‘This week has taught me, in the most profound way, the importance of local media’

Little could have prepared me for being chased through Bristol city centre by riot police, horses, and dogs when I arrived in Bristol at my first year hall of residence nearly five years ago. Yet that was the position I found myself in twice this week.

As a student journalist, I went down to cover the protests live. Having reported on the Black Lives Matter and All Lives Matter protests last summer, along with innumerable others since I arrived in Bristol, I can say that the three this past week were nothing like I had ever experienced. While ensuring I was not in the way of clashes between police and protesters, it struck me just how extraordinary that fact was in itself.

Last week I learned how different your own city can feel when the sun sets and the streets become a war zone.

Last Sunday as I stood on the street outside the Station, it hit me just how bizarrely unfamiliar it felt. As protesters clashed with police on Nelson Street, memories flashed through my mind of me stumbling along that very road as a first year to go and dance a Friday night away at SWX. Quite the contrast!

As horses and dogs charged at protesters down Bond Street, it did not feel like the road that I had walked every single day during lockdown, but like a battleground that bore little resemblance to my adopted city.

Ben Bloch has been reporting for the Bristol Tab. Photo: Ben Bloch

The lessons came thick and fast this week, be it how to talk to a live audience of thousands as a police van explodes metres from you, or to not run backwards when police are chasing you in case you run into a lamppost (which I did)!

But more than that, it taught me in the most profound way the importance of local media. It is not just about having reporters on the ground (although it was excellent to see national journalists on the scene on Friday), nor simply about selecting the best news lines, but about how events are framed.

I was privileged to speak to many protesters and understand the depth of feeling against this bill. The national media coverage left a lot to be desired, and although I would agree that last Sunday saw violent attacks on police, leading with Boris Johnson’s condemnation of Friday night’s events was not accurate, and for the people so intent on peacefully making their opposition heard, it was a frustrating slap in the face.

What stands out particularly about Friday night, was how much people really did want it to be peaceful. I remember a conversation between a young man stood behind me, and another young man seated in front of police lines. The one behind me said: “Come on, let’s get (the police). They can’t stop all of us, let’s go”, while the one seated on the ground insisted: “No, this is peaceful. We have to stay peaceful.”

I also remember a young woman standing up in front of the crowd after a few hours seated in front of police lines, asking everyone to go home, saying that the police would not leave until they did. The crowd disagreed, insisting they had the right to protest.

But this demonstrates that the protesters themselves were not homogenous – there are bigger questions to be asked, such as: does the pandemic really justify limiting the right to protest? Is there ever a justification for doing so? These are questions we need to answer as a country.

Ben Bloch has reported on all of the Kill The Bill protests. Photo: Anya Agulova

Seeing that thousands of people watched events unfold live with me on Facebook is rewarding beyond words. But more than that – I am grateful to the national media that spoke to me and other local reporters this week who witnessed events unfold first-hand.

The biggest difficulty I encountered was explaining to my livestream audience that nothing about what has happened this week is black and white – there are shades of grey in everything, and we need to make more space for nuance in our media coverage.

Local reporters are not just present for the events themselves, but they are there for the build-up; they understand why there is a depth of feeling on a particular issue, and what the local conversation has been over the preceding days and weeks.

The best thing about this past week is that it shows, despite everything, that Bristol drives the agenda. Both Bristolians and students are very engaged with what is going on nationally, and feel strongly that they have a duty to make their voices heard.

So despite the very few who felt that violence towards police was the way to go, I am left with a sense of overwhelming pride that my adopted city stands up for what it believes in, and makes itself heard.

We can and should debate the rights and wrongs of the events of the past week, but nothing can change the fact that thousands of people peacefully opposed a bill that would restrict the fundamental freedom to protest, and I am privileged to be reporting on that.

Ben Bloch is news editor of the Bristol Tab.

Main photo: Tamas Kovacs

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