自称澳洲第一的商业新闻网站，日前一篇新闻报导刊登后，突然消失在其网站。
有关新闻是最近在日本福冈结束的世界水上运动锦标赛报导，其标题是：“美国广播公司改变了其世锦赛的奖牌榜，以显示美国位居榜首，尽管美国金牌数量是少于澳洲”
据报导，眼尖的运动迷注意到了一个足于令美国感到羞辱的图像，证明“美国不愿接受澳洲（明显）在游泳运动上的主导地位”。美国全国广播公司（NBC）的图像显示，奖牌榜是按照奖牌总数的顺序排列，而不是传统的金-银-铜牌的排列顺序。这使得美国队（而不是澳洲队）位居榜首。（见附图）
值得注意的是，NBC在赛会初期使用的是传统的排序方式，但当美国队明显输给澳洲队时，就改为依据奖牌总数来排序。
这篇报导登出后，却没有在撰写的记者达安雅（Daanyal Saeed）个人推特帐户上出现，也很难从该新闻网站的旧新闻档案中找到。
尽管，该新闻网站声称提供“公开、公平和平衡的报导”。
一位批评美国广播公司举动的澳洲运动迷指出，“即使（美国人）不是第一，他们也可以自信地相信美国是第一的，因大部份美国人都不懂得看数据。”
但不具备数据素养的不仅仅是美国人。澳洲人亦如此。
无视中国表现
世界水上运动锦标赛，包括水上运动，而不仅仅是游泳项目——的奖牌大国，实际上是中国，而不是美国或澳洲。这是在澳洲或任何其他西方媒体上很难找到的新闻。
据赛会官方网站显示，中国队获得20枚金牌，奖牌总数为40枚。澳洲拿下15枚金牌，奖牌总数是30枚，而美国队得7枚金牌，奖牌总数为40枚。（如下图）
显然，即使在体育领域，西方媒体在涉及中国的新闻时也无法展现诚实和独立的报导。正如赛后社交媒体上的评论所指：
当西方不处于领先地位时，体育精神就会消失。没有媒体会报导赛会结果。
就因为中国？难怪我必须搜索官方奖牌榜。明显的，西方没有人报导这一点。
谢谢你！这是迄今为止我唯一能看到赛会奖牌榜的地方。当美国不是第一时，没有媒体感兴趣。
我认为在这赛会即使拜登也无法组建另一个联盟来遏制中国的奖牌
当美国不处于主导地位时，媒体就会“睡觉”
中国队有20枚金牌。这不是一个好兆头。未来中国擅长的一些项目将被删减，同时会增加白人主导的项目。
过去和现在西方媒体报导
事实上，今天西方媒体与140年前没有太大分别。 1883年，美国记者、报刊出版商、1860年代《纽约时报》首席社论撰稿人约翰·斯文顿在一次新闻界晚宴上发表了其至今最著名的演讲：
在美国，没有所谓的独立媒体，除非在乡村小镇。你们都是奴隶。你我皆知。你们当中没有一人勇于表达诚实的意见。如果你如此做，你会事先知道其永远不会刊登出来。我就是确保所负责的报纸，不会出现勇于表达的诚实观点，而获得150美元的报酬。
你们也是如此，做著类似的事情而获得类似的薪水。如果我允许在我的报纸上出现诚实的意见，那么24小时前我就会像奥赛罗（莎士比亚悲剧）一样：我将失掉工作。新闻界的人如果愚蠢到写出诚实的意见，他就得到街上去寻找另一份工作。
纽约记者的职责就是歪曲事实，公然撒谎，颠倒是非，诽谤他人，在金钱主义下，为了生计或薪水，而出卖自己的国家和族群。你我皆知；向“独立媒体”致敬是多么愚蠢啊！我们是幕后有钱人的工具和附庸。我们只是随之起舞。他们拉动绳子，我们就反应。我们的时间、我们的才能、我们的生命、我们的可能性，都是其他人的财产。我们只是知识婊子。
美国及其盟国媒体的知识婊子在涉及中国报导上的偏颇，是显而易见的。马来西亚和其他亚洲媒体和记者都不应仿效。
林德宜《看西媒如何炒作世界水上运动锦标赛》原文：Swimming and Aquatic Dominance: Media Spinning on Who’s Ahead
A news report by Australia’s self proclaimed number one commercial news site has suddenly disappeared from its media radar screen.
