An open letter to the Corporate Press

[Mythsaje]

To whom it may concern:

Yes, I realize that you feel as though you've been attacked now that one of your own spent time in jail for refusing to give up her source. Yes, this is a development that disturbs those of us who truly support the First Amendment. Yes, we understand that you're losing readership and viewership at an alarming rate and aren't sure why. You're attacked from the left and from the right, villified at every turn and you somehow think that this means you're doing your job.

You present opinion as fact and fact as opinion, and don't have the decency to blush while you're doing it. You think that allowing a RWer on to counter facts with obfuscation is somehow "balanced" reporting.

We reject you. The only ones of us who watch you are doing so to determine what kind of nonsense you'll throw out next, and how best to respond.

From where we stand, your remarkable silence in the face of almost overwhelming corruption on the part of the Republicans currently in power made such a move on the part of true justice seekers nearly inevitable. You are becoming irrelevant.

You stopped doing your job. It has been left up to bloggers and on-line discussion groups to disseminate the news you haven't seen fit to cover.When you, the press, become complacent and complicit in crimes against America, you lose your privileges. When your anchors and reporters become just another part of the Republican spin machine, you cease to be members of the free press and become just another voice in the wind.

The reporters in question become accomplices in the commission of a High Crime against the American people, an act that jeopardized our security and placed thousands of our young men and women in harm's way in furtherance of a lie.

I would say "shame on you," but it's become clear ever since the Iraq war began that you have no shame.

So shame on us, the American people, for allowing you to fool us for so long.

Never again.

Sincerely,

PNFM (People Not Fooled by the Media)

[MasonJar]

1. Thank you. I hope you disseminated it to many.

[Mythsaje]

2. Not yet...

Hoping to get more feedback from everybody here...see if there's anything important I missed.

[Ufomammut]

4. Perhaps they could be reminded that...

When it all goes down the drain - which they play a substantial role in - their status and privledge won't save their frail asses, nor those of their loved ones.

[Mythsaje]

7. That's a good point...

Definitely something to consider.

[Warpy]

6. Nope, that about covered it all

as far as I'm concerned.

I tuned out on 11/3/04 and the wonder is that I haven't missed the nightly propaganda hour. Count me among the lost viewership/readership.

[Mythsaje]

8. Iraq was the turning point for me...

The whole media frenzy, complete with graphics, about the "March On Baghdad" made me allergic.

[CovertOP]

3. You are too nice

Usually when I attack media it contains much more vitriolic hate and complete contempt. "May, I stab you in the face with an icepick".

[Mythsaje]

5. Or, perhaps,

"may your printing press grow a Stephen King persona and eat you alive one by one!"

I see a lot of my pieces as something like a rose with venomous thorns. Tactful, with just a little bite thrown in to make the target think about it.

[Ufomammut]

9. Actually

What's happening now has always been the true function of our "free press" which is always served in a public relations capacity to disguise unconscionability and institutional criminality.

[SeattleGirl]

10. I think it's a good letter, and once you tweak if (if you do)

you should definitely send it out.

I so rarely watch national news. I do watch my local news, because I want to know what's going on here (and they generally don't seem to twist local stuff too badly). But for real news/truth, it's DU and other sites, and Keith Olberman, Jon Stewart, and Colbert.

[Mythsaje]

11. Actually it was the local TV news

that started my growing disgust...the local news is guilty of sensationalizing small stories and ramping up minor issues to gain viewership.

Drives me nuts.

Example: "Is your home killing you? News at eleven." And most of the time it's just something trivial, blown way out of proportion just so people will watch.

[tech3149]

12. I hit the local stations with something similar

About a year ago I got disgusted by the same tripe. In an houh news broadcast there is on average 5 min of anything worth knowing. Even that wasn't very well presented.

[Mythsaje]

13. I know it.

I can't believe they actually consider that "doing their jobs."

[Hutzpa]

15. Yup!! media have lost their voices.......heres a story

that happen to me not too long ago, I was in Houston, Texas watching local news, now before the news came on they where advertising losing weights/losing pounds in 10 minutes....it so convincing that I stayed tuned just to find out if this is possible, finally when it did came on (I might add to wards the end) you will never guess what it was........JEANS, Twas about a newly design jean that lets women lose weights. Talk about being pissed, I was sooo pissed and so was my Wife, that went up to the TV to smash the Darn thing as if it was the TVs fault. Thats what the media has become, Spinderella.

Imagine how many stories have been through this same routine.

:puke:

[SeattleGirl]

16. Oh, I know what you mean -- but that's been going on for years

before it got completely corporate. When they do their teasers, I just roll my eyes. One thing I do like about our local news -- TV as well as newspaper -- is that their investigative reports have done some very incredible investigative stories, and they don't back down. (And, we have David Horsey as one of our local political cartoonists!).

But I agree -- they do ratings whoring too, but they aren't as bad as the national folks.

[Mythsaje]

17. KIRO has a good reputation for that, actually...

And it's the only station I'll tune to IF I'm going to watch the news.

Definitely a trend I wish they'd stop...

[SeattleGirl]

19. I wish they'd stop it too.

Just makes 'em look stupid, IMO. :eyes:

[Mythsaje]

20. I was once interviewed for the news

on a DB (dead body) found in the back of a pickup in the parking lot of my apartment complex. The reporter who interviewed me did EVERYTHING to get me to act like this was a normal thing in our neighborhood, which it wasn't.

Damn near got me in trouble with the owner of the complex, who'd done a pretty good job keeping crap like that away...much as she was a bitch otherwise, until she discovered that I'd told the press that I believed it had actually come from a neighboring complex.

It wasn't as though I MEANT to get interviewed in the first place. I was way-laid on the way to the mailbox.

[KAZ]

14. Absolutely love it.

I would only add "You're not." at the end of your opening paragraph, so as to avoid stepping on the lede.

I hope my sister down in FL sees this thread. It sounds like something she would write.

Good stuff!

[Mythsaje]

18. Great addition! Thanks!

I'll make sure to add that line.