning the legitimacy of those holding the UK press card.

(c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Please contact Report Digital to access this material and the extensive six-year video archive.

Egypt/Gaza Border Tension

Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Egyptian military checkpoint at Rafah Crossing

In the days that protests calling for unification between Hamas and Fatah broke out across West Bank and Gaza, missiles struck Gaza City and machine gun fire regularly rang out along the Rafah crossing, myself and photographer Jess Hurd spent several days trying to get from Egypt into the Gaza Strip, to no avail.

The main point of contention for Egypt, we were told, was the fear of anyone (especially foreign journalists) crossing the border, being killed by the Israeli military and drawing Egypt further into an already tense stand-off.

Whilst stuck on the border east Gaza City was missiled by F16 jets, killing at least two people, a fisherman was shot by naval forces on the coast and agricultural land in East Rafah was occupied.

Scores of people had been killed in tunnel crossings recently and there were even reports that some Egyptian troops had been shot in border skirmishes with the Israeli military. Machine gun fire had become a daily occurance according to the Bedouin children we spoke with. Anyone who strayed too close to the border was regularly shot at from anonymous grey watch towers peering over from the other side of the wall.

Rafah Crossing

Still, these days stranded in the desert were spent sat around learning about the Bedouins, who had devised their own micro-economy around the border crossing. The women and young girls sold seeds, beans and nuts, the men and boys carried bags and goods from the Egyptian side to the the Palestinian side for one Egyptian pound (10 pence) each way. The most common daily wage in Egypt is 20 pounds (£2). There was also a very lucrative taxi service to Egyptian Rafah, Al Arish and Cairo.

We also learned about the treatment of Bedouins by Mubarak's police. Extortion, racism, false arrest, arbitrary imprisonment, beatings, torture and murder were all commonplace.So, it came as no surprise to learn all the police were chased out of the Sinai region during the revolution by heavily armed Bedouin, some were killed, and all checkpoints and police stations were burned to the ground.

(c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Please contact Report Digital to access this material and the extensive six-year video archive.

Scenes From Liverpool

Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Scenes from Liverpoool

A few scenes I picked up while in Liverpool, from the busker singing "The Revolution Will Not be Televised" to the skateboarders I ran into down by the Mersey.

(c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Please contact Report Digital to access this material and the extensive six-year video archive.

Protect Public Services

Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

PCS Video Newsletter: Protect Public Services

This week saw the release of the second PCS Union video newsletter, this time focusing in on the attacks on public service jobs and building for the TUC protest on 26 March.

(c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Please contact Report Digital to access this material and the extensive six-year video archive.

Boy of the Afterthought: Dead Cold Quiet

Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Boy of the Afterthought: Dead Cold Quiet

Taking time out and doing something different. Here's the video for Dead Cold Quiet, the new single by Boy of the Afterthought. We filmed it all in one day and with one day of editing it was online.

I've worked with singer, guitarist Aaron John several years back, on the video for the single Death Tonight. Thankfully since then Internet video quality has improved tenfold.

(c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

Please contact Report Digital to access this material and the extensive six-year video archive.