Bush-war and thought control

Wed, 7 Nov 2001 18:27:08 -0500

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Why Roger, you make it sound as thought Randolph Hearst was alive and
kicking...fuming...fulminating...whatever.

So...does that make WTC this Century's version of the USS Maine?  asked
Wayne rhetorically.

W.
  -----Original Message-----
  From: austin-ghetto-list-admin@pairlist.net
[mailto:austin-ghetto-list-admin@pairlist.net]On Behalf Of Roger Baker
  Sent: Wednesday, November 07, 2001 5:22 PM
  To: austin-ghetto-list@pairlist.net
  Subject: Bush-war and thought control

  I don't have the link for that below but it tells the tale. Now that all
the American media
  is concentrated within the control of a handful of corporate media giants,
their
  role is to fan the flames of war and hysteria and terror enough so that
that the
  public will accept any degree of political repression and corporate
giveaways
  in the name of security.

  Bush is trying to terrorize the public by claiming that bin laden is on
the verge of
  getting nuclear weapons, and trying to prop up rapidly declining world
support for
  what really amounts to genocide against millions of starving people in
Afghanistan.
  Eliminating bin Laden will not solve the problem, nor will carpet bombing
the Taliban,
  which obviously has much deeper popular support in both Afghanistan and
Pakistan
  than we had anticipated.

  The way Bush is conducting the war is turning it into a religious war
between
  our world corporate empire versus all the poor of the world who reject
  "modernism" , meaning the CIA coming in to prop up monarchies like the
  Saudi kleptocracy and the Shah who then turn over their country to US
business
  interests for ten cents on the dollar.

  Once again, if anyone has ANY DOUBT that the war against Afghanistan was
  planned well in advance by the USA last summer to begin in October, they
need
  go no farther than the following foreign media links, which would be
nearly
  impossible to counterfeit:

http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/jir/jir010315_1_n.
shtml

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/south_asia/newsid_1550000/1550366.stm
  http://www.indiareacts.com/archivefeatures/nat2.asp?recno=10&mp;ctg=policy

  If Bush is attempting to cover up the true roots of this war, what else is
he covering up?
  Corporate mind control is not yet complete domestically if you read things
like the
  New York Times, but Bush is clearly trying to stamp out free thought with
help from
  the united corporate media and create enough fear to support political
repression.

  The free press in the rest of the world and the Internet are becoming the
only reliable
  ways we can depend upon to know the truth.

  Peace, Roger

  ****************************************************************

  CNN Chief Orders 'Balance' in War News; Reporters Are Told
  To Remind Viewers Why U.S. Is Bombing

  Howard Kurtz, Washington Post Staff Writer

  The Washington Post
  October 31, 2001

  The chairman of CNN has ordered his staff to balance images of
  civilian devastation in Afghan cities with reminders that the
  Taliban harbors murderous terrorists, saying it "seems perverse to
  focus too much on the casualties or hardship in Afghanistan."

  In a memo to his international correspondents, Walter Isaacson said:
  "As we get good reports from Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, we must
  redouble our efforts to make sure we do not seem to be simply
  reporting from their vantage or perspective. We must talk about how
  the Taliban are using civilian shields and how the Taliban have
  harbored the terrorists responsible for killing close to 5,000
  innocent people."

  As more errant U.S. bombs have landed in residential areas, causing
  damage to such places as a Red Cross warehouse and senior citizens'
  center, the resulting television images have fueled criticism of the
  American war effort. This has sparked a growing debate, which began
  with the Osama bin Laden videotape, about how the media should
  handle stage-managed pictures from Afghanistan. "I want to make sure
  we're not used as a propaganda platform," Isaacson said in an
  interview yesterday.

  "We're entering a period in which there's a lot more reporting and
  video from Taliban-controlled Afghanistan," he said. "You want to
  make sure people understand that when they see civilian suffering
  there, it's in the context of a terrorist attack that caused
  enormous suffering in the United States."

  While some CNN correspondents are concerned about having a
  "pro-America" stamp on their reports, all the networks are clearly
  sensitive to charges that they are playing into enemy hands. After
  national security adviser Condoleezza Rice asked the network news
  chiefs not to show bin Laden videotapes live and unedited, MSNBC and
  Fox News did not air the next one and CNN showed only brief
  excerpts.

