‘They Put the Blame of Waste on Individuals as Opposed to Companies’
“It’s a health problem, it’s an environmental problem, it’s a racial justice problem at this point, because of the way it’s distributed throughout the country and the world.”
Manufacturing Disgrace: Reuters Distorts Chevron v. Donziger
Independent journalist Chris Hedges (ScheerPost, 8/25/20) wrote: The flagrant corruption and misuse of the legal system to abjectly serve corporate interests in the Donziger case illustrates the deep decay within our judiciary and democratic institutions. One of those deeply decayed institutions is the corporate media, as a review of several years of Reuters coverage […]
Heidi Beirich on White Supremacist Violence, Howard Bryant on Black Athlete Activism, Sharon Lerner on Plastic Recycling and PR
This week on CounterSpin, we feature three archived but relevant conversations.
‘Drilling Would Have Devastating Impacts on This Fragile Ecosystem’
“We need to be protecting large swaths of land like the Arctic Refuge, and using them for the future preservation and mitigation of climate change.”
‘We Have to Look at the Underpinnings of Environmental Degradation’
“Environmental degradation is about… these US corporations, backed by US government, that are allowed to run roughshod over peoples’ lands in the name of, again, profit.”
Paul Paz y Miño, Saqib Bhatti & Beverly Bell on Environmental Justice & Cross-National Solidarity
There will only be an increasing number of frontline struggles between extractive, climate-disrupting industry and those willing to stand up to it. Corporate media’s inadequate attention, and unwillingness to truly call out the moneyed interests causing present and future harms, make them more often part of the problem than the solution.
‘The Driving Force Is to Help Polluters Get Their Permits Faster’
“The upshot is that climate will just be ignored, as if climate change is not happening, when it comes to environmental reviews moving forward.”
Gregory Shupak on Iran Assassination, Brett Hartl on Biodiversity Loss
The overt saber-rattling may be slowing now, but is that any thanks to media? Does it even mean an end to violence?
‘Responsibility for This Crisis Belongs on the Corporations That Have Created It’
“The vast majority of the more than 8 billion metric tons of plastic ever produced, about 80% has ended up in landfills, or scattered around the world.”
Sharon Lerner on Plastic Recycling
Corporations like Coca-Cola, Nestlé and Altria are eager to persuade the public that recycling is an adequate response to the devastating environmental impact of plastic waste, of which they are fixing to create a great deal more.
‘Trump’s Deregulatory Agenda Has Been Driven by Corporations’
“All of the rollbacks that we’ve seen across the government in so many different areas, and across so many different agencies, have been even more radical and extreme that even I expected.”
NYT Remembers David Koch More as ‘Philanthropist’ Than Polluter
The New York Times chose to focus more on David Koch’s love for the ballet than on his pollution and profiteering.
As Brazil Burns, Northern Media Deploy a Strategy of Deflection
As the world’s attention focused on the fire crisis last week, media companies employed several strategies to deflect attention from its root causes.
‘Monsanto Has Worked Very Hard to Discredit Me and My Work’
“It’s subterfuge. It’s a fraud upon the public, it’s an intended fraud upon the media, and it’s designed to control the narrative and control the news.”
Ernest Coverson on Guns & Human Rights, Carey Gillam Under Attack From Monsanto
Vast majorities of Americans support serious regulation, but corporate media debate still seems to revolve around the supposed “rights” of the few, rather than the right of the many to live a life free from this scourge.
‘Governments and Corporations Were Figuring Out a Way to Behave With Impunity When It Comes to Oil’
“It’s an actual strategy among oil companies…that if you can fearmonger enough, you can get a public that says, ‘Fine, even though the safety measures are not in place, we’ll drill 10 miles in the ocean if you don’t go to foreign oil.’”
‘Now We Know Oil Is More Toxic Than We Thought’
“I was shocked to see how easily these big oil companies, in this case Exxon, could make its story the dominant story.”
‘It’s Seen by Indigenous Activists as a Template for Similar Confrontations Around the Globe’
“If this landmark ruling—and it is a landmark ruling, make no mistake—does hold up to appeal, then there will be a big celebration in Ecuador, and around the world, for those who support indigenous rights and the environment.”
Netfa Freeman on Cuba Sanctions, Reynard Loki on Indigenous Oil Victory
A former US diplomat to Cuba, Wayne Smith, wrote once that Cuba “seems to have the same effect on American administrations that the full moon once had on werewolves.”
A Million Extinctions Eclipsed by One Royal Grandbaby
As many as 1 million of the estimated 8 million plant and animal species on Earth are at risk of extinction — many of them within decades — according to the scientists and researchers behind a new UN report. The assessment by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services is the most comprehensive […]
