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BBC TV correspondent starts blog against NUJ Israel boycott

Posted: 23/05/07 By: Robert Andrews

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BBC technology and business correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones is using a blog to spearhead a rebellion against National Union of Journalists (NUJ) plans to boycott Israeli goods.

As reported previously, union officials at the NUJ's April annual delegate meeting in Birmingham voted on the boycott in protest at perceived injustices in the Middle East. But the move prompted criticism from many rank-and-file members.

Now Cellan-Jones, a familiar face to many TV viewers, has started a blog, Stop The NUJ Boycott, to chronicle attempts to overturn the motion by balloting members.

"I started the blog simply as a way of providing information to fellow union members about the campaign," he told Journalism.co.uk. "It is meant to be informative rather than emotive, and I'm not allowing people from outside the NUJ to comment."

According to the site chapels in London, Manchester, Northern Ireland, Reuters, The Observer and BBC Manchester have called for ballots to reverse the motion.

Cellan-Jones added he was "just one of a number of BBC journalists concerned at the damage to our reputation for impartiality that results from the NUJ boycott policy".

"We don't believe our union should take any political stances in our name," he said. "A petition I circulated calling for a ballot on the issue attracted over 300 signatures.

"We are being told that it is too difficult or simply unconstitutional to change the policy - but we're hopeful that the pressure on the National Executive will eventually pay off."

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