Broadcasters pledged to exercise sensitivity in reporting the war against terrorism after meeting Downing Street officials yesterday, but there was no indication they were prepared to censor war coverage.
With the propaganda war intensifying each day, Downing Street called in media executives to discuss its concerns over the broadcast of video messages sent by Osama bin Laden amid reports they could contain secret instructions for his followers.
Downing Street is not calling for censorship but officials have been alarmed by breaches of the Prime Minister's security arrangements, in particular, the BBC's discussion of Mr Blair's travel plans before he arrived in Oman last week.
After the meeting, the BBC, Sky News and ITN played down any suggestions of a confrontation with Number 10, while making clear "the best people to judge what to broadcast are broadcasters." Downing Street said the meeting was called at "an exceptional time" to discuss several issues that had arisen in recent weeks and the head of BBC News, Mr Richard Sambrook, insisted there had been "no pressure" to alter the content of programmes. But Mr Sambrook said it was "right to hear the man who is at the centre of this crisis" and the corporation would continue to broadcast bin Laden's statements, pointing out they were heavily edited before transmission.
Broadcasters did agree, however, not to speculate about Mr Blair's travel arrangements and a "communication channel" has been opened to discuss any future video messages from bin Laden.
Earlier, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed the call-up of 150 armed forces reservists to take part in intelligence operations aimed at locating Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaeda network.
About half the reservists - experts in Arabic dialects and interpreting aerial reconnaissance - would be used to analyse intelligence information being sent back to Britain from the US-led military operation in Afghanistan, the MoD said.
It is expected that most of the reservists will work at the Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre in Cambridgeshire, while others will be used to boost the numbers of intelligence staff operating at military installations across Britain.
In the House of Commons, the Home Secretary, Mr David Blunkett, outlined emergency anti-terrorism legislation. The plans include fast-track extradition and increased powers to detain foreign nationals suspected of involvement in terrorism. The Chancellor, Mr Gordon Brown, told MPs that new legislation would improve police powers to seize suspected terrorist assets.
The military and political developments came as the Duke of York announced the Mayor of New York, Mr Rudolph Giuliani, was to be awarded an honorary knighthood for his "outstanding help and support" to bereaved British relatives following the terrorist attack on the US.
Mayor Giuliani said he was "humbled and gratified," and told the Duke, who is on a three-day visit to New York, that British support had been vital: "From the moment this happened, we could not have had a more loyal friend or a stronger support than the British government."
The Department of Education and Skills, meanwhile, was finalising official advice for schools on dealing with pupil's questions about the military action. Headteachers are concerned that Muslim children could feel isolated by events or become the target of racial abuse and believe extra guidelines may help reduce any tensions.