Search Results for: Ron Nixon

Dec
01
2012

Media Laugh Off Criticism of Drug War

Journalists make pot jokes while victims suffer

Partnership for a Drug-Free America's famous 1987 anti-drug ad

To those of a certain age, the image of eggs sizzling in a frying pan instantly evokes the Partnership For a Drug-Free America’s 1987 “this is your brain on drugs” ad. But any group that wanted to draw attention to drug use in the 1980s and ’90s didn’t really need to buy ad space; media coverage was already saturated with sensationalized reporting on crack cocaine and other drugs (Extra!, 9/92). This plentiful drug coverage served to support U.S. government policy, encouraging public embrace of a heavy-handed crack-down that began under President Richard Nixon and was expanded by Ronald Reagan. Government [...]

Sep
01
2012

Radicals, Terrorists and Traffickers--Oh My

Creating a potpourri of enemies south of the border

Rafael Correa--Photo Credit: Flickr Creative Commons/Presidencia de la Republica del Ecuador

In May, a New York Times story (5/6/12) discussed plans to militarize the U.S. presence in Latin America. For some, this might sound redundant, given U.S. history in the region. Others might be struck by the notion that a nation embroiled in two major wars--and threatening to start another--could find the resources to escalate efforts south of its border. The article, which focused on U.S. efforts to strengthen its anti-drug campaign in Honduras, provided a glimpse of the evolution of the U.S. military's role in the world as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq wind down. That role, the Times [...]

Nov
01
2011

But You Didn't Hear It From...Anyone

Anonymity abuse in the corporate press

It’s hardly necessary for a critic to argue that the country’s major daily newspapers, the New York Times and Washington Post, routinely ignore their stated principles on anonymous sources (however vague such standards may be to begin with), the outlets make the case so vividly themselves. The New York Times rules state, for instance, that anonymity is “reserved for situations in which the newspaper could not otherwise print information it considers reliable and newsworthy,” and “should not be invoked for a trivial comment, or to make an unremarkable comment appear portentous” (“Confidential News Sources Policy,” NYTCo.com). Times readers, nonetheless, regularly [...]

Mar
11
2011

Remembering David Broder

Despite non-ideological reputation, he pushed political culture to the right

Washington Post columnist and political reporter David Broder died on Wednesday, March 9. Broder was an enormously influential figure in Beltway media circles--"the best political reporter of his generations," wrote his Post colleague Dan Balz (3/10/11). ABC's George Stephanopoulos declared (3/9/11) that "for generations of policy makers, journalists and political junkies, Broder was the gold standard." Broder's work was frequently criticized, something that the Washington Post actually noted in an editorial honoring him (3/10/11): Mr. Broder was often called "the Dean," a position that is now likely to go unfilled in the Washington press corps. His detractors used the term [...]

Feb
18
2011

How to Save Ourselves From the 'Save PBS' Routine

It is as predictable as can be: Invigorated Republican politicians announce their intention to kill public broadcasting, which they claim is a bastion of liberal bias. Defenders of NPR and PBS step in to defend the system. The Republicans, who were unlikely to win a vote on their plan, retreat for the moment. Public broadcasting is "saved." (See Slate, 2/10/11.) The public broadcasting fight of 2011 is playing out the same way. A more productive discussion of public broadcasting is sorely needed--one that is not reduced to "save it" or "kill it." The purpose of public broadcasting is clear: to [...]

Dec
30
2010

Smell Something Rotten?

2010 P.U.-litzer Prizes recognize the worst of U.S. journalism

At the end of every year FAIR rounds up some of the stinkiest examples of corporate media malfeasance. This year brought no shortage of contenders; indeed, the hardest part of the P.U.-litzers is narrowing down the list. Readers who think we missed one can share their nominations at the FAIR Blog (fair.org/blog). And without further ado.... --Prosecute the Messenger Award: Diane Sawyer (ABC News) On October 22, ABC World News anchor Diane Sawyer introduced a report on WikiLeaks' exposure of thousands of classified documents from the Iraq War. ABC correspondent Martha Raddatz summarized the contents of the WikiLeaks files: "Deadly [...]

Jul
20
2010

PBS Ombud Agrees With FAIR on Shultz Tribute

Says funding gives series a 'credibility problem'

In response to hundreds of letters from FAIR activists, PBS ombud Michael Getler (7/16/10) agreed with FAIR's criticism (Action Alert, 7/12/10) of the 3-hour PBS documentary Turmoil and Triumph, a tribute to former Reagan-era Secretary of State George Shultz funded in part by institutions and individuals with close ties to Shultz. Getler found Turmoil to be "over-the-top, in my view, with praise, but with relatively little critical appraisal of some of the more controversial actions of Shultz's tenure." He wrote: This series, for me, as a viewer and an ombudsman, created at least the appearance of a conflict of interest; [...]

Jul
09
2010

Alexander Zaitchik on Glenn Beck, Jon Jeter on globalization

By

Download MP3 This week on CounterSpin: Two issues modern media critics can't help but engage are the growth of right-wing media, and their forcible injection of sometimes bizarre ideas and methods into so-called mainstream debate; and the impact of corporate media's narrow economic vision, which also affects public debate and political possibilities, on some of the most critical decisions affecting the country. On today's show we’re going to talk about some of those things with two authors. If you watch Glenn Beck for even a few minutes you're left wondering whether it's all a con job—from the weepy patriotism to [...]

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