Submitted by Bob Burton on
In a plea bargain, the first Guantanamo Bay prisoner convicted on terrorism charges by the U.S. government's military commission, David Hicks, agreed to a 12 month ban on speaking to the media. After five years at Guantanamo Bay, Hicks will serve a further nine months in a prison in his home state of South Australia. The gag condition -- which would be illegal for a U.S.
Submitted by John Stauber on
Alternet's Don Hazen interviews the founders of MoveOn. He writes, "For the first time ... members of Congress -- at least the new Democratic majority, along with a handful of Republicans -- finally caught up with the population" and "confronted Bush over the financing of the war and a real timeline for ending it. ... The ability to win this first victory was difficult and complex. It was achieved in part with the energetic and savvy support of millions of progressives and particularly MoveOn.org ...
Submitted by John Stauber on
It was Sarah Olson's reporting on military opposition to the war in Iraq that made her a target of an Army subpoena. That hasn't deterred her from continuing to report on the subject.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
"Hailed as a major success of five years of democracy-building, media freedom in Afghanistan is under increasing pressures," writes Alisa Tang. A spokesperson for the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said, "We've moved from an open media environment to a state-controlled media environment." A proposed law would increase government power over media outlets and make reporting "humiliating and offensive" news a criminal offense.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
"Israel's official MySpace page was launched in January under the direction of officials from the Foreign Ministry," reports Gregory Levey.
Submitted by Bob Burton on
In early March, George W. Bush announced the creation of the President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors as a way of ending controversy over substandard treatment of injured U.S. personnel at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
A bill calling for the 2008 withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraq is now one step closer to reaching President Bush’s desk.
On Tuesday, the Senate rejected a Republican-backed amendment to strip a timeline for withdrawal from a $122 billion supplemental spending bill, 48-50. Democrats were joined in opposing the amendment by two Republicans, Sens. Chuck Hagel (Neb.) and Gordon Smith (Ore.). One Democrat, Sen. Mark Pryor (Ark.), sided with the remaining Republicans and independent Sen. Joe Lieberman (Conn.) in supporting the amendment. Hagel and Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), both of whom supported keeping the withdrawal timeline in the spending bill, had just two weeks ago opposed a separate Senate resolution calling for an identical timetable.
Submitted by John Stauber on
Farhad Manjoo of Salon.com examines MoveOn's new role as power-broker for the Democratic Party. "MoveOn, which began with an e-mail petition opposing President Clinton's impeachment in 1998, has grown into one of the biggest and best-known netroots groups on the left. ...
With the Iraq War now in its fifth year, both the House and Senate are (for the first time) poised to consider supplemental appropriations bills which would call on President Bush to remove U.S. combat troops from the country by 2008. In the House, a vote is expected soon on a $124 billion spending bill which includes a binding provision demanding withdraw by September 2008.
(NOTE: See an update on this issue at: https://www.prwatch.org/node/6081 )
On Sunday, March 18, Sheldon Rampton and I wrote "Iraq: Why Won't MoveOn Move Forward?", an article now widely circulated online. It has helped to focus debate on whether the Democratic Party is really attempting to end the war in Iraq, or is content to simply manage the war for supposed electoral advantage in 2008.
Center for Media and Democracy (CMD)
520 University Ave, Ste 305 • Madison, WI 53703 • (608) 260-9713
CMD is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit.
© 1993-2024