For NYT, Trump’s Gulf Corruption Is the New Normal
It is a hallmark of corrupt societies that institutions like media simply accept that the personal business interests of politicians supersede public service.
Raed Jarrar on Biden & Saudi Arabia, Joe Torres on Tulsa Massacre
“The newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing.”
‘In the Middle East, We Are Hearing a New Set of Excuses to Justify the Same Old Policy’
“His visit will not help peace. It will not help human rights. It will not help US interests in the region.”
Raed Jarrar on Biden’s Saudi Trip, Lindsay Koshgarian on People Over Pentagon
It’s hard to parse corporate media coverage of Biden’s Saudi visit, because that coverage obscures rather than illuminates what’s going on.
Saudi PR Pays Off at the Atlantic
The piece went to great lengths to make the royal ruler relatable to the common American, pointing out that he eats breakfast with his kids.
Media’s Top Meaning for ‘Proxy’ Is ‘Iranian Ally’
With the word “proxy,” corporate media downplay the extent of US interference in other countries, while frequently portraying Iran as undercutting other peoples’ independence.
‘Freedom Is Blossoming’: After Dismembering a Journalist, Saudi Arabia Goes on a PR Spree
Since the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Mohammed bin Salman has been on a media charm offensive, trying to present one of the most repressive states in the world as a progressive, emerging country.
Media Stenography Turns Beheaded Saudi Protesters Into ‘Terrorism’
Many in the US press dutifully echoed Saudi Arabia’s claim that it executed 37 people for “terrorism.” A cursory Google search would have shown that this assertion was completely false.
‘MBS Has Ushered in an Era of Unprecedented Crackdowns and Repression of Political Speech’
“One of the themes of bin Salman’s reign is this absolute top-down, unilateral approach, that any rights or privileges granted to his subjects must be seen as coming directly from him, and a product of his will and his will alone.”
Sarah Aziza on Saudi Repression of Women, Dean Baker on Taxing the Rich
One would hope that reports that Saudi Arabia under Mohammed bin Salman is torturing women political prisoners would be sufficient to upset the narrative of a “young and brash” reformer.
Blaming Saudis for Corrupting Otherwise Human Rights–Loving US
The United States’ grotesque alliance with the Saudi theocratic monarchy is not a product of a foreign boogeyman, but core to the US imperial project.
‘Nothing Will End if the US Continues to Support Saudi Arabia’
“We’re not asking for any saviors. We’re asking for people to stop intervening in Yemen.”
A ‘Regime’ Is a Government at Odds With the US Empire
A country’s political leaders are likely to be called a “regime” when they do not follow US dictates, and are less likely to be categorized as such if they cooperate with the empire.
Extra! Soundbites July 2018
GOP Attacks, NYT Parrots… With Neutrality Like This, Who Needs Allies?… Facebook’s Foreign-Funded Watchdog on Foreign Influence… Frank of Dodd/Frank Now Frank of the Bank… NYT Accepts That Charging Feminists With Treason ‘Undermines Reformist Credentials’… Staff Cartoonist Rob Rogers Fired
WaPo Editors: We Have to Help Destroy Yemen to Save It
The Washington Post vaguely acknowledges Washington’s role in the bloody siege of Yemen, but insisting that the US should remain involved in the bombing for the sake of humanitarianism.
Promoters of Saudi Prince as Feminist Reformer Are Silent on His Crackdown on Women
During his US PR tour in March, Saudi prince and de facto ruler of the absolute monarchy Mohammed bin Salman (often referred to as “MBS”) touted the progress the kingdom was making in the area of “women’s rights”—namely letting women drive and combatting nebulous reactionary forces that were somehow separate from the regime. Since then, […]
Media Boosts Obvious Saudi Front Group as Neutral ‘Think Tank’
Absent documented evidence of who exactly funds the group, why should media not assume—based on its connections to the government and cartoonishly pro–bin Salman line—that the Arabia Foundation is a front group for the government?
‘This Is Very Much a US/Saudi War on Yemen’
“We’re not asking for intervention. We’re asking for them to stop this intervention, to remove themselves from this conflict.”
Guardian, NYT Paint Power-Grabbing Saudi Dictator as Roguish, Visionary ‘Reformer’
For many in the Western press, de facto Saudi ruler Mohammed bin Salman’s self-serving power grab is the action of a bold “reformer,” a roguish bad boy doing the messy but essential work of “reforming” the kingdom.
How Media Obscure US/Saudi Responsibility for Killing Yemeni Civilians
Major Western media outlets covering Yemeni civilian deaths in airstrikes have obscured the responsibility Saudi Arabia, and its US and European supporters, bear for launching these airstrikes.
