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The Fifth Floor

Factual: Life Stories

Global stories from the BBC’s 40 Language Services, with Faranak Amidi

Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services.

Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services

The Fifth Floor: 21/01/2012

21/01/2012

BBC World Service - The Fifth Floor, 21/01/2012

BBC Burmese editor on what it's like to report freely from Rangoon, after years of exile

In from the cold: BBC Burmese editor on what it's like to report freely from his hometown, after years of exile.

A fresh look at the week's global news from across the World Service's 27 language sections, with David Amanor.

DIARY: BURMA, COMING IN FROM THE COLD
The opening of political dialogue and democratic change in Buma have been huge developments for the Burmese Service - one of the first language sections to have ever broadcast from Bush House. Soe Win Than, editor of BBC Burmese, talks about what it's like to report freely from his hometown Rangoon, after years of exile. 

NEHRU JACKETS
From Karzai's shawl, to Arafat's keffiyeh and Castro's track suit,  what have been the world's top political fashion statements? For the BBC Hindi Service, Shalu Yadav has been dusting off her prized Nehru jacket, the iconic closed-neck attire once sported by India's first prime minister. Plus, Shafi Naqi Jami and Yuwen Wu give a quick insight on political fashion in Pakistan and China.

ONLINE GREATEST HITS
World Service internet guru Falko Mortiboys gives the rundown on the big-hitting stories across the BBC language sites this week.

PARIAH'S, PASSPORTS… AND POO 
After decades of isolation and stigma as a pariah state run by the military, Burma seems to be coming in from the cold. But what of those places still considered as "pariah", "rogue" or "failed states". What is it like to report from there and to be a national of those countries? 

BBC Somali's Mogadishu reporter Mohammed Moalimo,  Ali Hamedani from Persian TV, and Olexiy Solohubenko BBC World Service Multimedia Editor editor discuss the issues. 

Also, we put our panel to the test with some of the stories on the World Service this week - for instance, which world leader complained of excrement being poured on him all day long by a certain media outlet?

(Image: Burma's Aung San Suu Kyi registers to run in the country's next parliamentary by-elections. Credit: Getty)

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