  Jim Murphy, executive producer of the "CBS Evening News," said of
  the CNN instructions: "I wouldn't order anybody to do anything like
  that. Our reporters are smart enough to know it always has to be put
  in context."

  Murphy said he doesn't believe "the danger is extremely high that
  showing what we know, and covering what the other side purports, is
  really going to change the mood of the nation. We know a terrible
  thing happened, it will take time to deal with and mistakes will be
  made along the way. That's war."

  NBC News Vice President Bill Wheatley took a similar tack, saying:
  "I'd give the American public more credit, frankly. I'm not sure it
  makes sense to say every single time you see any pictures from
  Afghanistan, 'This is as a result of September 11th.' No one's made
  any secret of that."

  But Fox News Vice President John Moody said the CNN directive is
  "not at all a bad thing" because "Americans need to remember what
  started this. . . . I think people need a certain amount of context
  or they obsess on the last 15 minutes of history. A lot of Americans
  did die."

  To be sure, the cable networks, with their American-flag logos,
  carry hours of speeches and briefings each day by President Bush,
  Donald Rumsfeld, Tom Ridge, Ari Fleischer and other administration
  figures. Few viewers complain about this coverage being one-sided.

  Taliban leaders are courting world sympathy, especially in the
  Islamic world, by playing up the bomb damage, even as Pentagon
  officials dismiss Afghan claims of 1,000 civilian casualties as
  wildly exaggerated. And the issue is hardly a new one. CNN took
  considerable criticism during the Persian Gulf War over
  correspondent Peter Arnett's reports of damage from Baghdad.

  Isaacson's memo said the network, in covering Afghan casualties,
  should not "forget it is that country's leaders who are responsible
  for the situation Afghanistan is now in."

  Said Tom Rosenstiel of the Project for Excellence in Journalism: "It
  sounds as though they're worried about people being mad at them more
  than about providing the information that is useful."

  But Rosenstiel said the networks face a real dilemma, which is "how
  do you communicate information that some in your audience might
  perceive as sympathetic to the enemy? . . . If people get so mad at
  you that they tune you out, you're also failing."

  In a second memo, Rick Davis, CNN's head of standards and practices,
  said it "may be hard for the correspondent in these dangerous areas
  to make the points clearly," so he suggested language for the
  anchors:

  " 'We must keep in mind, after seeing reports like this from
  Taliban-controlled areas, that these U.S. military actions are in
  response to a terrorist attack that killed close to 5,000 innocent
  people in the U.S.' or, 'We must keep in mind, after seeing reports
  like this, that the Taliban regime in Afghanistan continues to
  harbor terrorists who have praised the September 11 attacks that
  killed close to 5,000 innocent people in the U.S.,' or 'The Pentagon
  has repeatedly stressed that it is trying to minimize civilian
  casualties in Afghanistan, even as the Taliban regime continues to
  harbor terrorists who are connected to the September 11 attacks that
  claimed thousands of innocent lives in the U.S.' . . .

  "Even though it may start sounding rote, it is important that we
  make this point each time."

  But aren't viewers who don't live in caves well aware of the Sept.
  11 backdrop?

  "People do already know it," Isaacson said yesterday. "We go to
  Ground Zero all the time. We cover the memorial services. We cover
  people's lives that have been touched. I just want to make sure we
  keep a sense of balance."

  Howard Kurtz hosts CNN's weekly media program.

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<DIV>Why Roger, you make it sound as thought Randolph Hearst was =
alive and=20
kicking...fuming...fulminating...whatever.&nbsp; </DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV>So...does that make WTC this Century's version of the USS =
Maine?&nbsp;=20
asked Wayne rhetorically.</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV>W.</DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
 <DIV class=3DOutlookMessageHeader dir=3Dltr align=3Dleft>-----Original Message----- From:=20
 austin-ghetto-list-admin@pairlist.net=20
 [mailto:austin-ghetto-list-admin@pairlist.net]On Behalf Of =
Roger=20
 Baker Sent: Wednesday, November 07, 2001 5:22 =
PM To:=20
 austin-ghetto-list@pairlist.net Subject: Bush-war and =
thought=20
 control </DIV>I don't have the link for that below but =
it tells=20
 the tale. Now that all the American media is concentrated within =
the=20
 control of a handful of corporate media giants, their role is to =
fan the=20
 flames of war and hysteria and terror enough so that that the =
 public will=20
 accept any degree of political repression and corporate =
giveaways in the=20
 name of security. Bush is trying to terrorize the public by =
claiming=20
 that bin laden is on the verge of getting nuclear weapons, and =
trying to=20
 prop up rapidly declining world support for what really amounts to =

