Pro-Military Eye for the Russian Guy
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
To boost "the feeling of national pride among its citizens," the Russian Defense Ministry is launching Zvezda ("Star"), a new television channel.
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Media
The Sleuths of Spin
Submitted by John Stauber on
Bill Berkowitz writes that the Center for Media and Democracy's "sleuths of spin John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton have exposed how corporate shills and government spokespersons manipulate the media and undermine democracy for more than a decade," and are now "setting about an ambitious - yet necessary - undertaking: reinventing journalism." Berkowitz interviews Center founder Stauber about recent media scandals involving
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Seeking Disclosure
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
Comptroller general and Government Accountability Office chief David Walker warned federal agencies that, while they "have the right to disseminate information about their policies and activities, agencies may not use appropriated [public] funds to produce or distribute prepackaged news stories intended to be viewed by television audiences that conceal or do not clearly identify ...
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Think Glocally, Act Vocally
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Journalist Doug McGill has a new weblog called "Glocal Man," reflecting the "idea of glocal or worldplace news ... that every place on earth is connected by strands of mutual influence, interdependence, and direct causality." McGill writes in a manifesto style essay. "Because the geographical distances are so great, say between Rochester, MN and Brooklyn, NY and Warsaw, Poland, it's often easy not to see those connections.
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"Jeff Gannon's" Incredible Access
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
"James Guckert's mysterious career as a White House correspondent for Talon News just took another strange twist," writes Eric Boehlert. "And once again, the newest revelation raises the central question: Who broke the rules on Guckert's behalf to give him access to the White House?
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The Wolves Arrive in Sheepskins
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
"One of the most striking developments to come out of the three payola flaps involving conservative pundits that have surfaced recently," writes Brian Montopoli, "has been just how surprised the participants seem to be at the uproar that has greeted the exposure of their actions. ...
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Potemkin Town Hall Meetings
Submitted by Laura Miller on
George W. Bush has been traveling throughout the United States to promote his plan to privatize Social Security. Recent "Team Bush" events have been called "conversations," "forums" and "town hall meetings." But these gatherings are hardly public and far from spontanious.
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Rise of the Media Machine
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
Arnold Schwarzenegger's "current California media tour to promote his plans for reforming state government looks like a resounding success - if only because the California media, rather than turning up the heat, often ends up in marshmallow mode with the state's famous governor." While some ask about his "proposed merit pay for teachers, the state's budget deficit, nursing reform and pensio
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Leading with Bleeding (Don't Mind the Elections)
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
A study analyzing 4,000 local newscasts in 11 major markets found that, "in the month leading up to last year's presidential election, local television stations in big cities devoted eight times as much air time to car crashes and other accidents than to campaigns for the House of Representatives, state senate, city hall and other local offices." Eight percent of news shows reported on local races, while more than half
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The PR Plan Behind Big Tobacco's Big Victory
The tobacco industry won a big victory Friday when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled in its favor, against the U.S. Justice Department. The court's ruling means that the Justice Department cannot force the industry to disgorge $280 billion in past profits, even if it wins its fraud and racketeering case against the cigarette makers.
Little media attention has been paid to this important decision in a landmark case concerning a major public health threat. The near-invisible nature of the ongoing federal trial to determine whether Big Tobacco engaged in a conspiracy of fraud and deceit may represent another aspect of that very conspiracy - the successful efforts of tobacco industry PR to influence journalists. Internal tobacco industry documents shed light on the largely hidden phenomena of corporate tobacco lobbyists courting favor with editorial boards.
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