The media doesn't like the Plame story because they were outed too

[NNN0LHI]

I never knew for sure that Bush's minions in the White House call people like Tim Russert to complain about the coverage they were airing. That means they do the same thing to all the media outlets.

I always suspected this was going on but I never seen any proof of it before. I can actually remember being called a tinfoiler for suggesting this was happening not too long ago.

The media all wear kneepads for the Bush regime and that has been proven in a court of law.

Don

[H2O Man]

1. Nominated.

Very important point.

[sutz12]

2. I'll K & R this...

The talking heads are so complicit in this whole deal. Now their "secret insider status" is exposed.

I guess they will have to issue them new decoder rings.

[mmonk]

3. Yes. The "big" media right now is one big adversary to the truth

[dogday]

4. Happy to put this on the greatest nt

[A wise Man]

5. That's why the republican population

is so dumb and ignorant, they can't get the media to tell the truth on issue necessary to know.

[HowHasItComeToThis]

25. THIS "WAR" is popular in the media... make a buck, make a buck

make a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buckmake a buck, make a buck

[KoKo]

6. Good Point....their coverage has been so shallow. K&R

[blm]

7. BINGO!!! The corpmedia has been complicit with this WH since before they took office

and they became even more so after 9-11.

We have seen this on EVERY story. The lies get more attention and airtime than the facts do.

You can have the truth come up in a COURTROOM and the corpmedia ignores most of it.

Now do people understand how the facts and a strong defense is NEVER enough?? It's like that because the media STILL won't let the facts be heard in any comprehensive way.

We saw it start in impeachment, then 2000 campaign, 9-11, Tora Bora, Iraq intel, Plame-Wilson, Swifts, Dan Rather, election fraud 2004,Murtha, withdrawal plans - EVERY STORY gets an overload of WH talking points, and damn little is heard of the FACTS presented by Dems in rebuttal to their lies.

This is US media.

[sendero]

8. And then so many have the nerve..

.... to complain about the "bloggers".

Hey guess what MSM, you are liars, you are bought and sold and you are fucking irrelevant. Thank god for the internet.

[Arugula Latte]

19. I like the way you put it:

"Hey guess what MSM, you are liars, you are bought and sold and you are fucking irrelevant. Thank god for the internet."

That about sums it up. :thumbsup:

[peacetalksforall]

9. It's not Andrea or Tim or O-Reilly - all these people are employees.

It's GE, TIme-Warner, Murdoch and their appointed ones who communicate with the WH to coordinate the latest strategy, tactic, response. They are very good employees - they may have two mortgages and more.

[A wise Man]

11. If protest were to take place

we should protest the media and the FCC. The rethugs still think that the liberal media controls all information, when 90% of the media is owned and operated by conservative jackasses tapping into the hate ideaology of the rethug public.

[jaysunb]

28. That may very well be true

( that these people are just " employees " ) but they are also American citizens who have chosen a profession that obligates them to be a third or fourth rail against government and big business excesses in the function of democracy.

I simply cannot let them ( individuals ) off the hook. Integrity , patriotism, and honesty are not optional......:evilfrown:

[senseandsensibility]

10. Yes, and that's why they are so mealy mouthed

and lame about the hearings yesterday. Instead of claiming, with no evidence, that the public doesn't care about it, they should admit that they don't care about it. To put it more accurately, they were told not to care about it.

[goodhue]

12. Yes, clearly the powers that be inside the beltway are aligned against the Wilsons

[w4rma]

17. More like the powers on Wall Street. (nt)

[cascadiance]

13. And they're feeling outed on the Attorney's story at the very same time!

It's probably no coincidence that Time Magazine's Jay Carney issued an "apology" towards bloggers like Jsoh Marshall and TPM Muckraker and the rest of the blogspace for breaking and building that story's momentum too.

I think that many Americans, with a lot more of this being shown now to them are starting to ask the "Why" questions, on why they weren't told about these issues earlier by the media. It's becoming a perfect storm time for them too! And they still haven't heard all of the stuff when other just as important stories are being still masked this week, like Sibel Edmonds and other NSWBC coaliation members' efforts to get heard by congressional committees to testify about knowledge they have of domestic spying being used against political opponents in Washington, which is really Watergate all over again! Hopefully we are shaming the media enough where those stories are starting to be looked at too now, but somehow I'm still not sure of the seriousness yet of folks like Carney until I see more effort from them to make up for lost time!

