Fluent talking
Michael Vestey Radio Five Live reacted rapidly to the American and British attacks on Afghanistan last Sunday evening. Shortly after the announcement that the military campaign had begun, the network threw out its regular Sunday sports programmes and replaced them with special news programmes. Although I missed the beginning I caught up with the programme just after 7 p.m. and found the coverage very impressive.
The presenter Brian Hayes had with him in the studio the military expert Andrew Duncan and diplomatic correspondent Bridget Kendall, both of them knowledgeable and fluent talkers. Duncan provided the military analysis, Kendall the geopolitical interpretation. Various correspondents were interviewed: Kate Adie from the region itself, John Simpson, described as being in Afghanistan — no longer, one hopes, wearing his burga; Paul Reynolds in Washington. and others in different parts of the world.
Osama bin Laden's carefully timed video statement calling on the Islamic world to rise up against the alliance was played with a translation and assessed for its significance. A Pakistani journalist said he thought it was an own goal as moderate Muslims there would see bin Laden's remarks — 'God guided the path of a group of Muslims who destroyed America ... ' — as an admission that he had been behind the New York and Washington terrorist outrages, although he didn't specifically admit responsibility. But, it seems, it would be enough to affect their ambivalence.
The Labour MP for Baghdad West, George Galloway, came on the line from his constituency to describe the scene in the Iraqi capital and to express his concerns about the attacks on the Taleban and bin Laden's terrorist groups. What we didn't hear was why he was in Baghdad in the first place. He must get on very well with Saddam's nice Baath party. Statements from President Bush, Tony Blair and the US defence secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, were broadcast and the BBC's political editor, Andrew Marr, revealed that Parliament would be recalled the following day. He thought this might cause the Conservative party conference to be abandoned but he clearly didn't know at this stage that a 6 p.m. recall on Monday would allow it to go ahead. The Prime Minister, continuing to look statesmanlike in this crisis, praised the armed forces and their role in the conflict. While agreeing with him entirely on this I couldn't help thinking what a pity it was that he'd allowed Gordon Brown to damage their effectiveness through cost cutting.
Then at 9 p.m. Hayes gave way to Jane Garvey and Alan Robb who, I'm told, went on until midnight. What was so good about it all was that one felt well-informed about the nature of the attacks — though precise military details were naturally scant — the strategy likely to be pursued, the possible reaction from the Islamic world and the problems facing Pakistan, During this time of intense foreboding and apprehension about dealing with a fanatical enemy who knows no inhibitions, no restraints and no mercy, we need this kind of information on the radio. The broadsheet newspapers provide it, of course, in great depth hut a day later.
Listening to these programmes it occurred to me that, while bin Laden's suicide murderers had been brainwashed into seeking the afterlife by sacrificing themselves, the man himself doesn't seem too keen to sample it as he dodges rockets in Afghanistan. Perhaps its allure has faded suddenly as he strives to remain in this life. At 10 p.m. I switched to The Westminster Hour on Radio Four, altered to provide an extended news bulletin, but by then most of the available information had been covered by Five Live.
I was in two minds about whether or not Radio Four should have combined with Five Live on Sunday evening. The BBC tells me it decided not to because Five Live is regarded as the continuous news network and people should know where to find it. I daresaythere are many listeners who preferred to listen to the scheduled programmes: Go 4 It, for children. This Sceptred Isle, the Feedback repeat, Law in Action, Money Box and In Business, all with the exception of Go 4 It usually excellent; but I could think of little else but this war. It seems to me to be the most significant conflict we've faced since 1945.
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