It’s just occurred to me that Xarabank’s vox pop video WAS manipulated

Published: May 23, 2015 at 10:36pm

fields

On Xarabank yesterday, show host Joe Azzopardi reeled off this spiel about how they were now going to air a vox pop and how the vox pop was intact, how they didn’t touch it or manipulate it in any way, and how they didn’t go about looking for answers of one kind or another or editing them.

“We left the answers exactly as we got them and practically everyone said that they are in favour of the project,” he said.

Now it’s just occurred to me that it was indeed manipulated: the people who shook their heads at the camera and refused to reply were simply edited out.

I clearly recall Marlene Farrugia demanding of Joe Azzopardi, after the vox pop had aired, whether there were people who refused to reply, and if so, how many. “Kien hemm, dazgur li kien hemm,” he replied.

So where were they on the video? Refusals are usually made to camera. Then it’s up to the editor to decide whether to cut all that footage of people waving a negating hand or shaking their head at the camera or saying “Nippreferi li ma nikkumentax.”

So why were they cut out? Editing them out created a skewed impression of the real situation. As Marlene Farrugia said, those unwilling to speak are almost certainly those who are against the project and afraid or reluctant to say it openly.