[Kahuna]

14. Yep. They can no longer deny our accusations that they are bush whores..

Score another one for US!!! :applause:

[DemReadingDU]

15. I hear today that Plame lost her job

There was a hearing yesterday, but it was a waste of time because her leaker can't be found. Such spin :eyes:

The media needs to be focusing on the fact she was outed from the CIA. Her cover, and network of agents, was blown...not by foreigners, but by somebody in her own country! This is treason.

[EVDebs]

16. What's being covered up by the media et al right now ?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x267177

What couldn't they discuss during Waxman's hearing yesterday ? The real target of the neocon nutjobs in the administration, and their means and methods.

[NanceGreggs]

18. K & R ...

:kick:

[Tigress DEM]

20. KNeepads & Knaughty Knickers for FAUX et al.

The US can only be screwed if the press bends over first.

[fooj]

21. Let's reacquaint them with the Society of Professional Journalism's Code of Ethics...

http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp

Preamble
Members of the Society of Professional Journalists believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy. The duty of the journalist is to further those ends by seeking truth and providing a fair and comprehensive account of events and issues. Conscientious journalists from all media and specialties strive to serve the public with thoroughness and honesty. Professional integrity is the cornerstone of a journalist's credibility. Members of the Society share a dedication to ethical behavior and adopt this code to declare the Society's principles and standards of practice.


Seek Truth and Report It

Journalists should be honest, fair and courageous in gathering, reporting and interpreting information.

Journalists should:

— Test the accuracy of information from all sources and exercise care to avoid inadvertent error. Deliberate distortion is never permissible.
— Diligently seek out subjects of news stories to give them the opportunity to respond to allegations of wrongdoing.
— Identify sources whenever feasible. The public is entitled to as much information as possible on sources' reliability.
— Always question sources’ motives before promising anonymity. Clarify conditions attached to any promise made in exchange for information. Keep promises.
— Make certain that headlines, news teases and promotional material, photos, video, audio, graphics, sound bites and quotations do not misrepresent. They should not oversimplify or highlight incidents out of context.
— Never distort the content of news photos or video. Image enhancement for technical clarity is always permissible. Label montages and photo illustrations.
— Avoid misleading re-enactments or staged news events. If re-enactment is necessary to tell a story, label it.
— Avoid undercover or other surreptitious methods of gathering information except when traditional open methods will not yield information vital to the public. Use of such methods should be explained as part of the story
— Never plagiarize.
— Tell the story of the diversity and magnitude of the human experience boldly, even when it is unpopular to do so.
— Examine their own cultural values and avoid imposing those values on others.
— Avoid stereotyping by race, gender, age, religion, ethnicity, geography, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance or social status.
— Support the open exchange of views, even views they find repugnant.
— Give voice to the voiceless; official and unofficial sources of information can be equally valid.
— Distinguish between advocacy and news reporting. Analysis and commentary should be labeled and not misrepresent fact or context.
— Distinguish news from advertising and shun hybrids that blur the lines between the two.
— Recognize a special obligation to ensure that the public's business is conducted in the open and that government records are open to inspection.


Minimize Harm

Ethical journalists treat sources, subjects and colleagues as human beings deserving of respect.

Journalists should:

— Show compassion for those who may be affected adversely by news coverage. Use special sensitivity when dealing with children and inexperienced sources or subjects.
— Be sensitive when seeking or using interviews or photographs of those affected by tragedy or grief.
— Recognize that gathering and reporting information may cause harm or discomfort. Pursuit of the news is not a license for arrogance.
— Recognize that private people have a greater right to control information about themselves than do public officials and others who seek power, influence or attention. Only an overriding public need can justify intrusion into anyone’s privacy.
— Show good taste. Avoid pandering to lurid curiosity.
— Be cautious about identifying juvenile suspects or victims of sex crimes.
— Be judicious about naming criminal suspects before the formal filing of charges.
— Balance a criminal suspect’s fair trial rights with the public’s right to be informed.


