Activists of the environmental movement Extinction Rebellion blocked the printing presses of the News Corp group of magnate Rupert Murdoch in the United Kingdom on the night from Friday to Saturday, disrupting the distribution of certain titles, we learned from concordant sources.
To read also: GB: Extinction Rebellion wants to challenge British MPs
According to Extinction Rebellion, several dozen of its activists blocked printing plants in Broxbourne, north London and Knowsley, near Liverpool, overnight from Friday to Saturday, from which News Corp headlines such as the Sun, the Times, the Telegraph, but also the Daily Mail, which does not belong to the group.
"
Liberate freedom
"
The protesters intended to demand to "
liberate freedom
", criticizing the titles concerned for not adequately accounting for "
the climate and ecological emergency
" and accusing them of "
manipulating the truth
" for the benefit of their own agenda, according to one Extinction Rebellion press release.
Herefordshire County Police, who arrested 13 people, said delivery trucks were unable to leave the Broxbourne site by 6 a.m. local (5 a.m. GMT).
According to the police, around 100 protesters attached themselves to structures and to each other.
On Twitter, XR posted photos of activists tied to each other at the base of a bamboo structure.
Confirming that two of the group's printing plants were disrupted by XR, Newsprinters offered a "
heartfelt apology
" to readers of The Sun, The Times of The Daily Mail and The Daily Telegraph, as well as The Financial Times who could not have found their regular newspapers. Saturday morning due to delivery delays, according to a spokesperson.
“
Our teams are working to get newspapers delivered to retailers as soon as possible this morning,
” she added.
The group denounced an "
attack on the entire free press
" which affects a number of workers, from printers to retailers.
Fight against "clickbait"
"
We will only tackle the climate and ecological emergency by breaking the traditional deadlock of opposition policies and uniting, despite our differences,
" said Alanna Byrne of Extinction Rebellion in a statement.
"
If we are to break this deadlock, mainstream media must stop profiting from the culture of 'clickbait' which swims in disinformation, which makes us hate our neighbors, suspect foreigners and vulnerable groups, and set the nation in motion.
», She added.
Read also: Climate: Extinction Rebellion claims disinformation action
In the past week, XR has launched a series of actions in the United Kingdom which have given rise to dozens of arrests, and which must continue for several more days.
