The regulation of official information being made available on the swine flu virus in the Kingdom is in accordance with official orders to reassure the public about the situation, the Ministry of Culture and Information has said. Ministry spokesman Abdul Rahman Al-Hazza said Tuesday that the regulated flow of information was “in no way to mislead or cover up”, but to “reassure the public, especially with the Haj season approaching”. “The Ministry of Health statements on the situation are sufficient,” Al-Hazza said. Al-Hazza, speaking to reporters during a journalists' meeting in Riyadh, also stated that the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation office in Jeddah would not be reopened as it does not have a license. The status of the LBC office in Riyadh, which does have a license, will depend on the outcome of the court case. The two offices were closed last month following the controversial broadcast of a program in which a Saudi man spoke in detail of his sexual exploits. Al-Hazza revealed that numerous applications had been made for permits to operate newspapers and radio broadcasting channels. Al-Hazza also revealed that a committee from the two ministries and the Communication and Information Technology Commission had been formed to regulate work and permits for news websites, with a meeting due to be held with website owners to discuss the outlook. Al-Hazza, who only recently took up the post of spokesman at the ministry, disclosed at the end of the meeting his surprise at being offered the position, and cited as the most difficult moments of his brief tenure so far as the Makkah Television Station fire and the LBC TV affair.
