From: "Eli Pariser" <bulletin@9-11peace.org>
To: <9-11peace@complete.org>
Subject: The Media after September 11
Date: Thu, 8 Nov 2001 09:27:03 -0500
Message-ID: <NFBBILDICDMBFNGCLHNEGECGCIAA.bulletin@9-11peace.org>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain;
	charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Importance: Normal
Sender: 9-11peace-bounce@complete.org
Errors-to: 9-11peace-bounce@complete.org
Precedence: bulk
Reply-to: bulletin@9-11peace.org

9-11PEACE.ORG BULLETIN, Issue 4
Available online at http://www.9-11peace.org/bulletin.php3

If you find this bulletin useful, please forward it to
others and encourage them to sign up for it at the page
above.  You can also unsubscribe from the bulletin at
any time at http://www.9-11peace.org/bulletin.php3.
The 9-11Peace.org bulletin is sent out weekly; for more
information, please check the page referred to above.


CONTENTS
---------
1. Introduction: A Critical Look at the "Patriotic" Press
2. Post 9-11 Media
3. The Stories You Haven't Heard
4. Spinning the War
5. Ask an Expert
6. Featured Action
7. Special Feature: About Us
8. Get Involved
9. About the Bulletin


INTRODUCTION: A CRITICAL LOOK AT THE "PATRIOTIC" PRESS
-------------------------------------------------------
In the West, we tend to believe that we have freedom of
speech, and a press that reflects this freedom.  In fact, it
could be argued that the freedom to express a dissenting
opinion is the cornerstone of a democratic society.  Sadly,
since the events of September 11, freedom of speech seems to
have been largely abandoned in favor of a "patriotic"
stifling of any criticism of America's actions as they
undertake this "new war" against terrorism.  Nowhere is this
more evident than in the mainstream media, where aggressive
investigative journalism seems to have been replaced with,
at best, tacit agreement with U.S. government policies, and
at worst, outright propaganda.  Perhaps the scariest aspect
of this is that journalists are not just lining up behind
the status quo in the face of government pressure; they are
also engaging in self-censorship, which is based largely on
a nationalistic desire to support their country.  Meanwhile,
much of the Western press in other countries such as Canada
and the U.K. seems to be following suit.

In this week's bulletin, we take a look at the state of
journalism since the events of 9-11, with a special focus on
how the war in Afghanistan has been portrayed in the
American media.  We challenge the assumption that the
American press is delivering the whole story, and examine
how and why information may be filtered.  After all, in this
time of war, it is more important than ever to analyze and
evaluate the kind of information that we're being given,
because it is this information that will shape our opinions,
and ultimately, our view of the world and our place in it.

We also have a special feature this week, called "About Us".
In this feature we will give you a brief introduction to the
people behind  9-11Peace.org, including the website's
founder, the new editor of the bulletin, and 9-11Peace.org's
new partner, MoveOn.org.

Next week: The C.I.A. and Afghanistan.


THE POST 9-11 MEDIA
--------------------
First, a general look at the actions of the media since
September 11th.

Follow the link below for a detailed summary of the state of
journalism since 9-11, written by the First Amendment
Ombudsman at the First Amendment Center.  If you read only
one link in this bulletin, make it this one.
http://www.9-11peace.org/r.php3?redir=10

Read the transcript of this interview with Janine Jackson,
Program Coordinator for FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in
Reporting), for information about what FAIR is and what it
does, as well as her evaluation of the media and how it has
performed since 9-11.  This includes Janine's suggestions on
what kind of criteria the average person can use to evaluate
the news.
http://www.9-11peace.org/r.php3?redir=11

CNN agrees to seek government guidance on what to include in
their news, after meeting with National Security Adviser
Condoleezza Rice.
http://www.fair.org/press-releases/network-pressure.html


THE STORIES YOU HAVEN'T HEARD
------------------------------
So what, exactly, is the mainstream media leaving out? Here
are a few of the most important issues that have been
under-reported or left out completely by the mainstream
press, and examples of articles that discuss them.

There are over 1000 people who have been taken into custody
as part of the ongoing investigation into the terrorism.
However, no one seems to know where they are, nor even what
they are being charged with.  So much for civil liberties.
http://www.9-11peace.org/r.php3?redir=12

Is the hidden agenda behind the war the U.S. desire for oil?
http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?itemid=12172

Is the U.S. really doing everything it can to avoid killing
civilians?
http://www.fair.org/media-beat/010925.html

Is the U.S. on the brink of an attack on Iraq? A group of
high-ranking officials, including U.S. Defense Secretary
Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul
Wolfowitz, is pushing for an attack on Iraq - and the recent
outbreaks of anthrax may be used as the pretext for this
action.
http://www.guerrillanews.com/newswire/186.html

We would also like to mention Al Jazeera in this section. Al
Jazeera has been called the CNN of the Arab world.  However,
unlike CNN, who along with other major networks has agreed
to censor its news, the popular middle East satellite news
channel has resisted U.S. pressure to alter their content.
Despite Colin Powell's entreaty to Al Jazeera to stop doing
so, Al Jazeera continues to broadcast bin Laden's taped
addresses to the world, as well as images of the civilians
who are being killed in the current U.S. military action.
The following article argues that Al Jazeera deserves
respect for this stance, rather than the vilification it has
suffered at the hands of much of the mainstream American
press.
http://www.9-11peace.org/r.php3?redir=13

If you can speak or read Arabic, you can visit Al Jazeera's
website and see for yourself the images that CNN refuses to
show you.
http://www.aljazeera.net/


SPINNING THE WAR
-----------------
Journalism is only one aspect of the public relations battle
that the American government is currently fighting.

