I said I needed space, but not 9 MONTHS UP HERE

the astronauts who are currently experiencing my worst nightmare + 150 industry people wrote an open letter trying to get Bisan's Emmy nomination revoked

Good morning my angel babies!!! Ok I have a HUGE newsy for you this morning because a lot happened over the weekend that I wanted to write about for you (as per usual.) But FIRST I wanted to tell you about two more CUTE book events for you to add to your calendars.

NOTE: You don’t even have to RSVP to these, they’re open to you all! So please come gimme a snuggle xxxx

Pōneke/ Wellington: Unity Books, Thursday September 19th, 6-8pm

Ōtautahi/ Christchurch: Scorpio Books, Friday September 20th, 6-8pm

⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ IN THE NEWS⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖

POV: You signed up to go to space for a week and end up having to be there for NINE MONTHS

Thanks to my brother (Squish) and my sister (Clara from Hmm That's Interesting) I am now quite wound up over the news story about the astronauts who are gonna be STUCK IN SPACE UNTIL FEB OF 2025. Have you heard about this? If not, here’s what

Clara

wrote coz she’s the best:

Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams arrived at International Space Station (there is something very funny, by the way, about naming an extraterrestrial station "international," like how deeply Model UN-coded) on June 6, for a mission that was intended to last eight days. Not only are they still there, almost three months later, but they are not expected to return back to Earth until February 2025 because NASA does not trust the new Boeing capsule, with its troubled thrusters (technical term!) and pesky helium leaks, to transport the astronauts back safely.

The latest is that these astronauts, who, let’s not forget, have already been up there for over two months, will not be coming down until February next year, and in a SpaceX capsule.

It’s days like this that I really miss The Shit Show, because I bet Squish would have such good insight into this for us.

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Some people aren’t happy that Bisan was nominated for an Emmy

Since October 7th I, and I’m sure many of you, have been following the reporting from Bisan Odwa (more widely known as wizard_bisan1.) This year she was nominated for an Emmy, in the category for Outstanding Hard News Feature Story: Short Form, for a documentary she made with AJ+ (the digital publisher of Al Jazeera.) In the doco, Bisan “showed what life was like… in late October, when she lived in a tent outside the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, and for Gazans she interviewed, including an 11-year-old who said his parents had died when his home was bombed.”

After news of her nomination, more than 150 music and film execs, and performers (tbh the only name I recognised on the list was Selma Blair) signed an open letter opposing the nomination, alleging that Bisan was “affiliated with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which the United States and the European Union deem a terrorist group.” The New York Times reported that there are “reports and photographs indicating that Owda spoke at group events between 2014 and 2018” but that “the academy had not found evidence that Owda was currently affiliated with the Palestinian group.”

Al Jazeera has said these allegations were “baseless” and “an attempt to silence Bisan and present a real threat to her safety on the ground”.

What have the Emmy’s said/ done about this?

Adam Sharp, the president and chief executive of the academy, defended the Emmy nomination on Tuesday in a response to Monday’s letter, with his own letter, here:

Thank you for your letter of August 19, 2024, concerning the nomination of “It’s Bisan From Gaza and I’m Still Alive” for a 2024 News & Documentary Emmy Award.

The News & Documentary Emmys have recognized excellence in television journalism for nearly half a century. The honored programs and reports have taken viewers to the front lines of every world conflict, probed political and cultural divides, and sought to illuminate even the darkest circumstances. Some of these works have been controversial, giving a platform to voices that certain viewers may find objectionable or even abhorrent. But all have been in the service of the journalistic mission to capture every facet of the story.

In every case, submissions to the News & Documentary Emmys are judged by experienced journalists from across multiple news organizations, serving in an independent, volunteer capacity. NATAS does not intervene in or countermand the judgment of these journalists except when competition rules have been violated, nor does NATAS determine the eligibility or ineligibility of news reporting based on the political views represented.

“It’s Bisan From Gaza and I’m Still Alive” was reviewed by two successive panels of independent judges, including senior editorial leadership from each significant U.S. broadcast news network. It was selected for nomination from among more than 50 submissions in one of the year’s most competitive categories.

The piece was also recognized for journalistic achievement by the Peabody Awards and the Edward R. Murrow Awards, each administered by processes and organizations wholly separate from and independent of NATAS and the News & Documentary Emmys.

NATAS is aware of reports, cited in your letter and initially surfaced by a communications consultant in the region, that appear to show a then-teenaged Bisan Owda speaking at various PFLP-associated events between six and nine years ago.  NATAS has been unable to corroborate these reports, nor has it been able, to date, to surface any evidence of more contemporary or active involvement by Owda with the PFLP organization.

Most critically, the content submitted for award consideration was consistent with competition rules and NATAS policies. Accordingly, NATAS has found no grounds, to date, upon which to overturn the editorial judgment of the independent journalists who reviewed the material.

Thank you. I appreciate your courtesy in sharing our response with your cosigners.

Sincerely,
Adam Sharp, NATAS President & CEO

For more on this, check this out!

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