Media
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Are Iranian Magnets the New Aluminum Tubes? By Peter Hart
In the run up to the Iraq War, the New York Times (9/8/02) famously reported on an Iraqi scheme to procure special aluminum tubes that could only have one purpose: Iraq’s secret nuclear weapons program. Saddam Hussein was attempting to “buy thousands of specially designed aluminum tubes,” and the “diameter, thickness and other technical specifications… Continue reading
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Historic Court Case Against the BBC’s Cover Up of 9/11 Evidence
The BBC is being challenged strongly for its refusal to present to the British public the available scientific evidence which contradicts the official version of events of 9/11. Thank you very much to all those who have sent letters to their MPs asking that the BBC be held to account for withholding this evidence that… Continue reading
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An 'Informal Arrangement' to Not Report the News By Peter Hart
Today the Washington Post (2/6/13) reported some news that it’s known for years, but had decided not tell us until now: The CIA has a drone base in Saudi Arabia. Continue reading
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Where Are They Now? The Reporters Who Got Iraq So Wrong By Peter Hart
Ten years ago today, Colin Powell made the Bush administration’s case for going to war against Iraq. Much of what he said about Iraq’s threats to the United States was false. But the media coverage gave the opposite impression, and most of the pundits and journalists who promoted the justifications for the war paid no… Continue reading
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When It Comes to Drones, Trust the Churchgoing CIA Director By Peter Hart
Chris Matthews (MSNBC) appeared rather uncomfortable with the topic, ultimately deciding that the policy was defensible–on the grounds that the CIA director Leon Panetta goes to church Continue reading
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When 'Confirmed' Means 'An Official Told Me So' By Peter Hart
On January 30, reports emerged that Israel had carried out an airstrike on Syrian targets near Damascus. Much of the initial reporting took Israel’s claims at face value, though it appeared impossible to confirm that the story was true. A reader might conclude, based on some of the more credulous accounts of this strike, that… Continue reading
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PBS Ombud, Nova Disagree on Drone Disclosure
PBS ombud Michael Getler (1/31/13) responded to FAIR activists who wrote to him about the recent Nova special on drones (1/23/13) that was underwritten by Lockheed Martin, a major military contractor and drone manufacturer. Continue reading
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The BBC’s ‘Why Poverty?’ Series: A Missed Opportunity
The Why Poverty project is a recent collaboration between the Open University and the BBC that attempts to highlight the causes of global poverty and explain the different contexts in which it is experienced… In my view, however, parts of the BBC 4 series, as well as the overall narrative of the project were not… Continue reading
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The BBC’s ‘Why Poverty?’ Series: A Missed Opportunity
The Why Poverty project is a recent collaboration between the Open University and the BBC that attempts to highlight the causes of global poverty and explain the different contexts in which it is experienced… In my view, however, parts of the BBC 4 series, as well as the overall narrative of the project were not… Continue reading
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FAIR TV: The Beltway Bubble, Syria Stenography, Iran's "Meddling" By Peter Hart
This week on FAIR TV, we look at the bubble that Joe Scarborough and David Gregory live in– where the government must make “big” spending cuts, and Paul Krugman doesn’t know economic. Also, does ABC’s Martha Raddatz understand what the government is telling her about Syria? And Reuters grants a U.S. government official anonymity to… Continue reading
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Long Distance Revolutionary: A Journey with Mumia Abu-Jamal by Rodolf Etienne
American film-maker, Stephen Vittoria’s latest film, Long Distance Revolutionary: A Journey with Mumia Abu-Jamal, proposes a new vision of Mumia Abu-Jamal, by analysing his remarkable career as journalist and writer from Death Row. I spoke with Mr. Vittoria about the film Continue reading
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Iran's 'Nuclear Weapons Program,' Again By Peter Hart
On Monday’s edition of the NewsHour (1/28/13), host Gwen Ifill referred to concerns about the “threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program,” and told viewers at the end of a Margaret Warner report that “Margaret’s next story looks at the debate in Israel over how to deal with the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran.” Continue reading
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Raddatz Misreports Raddatz on Syrian Weapons By Peter Hart
The implication…is that Syria has loaded chemical weapons at the ready, and that it would take a matter of hours for the Assad government to use them. But that’s not what Panetta told…well, Raddatz herself. Continue reading
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The Crimes of NATO’s Neocolonial Wars: The Mainstream Media are Organs of State and Corporate Propaganda By Gearóid Ó Colmáin
“Mainstream media is nothing more than the propaganda organ of the powers that be” Belgian MP denounces the crimes of NATO’s neo-colonial wars. Continue reading
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Why Do Poor People Living in an Abandoned Skyscraper So Outrage the New Yorker? By Jim Naureckas
His latest piece for the New Yorker, “Slumlord: What Has Hugo Chavez Wrought in Venezuela?” (1/28/13–subscription required), reads almost like a parody of corporate media coverage of an official enemy state. Continue reading
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Sanctions Not Really Hurting Ordinary Iranians, Says Anonymous U.S. Official By Peter Hart
We’ve talked so often about the practice of granting anonymity to U.S. officials that it’s hard to be surprised by it. Nonetheless, I was surprised to be reassured in the Washington Post (1/20/13) that the U.S.-led sanctions on Iran aren’t really harming ordinary Iranians–based on the word of an anonymous U.S. official. Continue reading
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“The PirateBox”: WiFi + USB Drive = Your Own Mini-Internet (Freedom) By Tony Cartalucci
Worried about draconian Internet laws? Creeping surveillance? The inability to share with others without being criminalized? The Internet is still a tool of tremendous power, but a deep rot has set in. We have caught it early and we are fighting to stop this rot, but there are other options we can begin exploring to… Continue reading
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“The PirateBox”: WiFi + USB Drive = Your Own Mini-Internet (Freedom) By Tony Cartalucci
Worried about draconian Internet laws? Creeping surveillance? The inability to share with others without being criminalized? The Internet is still a tool of tremendous power, but a deep rot has set in. We have caught it early and we are fighting to stop this rot, but there are other options we can begin exploring to… Continue reading
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The Guardian vs. the Conventional Wisdom on Venezuela By Alex Main
Just as it appeared that the current conventional wisdom on Venezuela had spread and hardened irreversibly throughout the major media, on Monday the UK daily The Guardian published an editorial entitled “Venezuela, defying predictions – again.” The piece deftly takes on a few commonly held views found in much of the media coverage of Venezuela. Continue reading
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Copyright for People, Not for Publishers By Jim Naureckas
In a release today from the Institute for Public Accuracy (1/17/13) on the legacy of Aaron Swartz, I came across a link to a great essay by Richard Stallman that appears to have been written about a decade ago. Called “Misinterpreting Copyright: A Series of Errors,” it’s one of the best explanations I’ve seen for… Continue reading
The New Dark Age 