KEY POINTS:
War correspondent Robert Fisk makes no bones about how much he dislikes the internet, a rumour from which greeted his arrival in New Zealand this week.
A blog post fuelled speculation the decorated foreign correspondent and veteran journalist had scheduled a meeting with a number of terror-accused individuals on a Glenn Innes marae.
Journalist and blogger David Cohen, writing for a National Business Review blog called This is not a blog post, wrote last month that Mr Fisk was to meet with a number of the individuals involved in last year's anti-terror raids.
Mr Cohen said in the post he had received a copy of Mr Fisk's confidential itinerary from the author's local publisher, Harper Collins.
Mr Cohen reported the publisher had arranged "an opportunity to engage with the first people subject to the terrorism suppression laws in this country in a Maori context".
Yesterday Mr Fisk, who has written about the Middle East for more than 30 years, gave a talk at AUT University.
There he responded to questions about the meeting at Te Tirahou Marae in Auckland with a number of individuals charged in relation to the anti-terror raids, saying he knew nothing about it.
"I read an article to this effect. No one rang me up about it," said Mr Fisk with a shrug.
Mr Fisk said he was not interested in any story here unless it's a Middle East one.
"Every where I go, from Vancouver to Sao Paulo, someone wants to involve me in a local story. I don't have the time. I'm 62-years-old. I have 22 countries to cover and four wars. It's enough."
Mr Fisk said he did interview Ahmed Zaoui last time he was in the country as it was a clear Algerian story.
Rumours, misquotes, and misinformation on the internet clearly unsettle Mr Fisk, so much so that he says he doesn't even use the medium.
"There is a major problem, in that it [the internet] has no responsibility, no controls.
"I find myself being constantly quoted on the internet saying I've been banned from America, which is totally untrue.
"My problem is that for me, it has become a system of hate."
Mr Fisk is referring to a comment made by actor John Malcovich in 2002.
"Malcovich in the Cambridge Union said he wants to shoot Robert Fisk. Within hours pictures of me covered in blood pop up all over the internet saying John Malcovich is jumping the queue. It just needs one guy more insane than John Malkovich then I've got problems."
With this rant over, the controversial author broke into a sly, knowing grin, freely admitting the internet "does contain a lot of Robert Fisk".
Robert Fisk is in New Zealand to promote his new book "The Age of the Warrior".
