Bloggers are not journalists, Lithuanian parliament says

AND LITHUANIA ISN'T A COUNTRY IN MY WORLD....

An Internet blogger in new EU member state Lithuania vowed Tuesday to fight a parliamentary decision refusing him accreditation on the grounds that he was not a legitimate journalist. "This decision does not allow me to enjoy the rights and protection other journalists are entitled to," Liutauras Ulevicius, author of the www.blogas.lt/liutauras, said. Parliament rejected his application for accreditation, saying he and other bloggers do not meet the legal definition of a journalist. "The Media Law describes a journalist as a person who collects, disseminates and provides information to the media, based on a contract with the media, or who is a member of a journalists' union," parliament's education, science and culture committee said. Ulevicius told AFP the decision breached his right to self-expression. He vowed to appeal in the first instance to parliamentary administrators. "If this does not help, I shall defend my rights in court," Ulevicius said.