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Today's
Stories
August
16, 2005
Alexander
Cockburn
A Short History of Meat: Part One,
Peter's Dream
August
15, 2005
Greg
Moses
Pilgrims of Protest in Crawford
Paul
Craig Roberts
Slouching Toward Armageddon?
Mike
Whitney
Failing in Iraq
Robert
Jensen
The Challenges We Face
CounterPunch
Wire
Judge Fines Voices in the Wilderness
$20,000 for Taking Medicine to Iraq; Voices Refuses to Pay
Norman
Solomon
Someone Tell Frank Rich the War Isn't Over
Kathleen
Christison
Camp David Redux: Anatomy of a
Frame-Up
August
13 / 14, 2005
Cockburn
/ St. Clair
When Down is Up: the "Stricken"
President
William
Blum
The al-Dubya Training Manual
Gary
Leupp
High Tide for the Neocons?
Jack
Z. Bratich
Secreting the News: Anonymous vs. Confidential Sources
Brian
Cloughley
The Ridiculous Rice
Ron
Jacobs
Klan Justice: Mississippi is Still Burning
John
Farley
"Beyond Chutzpah" Too Hot for Harvard Bookstore?
Dave
Lindorff
Making the World Safer...for Nukes
Tim
Wise
Animal Whites: PETA and the Politics of Putting Things in Perspective
J.L.
Chestnut, Jr.
There's Not One Real Liberal or Conservative in the Senate
John
Gershman
The Bolton Opportunity
Felice
Pace
Saving Northwest Forests: Time for a Fresh Look
Fred
Gardner
Feds Takeover Prosecution of Dustin Costa
David
Krieger
The Fable of the Emperor and the Grieving Mother
Roxanne
Dunbar-Ortiz
Being a Protestant Fundamentalist
Ben
Tripp
GWAT: a Tone Poem
Poets'
Basement
Reiss, Nettnin, Engel and Louise
August
12, 2005
Christopher
Brauchli
Courting God: Justice Sunday II
Greg
Moses
A Crawford Peace House Morning with
Cindy Sheehan
Ramzy
Baroud
Israel's Nuclear Puzzle
Norman
Solomon
Cindy Sheehan's Message: Repudiating Bush and Dean
Chris
Genovali
Why is a Canadian Politician Trying to End Protections for US
Grizzly Bears?
Chris
Floyd
Cheney and Halliburton, the Stench Gets Worse
Tariq
Ali
Blair's New Authoritarianism
August
11, 2005
Saul
Landau
Globalization and Its Discontents
Dave
Lindorff
Privatization will Harm Same Sex
Couples
Ralph
Nader
Dear Cindy Sheehan: May You Prevail
Where Others Have Failed
Talli
Nauman
Radioactive Border: the Hot Mounds of Samalayuca
Gary
Leupp
Politics of an Outing: Plame, Ledeen and Iran
Sharon
Smith
The New Anti-War Majority
Paul
Craig Roberts
Why is Cheney Lobbying for a Boost
in China's Nuclear Capability?
August
10, 2005
Tim
Wise
Indian Mascots and White Rage
Ron
Jacobs
Rumsfeld's Delusions
Joshua
Frank
Dean and the PDA: Don't Believe the Hype
Cynthia
McKinney
The 9/11 Op-Ed the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Refuses to Run
Rick
Wilhelm
Peter Jennings, Excuse Maker for War and Empire
Stan
Goff
Homegrown Resistance
August
9, 2005
Mike
Ferner
What One Mom has to Say to Bush:
Cindy Sheehan in Dallas
Monica
Benderman
Is Being a Conscientious Objector
Now Criminal?
Mike
Marqusee
Making Excuses for Killing De
Menezes
Rep.
Cynthia McKinney
Strange Fruit and Tree-Shakers
Paul
Craig Roberts
Watching the US Economy Crumble
August
6-8, 2005
Alexander
Cockburn
How the British Destroyed India
Jason
Leopold
Halliburton and Iran: Still Doing
Business After All These Years?
