False Narratives

When dubious images set the political agenda

Over a 30-year period Bristol-based journalism ethics charity The MediaWise Trust challenged national newspapers over inaccurate, intrusive and unethical coverage. One method was to investigate and expose stories that distorted facts in a bid to set political agendas. The examples in this exhibition reflect just a few of the topics the Trust took on. Its Refugees Asylum-Seekers & the Media (RAM) Project (1999-2005) and the video On the Receiving End featuring exiled journalists had a […]

City of Sanctuary?

Seeking refuge in Bristol

Bristol has been host to refugees for centuries—but just how welcoming has the city been? The events of the first week of August 2024 follow a pattern that stretches back centuries—refugees and asylum seekers seeking refuge in Bristol and encountering hostility from some, but a welcome from others. Colin Thomas’s short history charts the reception given to those fleeing war and persecution from the seventeenth century to the twenty-first, outlines the stories of organisations that have developed […]

They shall not pass: a century of anti-fascist and anti-racist action

The enemies of the working-class will arrive in yachts and limousines, not in small boats (banner seen in Bristol on Wednesday 7 August 2024) If ever I lie dying on a Nazi street, there’ll be ten dead fascists at my feet (anti-fascist trad) Introduction After a week or so of protests and riots by right wing nationalists and racists in early August, largely orchestrated on social media by far-right propaganda, lies and distortions, we are now faced by a police and government narrative promoted by […]