First Person: Bailing Water from My Flooded Bangkok Street with a Thimble Would Be Easier Than Getting Accurate News in Thailand

The flood water in my area of northern Bangkok went down slightly today. In many other countries, that would be cause for celebration. In Thailand it's nothing more than cause for more confusion, as the city's newspaper and TV stations report conflicting information about what that actually means.

Some report 'experts' saying the flood crisis is now over. Others, quoting different 'experts', say it's just a lull before the next huge deluge of flood water appears from the north, and we're inundated again. The government says it's as a result of pumping flood water out of waterlogged areas but, if the pumps break, it will all come pouring back again. So, who do I believe? Seriously? None of them.

Since flood waters hit northern Bangkok a month ago, getting accurate news on a daily basis about the latest areas that will flood, or others that may be saved, has been impossible. With only two English language newspapers in Bangkok, The Bangkok Post and The Nation, none-Thai speakers must rely on these two entities to provide accurate information. Unfortunately, neither of them seems to be capable of it.

Last week, I checked both newspapers' websites for up-to-date information about possible flooding on Rama II Road, one of the only Bangkok roads heading south that's not yet under water. One newspaper reported Rama II Road would definitely flood, while the other said it would definitely be saved. Not four hours later, the first newspaper, The Bangkok Post, was reporting a government official saying they really had no idea what would happen to Rama II Road. Yeah. Like we didn't already know that.

So, if I wanted to take a drive down Rama II Road, and hoped not to get completely trapped by rising flood waters, to ascertain my chances I'd do as well to buy a dowsing rod and test the road for water myself. It'd do a better job than anyone in the Thai news media or the government so far, anyway.

The problem with Thailand's news media is easy to figure out. Unlike in the west, where newspapers and TV stations don't report something until it's verified, in Thailand the media reports it the minute it comes out of someone's mouth. So if Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, has an idea about which area of Bangkok will flood next -- it's published.

An hour later her rival, former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who can't stand Yingluck's guts, gives a statement deliberately opposing her opinion, whether he knows it's true or not - and that is also published.

Add into the mix, the government-run Flood Relief Operations Center (FROC), which hasn't managed to get one flood estimate correct in more than a month, and it's not surprising many expats living in Bangkok now refer to all the misinformation as us feeling we're being severely "FROC-ed".

So, if you're in Thailand and want accurate news about Bangkok's floods, where do you turn? A quick chat over the fence with your Thai neighbor would get the job done better than Thailand's news media manages to - and that's even if you only speak five words of Thai.