Ray
McGovern
Iran, Truth-Tellers and the Devotees
of Preemption
David
Krieger
From Hiroshima to Humanity
Sharon
K. Weiner / Robert Jensen
From Hiroshima to Iraq and Back
Fred
Gardner
The Budtender's View of a Rip-Off
August
5, 2005
Bill
Christison
New NIE Report on Iran's Nukes
will Not Deter US's Posture of Extreme Aggressiveness
Paul
Craig Roberts
Kelo: a Supreme Assault on Personal
Liberty
Alexander
Cockburn
The Taj Mahal as Kitsch; the
Editor and the Water-Walking Guru
August
4, 2005
Tom
Barry
Inside Bush's "World Democracy
Movement"
Lila
Rajiva
John Bolton's New Internationalism
Greg
Moses
Bush Teaches Intelligent Design
in Prison
Alexander
Cockburn
Indian Journal: Why Indian Farmers
Kill Themselves
August
3, 2005
August
3, 2005
Alexander
Cockburn
Broken Arrows and Iran: a B-52 Pilot
Remembers
Paul
Craig Roberts
The Kelo Calamity: Money, Power and
Eminent Domaine
William
A. Cook
Innocent Victims: From Hiroshima to Lower Manhattan
Dave
Zirin
Bush's Texas Rangers: a Crackhouse for Juiced Players?
Dave
Lindorff
Court Packing and Worker Rights
José
Pertierra
Why Hamdi Isaac Yes and Posada
Carriles No?
August
2, 2005
Ramzi
Kysia
Disengagement and Diaspora: High Walls
and Razor Wire in the Hebron
William
A. Cook
Words Without Meaning: Torturing Bodies
and Language
Paul
Craig Roberts
When Armageddon Gets No Press
Mike
Whitney
Chertoff's Preemptive Crackdown: 600 Arrests, Only 76 Charged
Ron
Jacobs
Be a Hero: Demand That Johnny Come
Home
Norman
Madarsz
Before the Stun Gun: Jean Charles de Menezes, RIP
Tim
Wise
The Faulty Logic of "Terrorist"
Profiling
August
1, 2005
Virginia
Rodino
Why Bono and Geldof Got It Wrong:
War and Global Poverty are Linked
Diana
Barahona
Return to Venezuela: Land Reform
and Neighborhood Doctors
Joshua
Frank
Gitmo's Kangaroo Courts: First Torture Them, Then Rig Their Trials
Mike
Whitney
The Consolidation of Powers: Rubber Stamp Roberts
Norm
Dixon
The Worst Terror Attacks in History
Norman
Solomon
Operation Withdrawal Scam
James
Petras
The Corruption of Lula's Regime
July
30 / 31, 2005
Alexander
Cockburn
Lost Nuclear Warheads Now in Iran?
JoAnn
Wypijewski
Scenes and Silver Linings from Labor's
Crack-Up: a Special Report from Chicago
Sheldon
Rampton
War is Fun as Hell: the Video Games
Recruiters Play
Jack
Z. Bratich
Fingerprints of Power: a Summer of Double Super Secrecy
Greg
Moses
How to Cool Your Heels in Texas When It's Late July Across the
World
Jordan
Green
From Woolworth to Wal-Mart: Economics and the Race Divide in
a Southern City
Patrick
Cockburn
Getting Out of Iraq: 5,000 US Troops Have Gone AWOL
Brian
Cloughley
The Bush-Cheney Fixation on Iran
Justin
Taylor
Harry Potter and the War on Terror
Saul
Landau
Enhancements for the Imperial Life: Fashionism Takes Command!
John
Walsh
Dems Field Another Pro-War Candidate: Meet Hack the Hawk
Joshua
Frank
Color-Coded Justice: John Roberts's Racial Hang Up
Ron
Jacobs
Who Needs Feminism? We Have Condi Rice!
Fred
Gardner
The Ethan and Gavin Show
John
Chuckman
Friedman on Terrorism: the Dumbest Story Ever Written
Liaquat
Ali Khan
Lessons City Bombers Need to Learn from Newton and Donne
Remi
Kanazi
Annexing Justice in Palestine
Naveen
Jaganathan
The Gurgaon Riots Rock India
Richard
Heinberg
Where is the Hirsch Peak Oil Report?
Max
Watts
Francis Ona, the Napoleon of Mekamui
Ben
Tripp
Write Your Own Editorial!
Poets'
Basement
Whalen & Engel, Landau, Albert and Krieger
July
29, 2005
Cockburn
/ St. Clair
Who's the Real Martyr? Judy Miller or Jim DeFede?
P.
Sainath
The Class War in Gurgaon
Niranjan
Ramakrishnan
How the West Was Lost: CAFTA
and the Disassembling of America
Dave
Lindorff
Marvelous Marvin Bush
J.L.
Chestnut, Jr.
