Black Caps caught in news agency boycott

Major international news agencies are refusing to cover cricket tests on either side of the Tasman because of disputes over accreditation.

The news agencies are upset over provisions in the media accreditation agreement from the cricket authorities that prevent news content being sent to mobile phones.  There are other contentious areas including the use and number of photographs on news websites.

Reuters announced they wouldn't be covering the Black Caps' opening test against Pakistan in Dunedin that started on Tuesday.

The three-test series is being run by the Pakistan Cricket Board after it was transferred to New Zealand because of security concerns.

Across the Tasman Reuters and Agence France-Presse joined Associated Press in a flex of muscle against Cricket Australia with the three-test series against the West Indies starting in Brisbane on Thursday.

Reuters said they remained in negotiations with the Pakistan Cricket Board and "are optimistic of finding a mutually agreeable way forward ahead of future matches in the series."

The Black Caps coming home series with Bangladesh and Australia will be run under New Zealand Cricket terms.

Kiwi media have no gripes with NZC but there has been friction in some of their previous dealings with Cricket Australia.

Fairfax Media, publishers of Stuff and many New Zealand newspapers, said the agency bans were part of a "growing battle" with major sports governing bodies over increasingly restrictive terms and conditions for news coverage.

"Fairfax is equally concerned about the restrictive nature of the media agreement that the Pakistani board has put in place for this series," said Fairfax's Managing Editor of Sport, Trevor McKewen.

"We are currently working with the New Zealand Newspaper Publishers Association to voice our concerns."

McKewen said the NZNPA was in contact with the international News Media Coalition, an alliance of news agencies, publishers and journalist organisations formed to combat oppressive media accreditation agreements, who were negotiating with the Pakistani Board on behalf of the worldwide media.

"It appears the agencies have lost patience with both the Pakistani board and Cricket Australia," McKewen said.

"The shame for international cricket fans in Pakistan and the West Indies is that they will be denied coverage of their teams' New Zealand and Australian tours. Quite how Cricket Australia and the Pakistan board gain a win out of that is hard to fathom"

In Australia, the stance by Reuters, AFP and AP suspended cricket coverage for the second consecutive international season.

The global news agencies also refused to cover the 2008-09 series in Australia involving South Africa and New Zealand. They had a one-test boycott in 2007-08.

The agencies said Cricket Australia demanded to see their client lists with a right to veto any.

They were also facing limits on the number and frequency of text and photo updates for websites and on the duration of images in photographic archives.

"Once again, Cricket Australia is standing in the way of full and impartial coverage of a major sports event despite a growing consensus, even in Australia, that sport belongs to the public and not to governing bodies," said Simon Haydon, the AP's International Sports Editor.

- © Fairfax NZ News