‘Muscular’ Foreign Policy: Media Codeword for Violence Abroad
Words like “muscular” and “robust” are all too regularly used as euphemisms to sugarcoat inflicting violence around the world.
Alan MacLeod
Media Show Little Interest in Israeli Bombing of Gaza
Israel is bombing Palestine again, although you likely wouldn’t guess that from watching TV news.
Media’s ‘Cancel Culture’ Debate Obscures Direct Threats to First Amendment
Much of the public discussion of the Harper’s letter misses the fact that it is the powerful, not the masses, who inordinately have the ability to “cancel” individuals for their actions, and that it is the left and those challenging power who consistently suffer the brunt of the consequences.
How NOT to Resist Trump: Kayleigh McEnany’s Anti-Science Comments
Resisting the reopening of schools on the basis that the White House press secretary misspoke represents a lost opportunity to actually oppose the administration’s scandalously poor handling of the coronavirus.
In ‘Russian Bounty’ Story, Evidence-Free Claims From Nameless Spies Became Fact Overnight
Despite the fact that the anonymous accusations were far from proven, and that both the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal included categorical denials from all those involved, including the White House, the Taliban and Moscow, much of corporate media treated the story as an established fact from the outset.
Bombing People Is Not Feminist, No Matter How You Spin It
Some corporate media have recently been taken with the “inspirational” story of Emily Thompson, the first woman to pilot the super-costly F-35 jet in combat.
Media Downplay Global South Leadership on Covid-19
The problem with much of the reporting focusing on rich, developed countries where media have foreign correspondents is that it ignores often superior responses to the virus from much of the Global South, countries that have nothing like the resources of advanced Western states.
Children Risking Their Lives. How Cute!
During an epochal catastrophe such as this one, where bodies are piling up outside morgues and tens of millions have lost their jobs, corporate media’s neoliberal understanding of what is uplifting stretches credulity to the breaking point.
Both Sides-ing Bleach Injection
Unfortunately, for journalists stuck in a corporate media system that promotes deference to authority and finds equivalency even when there is none, the president’s dangerous ramblings need to be treated as legitimate and worthy of discussion, even in apparently adversarial media.
In Pursuit of Chinese Scapegoats, Media Reject Life-Saving Lessons
corporate media have accepted Trump’s premise that China is uniquely to blame and must be “held accountable” for its sins,
News Flash! Billionaires Don’t Like Socialism
Big news, everyone! Billionaires don’t like socialism. In response to a rising progressive tide in the United States, a new genre of stories has emerged in corporate media: rich guys warning against taxing them, or really changing anything about the system at all. CNBC (1/22/20) ran an article headlined, “BP’s CEO Chides AOC and Bernie […]
Media Stoop to ‘Russian Assistance’ to Explain Sanders’ Rise
Election Focus 2020: The Washington Post’s poorly sourced, evidence-free and quickly walked-back report became the basis for endless stories linking Russia and Bernie Sanders.
Cop-Hating Vandals or Pro-Democracy Activists?
The message from the media is clear: Their protesters are good, regardless of what they do; ours are vandals, thugs or criminals. Their cops are bad; ours are unimpeachable heroes under fire for just doing their jobs.
For Media in New Hampshire, Losing Is Winning and Winning Is Losing
Election Focus 2020: The “stop Bernie at all costs” mentality explains why some of the media simply ignored Sanders’ victory altogether, part of a longstanding Bernie blackout strategy.
News Flash: Billionaires Don’t Like Socialism
Big news, everyone! Billionaires don’t like socialism. In response to a rising progressive tide in the United States, a new genre of stories has emerged in corporate media: rich guys warning against taxing them, or really changing anything about the system at all. Just as the press are keen for you to know that […]
The New York Times Endorsement Has Often Been a Boost for the Unendorsed
Election Focus 2020: The New York Times has a distinctly poor record of picking winning candidates, often making tragically comical predictions and assertions in its endorsements.
It’s Media—Not Bernie Sanders—That Have an Antisemitism Problem
Election Focus 2020: While media express concern about the use of antisemitic tropes by the left, they seem oblivious that their own discussions of the Sanders campaign might evoke them.
From Resistance to Assistance: Little Pushback to Trump’s Iran Assassination
When the president carries out dangerous, aggressive actions, such as the assassination of Iranian general and political leader Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad on January 3, “resistance” turns to assistance from the corporate press.
Corporate Media Find All the Wrong Lessons for US Left in Corbyn’s Defeat
Election Focus 2020: Across the spectrum, corporate media all came to the same conclusion regarding the election: Corbyn’s loss spells the end for the US left and a “crushing defeat” of the discredited policies of socialism.
Getting Away With Murder: ‘Clash’ as Media Euphemism for ‘Massacre’
“Clash” is an oft-used and highly convenient word for corporate media when they have to report on violence, but, for whatever reason, do not want to assign responsibility to any party for initiating it.
