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Al Creighton accuses Kaieteur News of newsworthy opportunism

Nov 29, 2015 Letters

Dear Editor,
I am now commenting on a news item recently carried in the daily editions of the Kaieteur News about the release of the Shortlist for the Guyana Prize for Literature.  I have decided, after all, to offer this response because I had actually been heeding the advice of those who thought I should ignore the article and not dignify it with a response.  But on second thought, I think the records must unmistakably show that there is something seriously flawed in the news report.
The Kaieteur News said, among other things, that “there were perceived biases in the Shortlists” and that “many writers and critics were crying foul”.  You went on to express the opinion that “the First Book of Poetry section was intentionally fixed in an attempt to justify the books as they have both been printed by the often criticized  Caribbean Press, established five years ago due to a promise made by Former President Bharrat Jagdeo”.
It might be helpful if the Kaieteur News can point out where these biases are evident and exactly what is the evidence to support that claim.  More importantly, telling the public that the shortlist was “intentionally fixed” is a very serious charge which demands more than personal “opinion” to justify your publication of it.
What is the evidence to support such a claim?  Only one who has read all the entries for the Guyana Prize can possibly be in any position to say there is bias or that the list was “fixed”.  Only one in possession of facts can seriously justify a claim that there was “fixing” and that it was “intentional”.
Did you, your staff or the “many writers and critics” actually read the entries for the Guyana Prize in order to arrive at those conclusions?  The judges might have spared themselves the considerable time, effort and energy that it took to read through that large volume of literature if they knew all you had to do was look at the publishers to make decisions.
On the contrary, it appears that the attempt to politicize the Guyana Prize continues with the references to the “often criticized Caribbean Press”.
There is now a further attempt to drag the Guyana Prize Jury into it.  One of my reasons for writing this letter at all is that we must protect our judges from this attempt to besmirch and insult them.  The members of this Jury are highly reputable experts only one of whom is a resident Guyanese; they are far removed from local politics and way above the petty partisan parochialism into which the Kaieteur News would wish to reduce them.
They have served the Guyana Prize and the Guyanese nation well and have made personal sacrifices in their demanding work schedules to do so.
They do not deserve to be repaid with the daub of this tarnished brush.  And by the way, the shortlist as printed in the ‘news’ article contained many inaccuracies with the Best Book of Fiction and the Best First Books mixed up. May I dare to look forward to the support of the Kaieteur News for the Guyana Prize rather than populist ‘newsworthy’ opportunism ?
Al Creighton

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