U.S. Government

Time To Pay for Payola Pundit Armstrong Williams

Perhaps, in the case of Armstrong Williams, the third time will be the charm.

Armstrong WilliamsThe first two official investigations failed to hold anyone accountable for what can only be described as a textbook case of government propaganda. The results of the third investigation, by the Federal Communications Commission, were announced recently (PDF file). The FCC found Williams and two media companies to be at fault, issuing a citation against Williams and proposing fines of $40,000 against Sonshine Family Television and $36,000 against Sinclair Broadcast Group.

Bush, Congress, Iraq Still Unpopular

George W. Bush's job approval ratingsTwo new opinion polls show deepening public dissatisfaction with U.S. politicians. According to a Reuters/Zogby poll, "The number of Americans who believe the country is on the wrong track jumped four points to 66 percent. Bush's job approval rating fell to 24 percent from last month's record low for a Zogby poll of 29 percent.

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Retail Research Is Hurting Science

Cartoon doctor"The biggest threat to science," writes Jennifer Washburn, is "the decline of government support ... and the growing dominance of private spending over American research." In 1965, the U.S. government funded more than 60 percent of research, while in 2006, 65 percent of research was privately funded.

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U.S. Does Democracy Demotion in Iran

"The United States has begun a $75-million program to promote democracy by supporting Iranian NGO's [non-governmental organizations]," write Haleh Esfandiari and Robert Litwak. "That program, coupled with loose talk about regime change ...

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New Participatory Project: Nuclear Companies Head for the Trough

Nuclear Energy Institute coasterWith billions of dollars in subsides on offer from the U.S. government, some utilities are lining up to submit applications with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for new nuclear power plants. As a first step to helping citizens and journalists track what's happening we will be building a page listing what is known about the new nuclear power station proposals.

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Employee of the Month, Even Before He Started

"Three months prior to the announcement that Nuclear Regulatory Commissioner Jeffery S. Merrifield would be joining the Shaw Group Inc. as Vice President of its Power Group, Mr. Merrifield vigorously championed several major policy initiatives that directly benefited his future employer," states the watchdog group Project on Governmental Oversight (POGO) in a press release.

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