The story from the World Aquatic Games Championship now recently concluded in Fukuoka had the headline title:
“American broadcasters change World Championships medal tally to show America on top, despite less gold medals than Australia”
According to the report, eagle-eyed fans noticed a humiliating image detail that proves "America can’t handle the truth about Australia’s [apparent] swimming dominance". The US television image provided by American broadcaster NBC showed the medal tally in order of total medals, rather than the traditional ordering of gold-silver-bronze. This kept Team USA on top of the tally, rather than the Australians.
It was noted that NBC had begun the event using the traditional ordering, but then switched to total medals when it became apparent that the Americans kept losing out to the Australians.
Following the initial posting of the story, it does not appear in the twitter account of the news story reporter, Daanyal Saeed himself as well as is not easily available from the news source archives.
So much for the claim of the website that it provides "open, fair and balanced coverage”
An Australian fan critical of the move by American broadcasters noted that “even when (the Americans) are not number one, they can confidently rely on the fact that most of their population isn’t data literate.”
But it is not only Americans who are not data literate. Australians are too.
Cancelling China’s Championship Performance
The top nation in the world championship - an aquatic one, and not just swimming - is China, not the US or Australia. This is news that is hard to find in the Australian or any of the other western media.
According to the official competition website, China had 20 gold and a total of 40 medals. Australia had 15 gold and a total of 30 medals whilst the US had 7 gold and a total of 44 medals.
It is clear that - even in sports - Western media is not able to engage in honest and independent reporting when it comes to news about China. As noted by social media commentators following the competition
When the west is not on top, sportsmanship goes out of the windows. No media will cover the results
China? no wonder i have to search for the event medal count. Literally no ones in the West reporting it.
Thank you! This is by far the only place I can find the result right now. When the USA is not the No.1, no media is interested.
I think here even Biden can not form another coalition to contain the Chinese medals
When usa not in a dominate fashion the media go to sleep
China has 20 gold. It's not a good sign. Some of items that China is good at will be cut in the future and add white dominant items.
Western Media Reporting Past and Present
The truth about Western media today is really not much different from 140 years ago. In 1883, John Swinton, an American journalist and newspaper publisher who was the chief editorial writer of the New York Times in the 1860s delivered at a press dinner the speech he is most famous for today:
There is no such a thing in America as an independent press, unless it is out in country towns. You are all slaves. You know it, and I know it. There is not one of you who dares to express an honest opinion. If you expressed it, you would know beforehand that it would never appear in print. I am paid $150 for keeping honest opinions out of the paper I am connected with. Others of you are paid similar salaries for doing similar things. If I should allow honest opinions to be printed in one issue of my paper, I would be like Othello before twenty-four hours: my occupation would be gone. The man who would be so foolish as to write honest opinions would be out on the street hunting for another job. The business of a New York journalist is to distort the truth, to lie outright, to pervert, to villify, to fawn at the feet of Mammon, and to sell his country and his race for his daily bread, or for what is about the same — his salary. You know this, and I know it; and what foolery to be toasting an "Independent Press"! We are the tools and vassals of rich men behind the scenes. We are jumping-jacks. They pull the string and we dance. Our time, our talents, our lives, our possibilities, are all the property of other men. We are intellectual prostitutes.
The intellectual prostitution of US and allies’ media is especially noticeable in its China reporting. Malaysia’s and other Asian media and journalists should not follow suit.
公共政策分析学者
