This week on CounterSpin: It seems telling that when leading Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was slow to disavow the Ku Klux Klan, elite media called it a “stumble”—as though Trump had misspoken, had misrepresented himself or was truly confused about the existence of white supremacy and its role in political campaigns like his own.
Media talk a lot “around” issues of “race,” but generally fail to take the body of ideas known as white supremacy seriously in a journalistic way, even when it’s connected to violence. Terrorist acts associated with Islam are foregrounded over the right-wing kind, even though in this country it’s the latter that predominates. How do we inform and change the conversation?
Heidi Beirich is leader of the Intelligence Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center, whose work is the subject of a new docu-series called Hate in America. We speak with her this week on CounterSpin.
Plus we look back at the week’s press, including the head of CBS celebrating Trump’s success, Social Security privatization and what does and doesn’t get you fired as a cable news host.
SOURCE LINK:
“SPLC’s Intelligence Report: Amid Year of Lethal Violence, Extremist Groups Expanded Ranks in 2015” (Southern Poverty Law Center, 2/17/16)
Absolutely critical piece of journalism. For me, this is the theme of this election and NO ONE except counterspin is talking about it (per usual)!
I am calling to defund Fair.org?