Newsline 22 October 2009: should broadcasters give air-time to far-right politicians? Another ship is hijacked off Somalia; Obama orders bonus cuts; and the Albanian PM wants to allow gay marriage.

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The BBC invites a far-right politician onto its politics programme
Britain is in an uproar today over the BBC's decision to invite the leader of the extreme-right BNP party to take part in its flagship political programme, Question Time. The BBC says it has an obligation to offer all political parties "due impartiality", but anti-racism and anti-facism activists are furious at the invitation. There are other European countries where extreme right parties are represented in parliament or on councils. Newsline's Paddy Maguire asked German media analyst Jo Groebel how they treat the issue.

Another ship hijacked off Somalia; piracy on the rise
Pirates have hijacked a Panamanian ship off the coast of Somalia, confirming a global report that finds this kind of crime is on the rise. The rebels took all 26 crew members hostage. The International Maritime Bureau says the number of piracy incidents has risen since 2008, and points to Somalia's lawless coast as a particular area of concern. But head of the organisation, Captain Pottengal Mukendan, says it's not all bad news

Obama orders bonus cuts
Companies in America which were bailed out by the government are being told by the White House to make massive cuts to their top executives' salaries. President Barack Obama's order will affect seven big businesses, including the Bank of America, Citigroup and General Motors. Top earning executives could see their salaries slashed by 90 percent - bringing most of them below the half a million mark. This is one of the proposals made by the G20 last month, but so far no other countries have introduced such stringent measures. Newsline asked NRC Handelsblad financial journalist Maarten Schinkel whether he could imagine a similar thing happening in Europe?

Albanian PM proposes to allow gay marriage
Till death do us part - words the Albanian gay community might soon be able to pronounce. The country's  prime minister has put forward a draft-law that would protect the rights of gays and lesbians and allow same-sex marriage. The draft law is fiercely opposed by conservative and religious groups who fear Albania could become a haven for homosexuals in the region. Correspondent Leon Menkshi told RNW's Cintia Taylor about the controversy.