This article explains that the U.S. government is enlisting
the help of advertising to gain support for the war on
Afghanistan.
http://media.guardian.co.uk/Print/0,3858,4288135,00.html

According to this article, the Rendon Group, a public
relations firm, has landed a $397,000 contract.  Their job?
To make sure that the Pentagon's actions in Afghanistan are
viewed positively by the general public.
http://www.zmag.org/solpr.htm

Ever heard of the U.S.I.A. (The U.S. Information Agency)?
If you haven't, don't be surprised.  You're not supposed to
have heard of it.  The U.S.I.A. is America's propaganda
agency.  In this fairly brief two-part GuerrillaNews.com
interview, Dr. Nancy Snow, former propagandist for the
U.S.I.A. and author of a book on her experience there,
traces the history of propaganda in the United States, and
discusses the part that the media plays in manufacturing
consent for the U.S. government's actions, including this
war specifically.
http://www.9-11peace.org/r.php3?redir=14


ASK THE EXPERT
---------------
We are introducing a new feature this week, in which readers
can submit questions about our bulletin topics to be
answered by an expert.  The top five questions submitted by
readers on this week's topic will be answered by Steve
Rendall, the Senior Analyst at FAIR. ( www.fair.org )

You can submit your questions by going to:
http://www.9-11peace.org/questions.php3

We will publish the top five questions and Steve's answers
in next week's issue of the bulletin.


FEATURED ACTIONS
-----------------
This week's first featured action comes from FAIR.  Click on
the link below to read an article discussing CNN's decision
to report civilian casualties in Afghanistan only in the
context of why they're justified.  Following the article,
you will find contact information for Walter Isaacson,
Chairman and C.E.O. of CNN.   We join FAIR in urging you to
contact Mr. Isaacson and "tell CNN to factually report the
consequences of the U.S. war in Afghanistan without
editorializing", because "[i]ncluding a justification for
the bombing with every mention of civilian casualties risks
turning CNN from a news outlet into a propaganda service".
http://www.fair.org/activism/cnn-casualties.html

We also encourage you to take the time to seek out some
alternative news sources and see what you may have been
missing. Many of these websites are facing financial crisis
due to the recent backlash against dissent, and the economic
trouble that America and other countries are currently
facing.  For this reason, we encourage you to offer
financial support to these websites if you can.  Please help
alternative news sources survive.

Some alternative news sources:
www.alternet.org
www.antiwar.com
www.counterpunch.org
www.guardian.co.uk  (U.K.)
www.guerrillanews.com
www.harpers.org
www.motherjones.com
www.rabble.ca  (Canadian)
www.transnational.org/new/TNN.html
www.utne.com
www.workingforchange.com
www.zmag.org


SPECIAL FEATURE: ABOUT US
--------------------------
Eli Pariser is the founder of 9-11Peace.org.  Eli has been a
lifelong political activist and rabble-rouser. He has worked
with California Peace Action and the Student Environmental
Action Coalition, and co-founded the American Story Project,
a web-based documentary about the political beliefs of
ordinary Americans.  He studied political science at Simon's
Rock College and now lives, works, and agitates near Boston,
MA.

Susan V. Thompson is taking over as principal writer/editor
of the bulletin as of this week.  Susan has a B.A. in
English with First Class Honours from the University of
Calgary in Alberta, Canada.  She has been involved with
various non-profit organizations in Canada, and works as a
freelance writer as well as a full-time mom.

We are also very excited to announce that MoveOn.org has
offered to sponsor 9-11Peace.org. MoveOn is a leading online
American activist organization, which uses the Internet to
organize focused grassroots advocacy campaigns on important
issues.  MoveOn currently maintains a nationwide network of
more than 300,000 online activists.

By working in partnership with this groundbreaking online
activism organization, we can expand the reach of the
9-11Peace.org website and action network, while also
ensuring that they remain sustainable for some time to come.


GET INVOLVED
-------------
If you would like us to include an action, giving idea, news
article, or source in the bulletin, please write to
bulletin@9-11peace.org and describe your item in the subject
line.

The 9-11Peace.org bulletin is also looking for volunteers to
do research, proofreading and link-checking, and translation
into Spanish and French. If you think you've got the time,
know-how, and energy to do this well, please write to Susan
at editor@9-11peace.org.  Put "Volunteer" in the subject
line, and add a brief paragraph summarizing your experience
and interest.


ABOUT THE BULLETIN
-------------------
The 9-11Peace.org bulletin is a weekly newsletter providing
resources, news, and action ideas to over 17,000 people
around the world.  The full text of the bulletin is online
at http://www.9-11peace.org/bulletin.php3; users can
subscribe to the bulletin at that address also.  The
bulletin is a project of 9-11Peace.org.  Contact
bulletin@9-11peace.org for more information.