Monthly Archives: May 2011

NYT's Sorkin Hasn't Heard of the People's Budget

Posted on 05/16/2011 by Peter Hart

New York Times business reporter Andrew Ross Sorkin wrote a piece on Sunday (5/15/11) that tried to advance the argument that $250,000 actually isn't that much money to make in a year. The complaint is that politicians who advocate raising … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, New York Times, Taxes | Tagged , | 15 Comments

NYT's Bai Repeats GOP's 'Family Values' Canard

Posted on 05/12/2011 by Steve Rendall

Writing about Newt Gingrich's presidential bid on the New York Times' Caucus blog (5/10/11), Matt Bai seems to confuse GOP rhetoric for fact as he suggest that, when it comes to marriage vows, Republicans are generally known for walking the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election, Media Criticism, New York Times | Tagged , | 18 Comments

Newt Gingrich, Intellectual Powerhouse

Posted on 05/12/2011 by Peter Hart

Washington Post reporter Dan Balz has a front-page piece about Newt Gingrich's announcement that he's running for president. Balz calls Gingrich's Twitter declaration a "milestone in presidential politics," adding that Gingrich "is an idea-spewing machine," a "one-man think tank" and … Continue reading →

Posted in Election, Washington Post | Tagged , | 22 Comments

Noam Chomsky on Democracy Now!

Posted on 05/11/2011 by Peter Hart

Today's broadcast of Democracy Now! featured an excerpt of Noam Chomsky's address at FAIR's 25th anniversary celebration. Watch it: Want to see the whole event–with more of Chomsky, Michael Moore, Glenn Greenwald and Amy Goodman? Buy the DVD from FAIR … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Single-Payer Silenced, Again

Posted on 05/11/2011 by Peter Hart

I saw a press release yesterday announcing that Rep. Jim McDermott (D.-Wash) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I.-Vt.) were introducing a single-payer healthcare bill in both houses of Congress. Unless there was a drastic change in the corporate media, this news … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, CNN, Healthcare | Tagged , , , , | 19 Comments

USA Today and the Torture 'Debate'

Posted on 05/10/2011 by Peter Hart

USA Today weighs in today (5/10/11) on the argument that U.S. torture of detainees like Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was instrumental to tracking down Osama bin Laden. Like other outlets, the newspaper does a pretty lousy job of summarizing the evidence. … Continue reading →

Posted in USA Today | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

The Iraq War's New 'Complications'

Posted on 05/10/2011 by Peter Hart

The Washington Post today (5/10/11) has a perplexing article by Aaron Davis about U.S. troops leaving Iraq. Here's the lead: BAGHDAD — The United States' pleas for Iraq's government to decide "within weeks" whether American troops should stay beyond a … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq, War/Military, Washington Post | Tagged | 10 Comments

Renewable Energy? That's Not News (Here)

Posted on 05/10/2011 by Peter Hart

I was intrigued to see this headline at the Guardian's website yesterday: Renewable Energy Can Power the World, Says Landmark IPCC Study UN's climate change science body says renewables supply, particularly solar power, can meet global demand This was one … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Change, New York Times | Tagged , | 7 Comments

The Shifting Standard for Indiscriminate Killing

Posted on 05/10/2011 by Jim Naureckas

I was struck by the contrast between two passages I came across recently: Misurata's population is roughly 400,000. In nearly two months of war, only 257 people–including combatants–have died there. Of the 949 wounded, only 22–less than 3 percent–are women. … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq, Libya, War/Military | 6 Comments

Newsweek, Like Time, Clutching at Straws to Cheer for Torture

Posted on 05/10/2011 by Jim Naureckas

The argument that the finding and killing of Osama bin Laden shows that George W. Bush's torture policies were justified got another rehearsal in Newsweek fromYale professorStephen Carter (5/5/11): In the end, we were able to track bin Laden because … Continue reading →

Posted in Newsweek | Tagged , , , | 11 Comments

On Second Thought: The White House's Shifting Story on bin Laden Raid

Posted on 05/09/2011 by Peter Hart

Certain features of the White House story about the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound were irresistible to the media: A fierce firefight. The feared terrorist leader crouching behind his wife as the Navy SEALs approached, before resisting or possibly … Continue reading →

Posted in War/Military | Tagged , , | 19 Comments

Beyond the 'Vast Wasteland'

Posted on 05/09/2011 by Peter Hart

On the anniversary of former FCC commissioner Newton Minow's speech decrying television as a "vast wasteland," Chicago News Cooperative columnist James Warren makes an important point: Minow's speech was really about how broadcasters should be forced to do more public … Continue reading →

Posted in Media policy | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Sunday Morning Torture

Posted on 05/09/2011 by Peter Hart

It's bad enough that corporate media are having such an ill-informed debate about whether torturing some prisoners helped find Osama bin Laden. But considering whom the media invite to this debate, it's probably not a surprise. Take yesterday's Sunday shows … Continue reading →

Posted in ABC, CBS, NBC | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Disability Rights Activists Are Even Invisible Getting Arrested on Capitol Hill

Posted on 05/06/2011 by Janine Jackson

Elite mediaâ┚¬Ã¢”ž¢s selective disdain for public activism is well known. Still, youâ┚¬Ã¢”ž¢d think some things would garner a word or two. Like 300 disability rights activists, a couple hundred in wheelchairs, occupying the rotunda of the Cannon House Office Building … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Healthcare, Media Criticism | Tagged , , | 15 Comments

Everything Proves That Torture Worked

Posted on 05/06/2011 by Peter Hart

Time magazine's new issue (no link to the text is available) includes this weird explanation of how torture helped track down Osama bin Laden: Interrogators grilled 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed for details about the courier. When he pleaded ignorance, … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Criticism, Time | Tagged , | 15 Comments