genocide against millions of starving people in Afghanistan. =
 Eliminating=20
 bin Laden will not solve the problem, nor will carpet bombing the =
Taliban,=20
 which obviously has much deeper popular support in both =
Afghanistan and=20
 Pakistan than we had anticipated. The way Bush is =
conducting the=20
 war is turning it into a religious war between our world corporate =
empire=20
 versus all the poor of the world who reject "modernism" , meaning =
the CIA=20
 coming in to prop up monarchies like the Saudi kleptocracy and the =
Shah=20
 who then turn over their country to US business interests for ten =
cents on=20
 the dollar. Once again, if anyone has ANY DOUBT that =
the war=20
 against Afghanistan was planned well in advance by the USA last =
summer to=20
 begin in October, they need go no farther than the following =
foreign media=20
 links, which would be nearly impossible to =
counterfeit: <?fontfamily><?param Geneva><?color><?param =
1A1A,1A1A,FFFF>http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/=
jir/jir010315_1_n.shtml<?/color><?/fontfamily><?fontfamily><?param =
Geneva> <?color><?param =
1A1A,1A1A,FFFF>http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/south_asia/newsid_1=
550000/1550366.stm<?/color>=20
 <?color><?param =
1A1A,1A1A,FFFF>http://www.indiareacts.com/archivefeatures/nat2.asp?recno=3D=
10&amp;mp;ctg=3Dpolicy<?/color> <?/fontfamily> If=20
 Bush is attempting to cover up the true roots of this war, what else =
is he=20
 covering up? Corporate mind control is not yet complete =
domestically if you=20
 read things like the New York Times, but Bush is clearly trying to =
stamp=20
 out free thought with help from the united corporate media and =
create=20
 enough fear to support political repression. The free press in =
the rest=20
 of the world and the Internet are becoming the only reliable ways =
we can=20
 depend upon to know the truth. Peace,=20
 =
Roger ************************************************************=
**** CNN=20
 Chief Orders 'Balance' in War News; Reporters Are Told To Remind =
Viewers=20
 Why U.S. Is Bombing Howard Kurtz, Washington Post Staff=20
 Writer The Washington Post October 31, 2001 The =
chairman of=20
 CNN has ordered his staff to balance images of civilian devastation =
in=20
 Afghan cities with reminders that the Taliban harbors murderous =
terrorists,=20
 saying it "seems perverse to focus too much on the casualties or =
hardship=20
 in Afghanistan." In a memo to his international correspondents, =
Walter=20
 Isaacson said: "As we get good reports from Taliban-controlled =
Afghanistan,=20
 we must redouble our efforts to make sure we do not seem to be=20
 simply reporting from their vantage or perspective. We must talk =
about=20
 how the Taliban are using civilian shields and how the Taliban=20
 have harbored the terrorists responsible for killing close to=20
 5,000 innocent people." As more errant U.S. bombs have =
landed in=20
 residential areas, causing damage to such places as a Red Cross =
warehouse=20
 and senior citizens' center, the resulting television images have =
fueled=20
 criticism of the American war effort. This has sparked a growing =
debate,=20
 which began with the Osama bin Laden videotape, about how the media =