Act Independently

Journalists should be free of obligation to any interest other than the public's right to know.

Journalists should:

—Avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived.
— Remain free of associations and activities that may compromise integrity or damage credibility.
— Refuse gifts, favors, fees, free travel and special treatment, and shun secondary employment, political involvement, public office and service in community organizations if they compromise journalistic integrity.
— Disclose unavoidable conflicts.
— Be vigilant and courageous about holding those with power accountable.
— Deny favored treatment to advertisers and special interests and resist their pressure to influence news coverage.
— Be wary of sources offering information for favors or money; avoid bidding for news.



Be Accountable

Journalists are accountable to their readers, listeners, viewers and each other.

Journalists should:

— Clarify and explain news coverage and invite dialogue with the public over journalistic conduct.
— Encourage the public to voice grievances against the news media.
— Admit mistakes and correct them promptly.
— Expose unethical practices of journalists and the news media.
— Abide by the same high standards to which they hold others.

[cassiepriam]

22. Bingo. The media was in this up to their eyeballs.

[PurpleChez]

23. "The media all wear kneepads for the Bush regime"

and what has amazed me, since even before * was appointed president, is the extent to which both the MSM and the man on the street have deferred to this dullard. I mean...they thought Reagan was a saint, even before he died, and they did not defer to him the way they have always deferred to Bush. People were able to acknowledge that Reagan was fallible, that he was mortal. But now we have a large industry (most of talk radio and a good portion of 24-hour news, plus others) dedicated to promoting the idea that GWB is NEVER wrong, that every idea that comes out of the man's mouth ought to be treated as a divine directive, and that anybody who dares to say otherwise must be discredited or marginalized at all costs. People really, really liked Reagan (why, I still don't fully understand), but their support of W is at a religious level. Obviously, this special treatment isn't just for our "special" president...it makes you wonder WHO owes WHAT to WHOM.

[juno jones]

24. I think...

this excerpt says a lot about the situation vis a vis the media and bloggers...and probably goes even deeper. Just sustitute America for Czechloslovakia...

excerpt from

"New Europe"
Granta # 30, Winter 1990
"Looking For Jiri Wolf"
by Graham Smith



..."I was surprised by the relaxed and low-key atmosphere of the City Forum office.I had imagined a throng if inquirers: There was a small knot of people. The staff all seemed of student age, smiling, casual, obliging; and if I was reminded of anything, it was of a university common room or a union office-an air of precarious organization. The word you were tempted to use-I thought of the hand-written posters and the single, small-screen televisions relaying information to potential crowds of hundreds-was 'amateur'. You had to remind yourself that a month ago the machinery of opposition and free information simply hadn't existed; and that, at a deeper level, all revolutions must appear to be started by amateurs.
"Furthermore, if these were the amateurs, who were the professionals? No doubt, when the communist leaders were first compelled to negotiate with the the Civic Forum they must have stifled the thought (it was creepily instructive to have shared it), that the situation was preposterous-they were dealing with amateurs. But were they themselves professional in anything other than their official possesion of power? Professional in terms of expertise, responsibilty,knowledge, capacity? The answer I got to this was to be repeatedly and vehemently "NO". The constant cry-with a gush of relief now that at last it could be uttered openly-was that in a totalitarian regime stupidity floats to the top. At every level, control had passed for years into the hands of people with no qualification other than their party allegience. What Czechloslovakia desparately needs now is intelligence."...

We are in the midst of change for sure...

[mhatrw]

26. Exactly. The whores of Babble-on are not about to air their own

dirty laundry.

[Tristan]

27. I agree

I agree completely, I actually listen to Shawn Hannity (spelling?) on the way home from work, just to see how things are being spun...The audacity these radio shows, and news shows have is simply out of this world. To spin non-truths to the American public should be considered a crime it really should be...Everyone has their right to free speech, etc but to tell americans lies and spin their own truths is just wrong to me... Its un-patriotic NOT to get the real truth, we all need to believe in a country run by the people, not by fat cats in washington, and not spun by the media. It erks me to all ends that people just believe what their spoon fed, it really does.

Lets all hope for a change soon.