The more time I spend before the bank of TV's at the YMCA, the lower my opinion of cable news. Anna Nicole, the making of Deal or No Deal, Anna Nicole, Disney allowing gay couples to wed, speculation about who fathered Anna Nicole's child, and a fireman in a bikini and wig are, apparently, the really important stories of our time.
Meanwhile, you can actually read about real stories that have been effectively censored by the main stream media at Project Censored. (I might quibble with their use of the term "censored." "Studiously ignored" might be a more correct term, but I don't blame them for using the more inflammatory word.)
What kinds of stories have our august "news" providers decided are less important than the question of who inseminated Anna Nicole? Among the 25 "censored" stories are these amazing tidbits:
* Halliburton has been charged with selling nuclear technology to Iran
* Homeland Security has awarded a contract to KBR (a subsidiary of Halliburton) to build detention centers on US soil
* Cheney's Halliburton stock rose over 3000 percent in 2004, soaring from about $240,000 to more than $8 million in the same year that Halliburton was awarded more than $10 billion in contracts from the Bush-Cheney administration.
These are just three of the stories that, in the estimation of the folks at Project Censored, have been inexplicably ignored. Do your bit - broadcast at least one of the 25 headlines on your blog. Why should the news we consume be defined by a handful of big companies intent on subordinating news to titillation? This your chance to shame the mainstream media into doing its job.
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Folks who've posted or opined on at least one Project Censored Story:
ThomasLB at Living Next Door to Alice
CCE at MadMarriage
6 comments:
I did my bit.
I searched for references to the alleged sale by Halliburton of centrifuges to Iran. The first one to come up was Al Jazeera!
If it could be "proven" that Halliburton sold centrifuges to Iran that were suitable for purifying nuclear material, I believe it would be front page news in every newspaper.
However, there don't seem to be any documents, witnesses, or charges. Who knows more about this?
Thomas - way cool. Thanks!
LH - I entered the entire title and got what looked like synopses or mirror sites of the Project Censored site. No obviously corrobating sources. Good question about how accurate it actually is. Even if it is only rumored, though, you'd think it might deserve some press coverage (anyone remember swift boats?).
Project Censored lists GlobalResearch.ca as their source, and I believe THIS is the specific article. It's all going to come down to whether you trust the journalist who wrote it- his sources are anonymous.
There were a couple of stories on the list that I thought were kind of suspect. The one I had a problem with was the 9/11 conspiracy story.
There are some very well sourced stories on the list, too. Overall, I think the list was worth publishing. But I do wish they had pared it down to a well-researched Top Ten.
I've done my bit too...can't say I talked Halliburton or genocide in Africa but the Round Up thang really has me thinking.
Thomas,
You've probably seen the news reality show posting response to your point.
cce,
thanks for helping to lead the charge. I'm pretty sure that between you, me, and thomas, we're going to rock the main stream media. I'm sure that it's no coincidence that Imus is gone just one week after our postings. One down and only 1,200 to go. I feel powerful.
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