should handle stage-managed pictures from Afghanistan. "I want to =
make=20
 sure we're not used as a propaganda platform," Isaacson said in=20
 an interview yesterday. "We're entering a period in which =
there's a=20
 lot more reporting and video from Taliban-controlled Afghanistan," =
he said.=20
 "You want to make sure people understand that when they see =
civilian=20
 suffering there, it's in the context of a terrorist attack that=20
 caused enormous suffering in the United States." While some =
CNN=20
 correspondents are concerned about having a "pro-America" stamp on =
their=20
 reports, all the networks are clearly sensitive to charges that =
they are=20
 playing into enemy hands. After national security adviser =
Condoleezza Rice=20
 asked the network news chiefs not to show bin Laden videotapes live =
and=20
 unedited, MSNBC and Fox News did not air the next one and CNN =
showed only=20
 brief excerpts. Jim Murphy, executive producer of the "CBS =
Evening=20
 News," said of the CNN instructions: "I wouldn't order anybody to =
do=20
 anything like that. Our reporters are smart enough to know it =
always has to=20
 be put in context." Murphy said he doesn't believe "the =
danger is=20
 extremely high that showing what we know, and covering what the =
other side=20
 purports, is really going to change the mood of the nation. We know =
a=20
 terrible thing happened, it will take time to deal with and =
mistakes will=20
 be made along the way. That's war." NBC News Vice President =
Bill=20
 Wheatley took a similar tack, saying: "I'd give the American public =
more=20
 credit, frankly. I'm not sure it makes sense to say every single =
time you=20
 see any pictures from Afghanistan, 'This is as a result of =
September 11th.'=20
 No one's made any secret of that." But Fox News Vice =
President John=20
 Moody said the CNN directive is "not at all a bad thing" because =
"Americans=20
 need to remember what started this. . . . I think people need a =
certain=20
 amount of context or they obsess on the last 15 minutes of history. =
A lot=20
 of Americans did die." To be sure, the cable networks, with =
their=20
 American-flag logos, carry hours of speeches and briefings each day =
by=20
 President Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, Tom Ridge, Ari Fleischer and other =

administration figures. Few viewers complain about this coverage =
being=20
 one-sided. Taliban leaders are courting world sympathy, =
especially in=20
 the Islamic world, by playing up the bomb damage, even as=20
 Pentagon officials dismiss Afghan claims of 1,000 civilian =
casualties=20
 as wildly exaggerated. And the issue is hardly a new one. CNN=20
 took considerable criticism during the Persian Gulf War=20
 over correspondent Peter Arnett's reports of damage from=20
 Baghdad. Isaacson's memo said the network, in covering Afghan=20
 casualties, should not "forget it is that country's leaders who are =

responsible for the situation Afghanistan is now in." Said =
Tom=20
 Rosenstiel of the Project for Excellence in Journalism: "It sounds =
as=20
 though they're worried about people being mad at them more than =
about=20
 providing the information that is useful." But Rosenstiel said =
the=20
 networks face a real dilemma, which is "how do you communicate =
information=20
 that some in your audience might perceive as sympathetic to the =
enemy? . .=20
 . If people get so mad at you that they tune you out, you're also=20
 failing." In a second memo, Rick Davis, CNN's head of standards =
and=20
 practices, said it "may be hard for the correspondent in these =
dangerous=20
 areas to make the points clearly," so he suggested language for=20
 the anchors: " 'We must keep in mind, after seeing reports =
like this=20
 from Taliban-controlled areas, that these U.S. military actions are =

  in<BR>response to a terrorist attack that killed close to 5,000=20
  innocent<BR>people in the U.S.' or, 'We must keep in mind, after =
seeing=20
  reports<BR>like this, that the Taliban regime in Afghanistan continues =

to harbor terrorists who have praised the September 11 attacks=20
 that killed close to 5,000 innocent people in the U.S.,' or 'The=20
 Pentagon has repeatedly stressed that it is trying to minimize=20
 civilian casualties in Afghanistan, even as the Taliban regime =
continues=20
 to harbor terrorists who are connected to the September 11 attacks=20
 that claimed thousands of innocent lives in the U.S.' . . =
. "Even=20
 though it may start sounding rote, it is important that we make =
this point=20
 each time." But aren't viewers who don't live in caves well =
aware of=20
 the Sept. 11 backdrop? "People do already know it," Isaacson =
said=20
 yesterday. "We go to Ground Zero all the time. We cover the =
memorial=20
 services. We cover people's lives that have been touched. I just =
want to=20
 make sure we keep a sense of balance." Howard Kurtz hosts =
CNN's=20
 weekly media program. </BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>

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