America's Racist Inventory: Oppression
Breeds Violence
Pat
Williams
Giving Away the Last Best Place
Norman
Solomon
In Praise of Kevin Benderman: a Moral
Leader of the Nation Goes to Prison
Sen.
Russ Feingold
The Bad News About the Energy Bill
July
28, 2005
Paul
Craig Roberts
Departing Iraq
William
S. Lind
The Duke of Alba and George W. Bush
Gilad
Atzmon
Blair the Camera Man
Joshua
Frank
Passing CAFTA: Blame the Democrats
Lila
Rajiva
Vision Mumbai Submerged
Amina
Mire
Pigmentation and Empire: the Emerging
Skin-Whitening Industry
Website
of the Day
Gateway to Underground News
July
27, 2005
Roger
Morris
The Source Beyond Rove: Condoleezza
Rice at the Center of the Plame Scandal
Gary
Leupp
Is Iran Being Set Up?
Paul
Craig Roberts
US Falling Behind Across the Board
Jackie
Corr
Class War on the Ruby River: the Billionaire with His Foot in
His Mouth
Mike
Whitney
The Coming End of the Housing Bubble
Dave
Zirin
Why Lance Armstrong Must Break with Bush
Christopher
Bradley
Why I Have Trouble Reading the News
Norman
Solomon
Thomas Friedman, Liberal Sadist?
Website
of the Day
Stormin' Norman
July
26, 2005
Suren
Pillay
The Enemy Within: When the "Other"
is One of "Us"
JoAnn
Wypijewski
Fission and Fizzle in Chicago: SEIU and
Teamsters Quit the AFL
Patrick
Cockburn
Iraq: the Unwinnable War
David
Anderson
When the Greatest Outrage is the Lack of Outrage: NYC's Subway
Searches
Joshua
Frank
Hillary Clinton: Outflanking Bush from the Right
Lenni
Brenner
Biography as Wish-Fulfillment: Jefferson, Hitchens and Atheism
David
Swanson
Nuking Native Land
July
25, 2005
Paul
Craig Roberts
China-Mart Takes Over
M.
Shahid Alam
Terrorism: America Defines Its Targets
Uri
Avnery
March of the Orange Shirts
Stan
Cox
Kreationism in Kansas
Norman
Solomon
"Wagging the Puppy"
Ramzy
Baroud
London Bombings: Barbaric, But Not
Unexpected
Mickey
Z.
No Gun Ri: 55 Years Later
Website
of the Day
The Birth of a Hummingbird in 15 Images
July
23 / 24, 2005
Alexander
Cockburn
Islamo-Anarchs or Islamo-Fascists?
Tariq
Ali
The War Comes Home
Robert
Fisk
Something Happened
Dave
Lindorff
Return of the Academic Witch Hunts
Ricardo
Alarcón
Kidnapping in Miami: the UN, the US and the Cuban 5
Col.
Dan Smith
Living in a Twilight Zone: Troop Strength,
Recruitment and the Draft
Brian
Cloughley
The Pentagon's China Hypocrisy
Kevin
Zeese
Growing Republican Opposition to Iraq War
Bill
Quigley
Harrowing Hours in Haiti
Fred
Gardner
The Reverberations of Raich
Rep.
Ron Paul
The Patriot Act is a Threat to Liberty
Joshua
Frank
Framing Abortion: Gonadal Politics and the Democrats
Shivali
Tukdeo
Project Mumbai Makeover: Casualties of Development
Gilad
Atzmon
Blair's "Evil Ideology"
James
Petras
Baghdad: Barbarism and Civilization (a Fiction)
Ben
Tripp
When Being American Was Fun
Poets'
Basement
Krieger, Louise, Buknatski, Albert and Engel
Website
of the Weekend
Remember the West Memphis 3
July
22, 2005
Heather
Gray
Home Grown Axis of Evil: Corp. Agribusiness,
the Occupation of Iraq and the Dred Scott Decision
David
Domke
The American Press and Credibility
Lance
Selfa
Battle of the Insiders: No Heroes in the Plame Leak Scandal
JoAnn
Wypijewski
Is This Really an "Insurgency"
to Shake Up the Labor Movement?
July
21, 2005
Rose
Ann DeMoro
The Top 10 Problems with the "Crisis"
in the Labor Movement
William
Blum
London: Another Casualty in the War on Terror
J.L.
Chestnut, Jr.
Whites Need to Learn Something: Dixie is Everywhere
Christopher
Brauchli
Strange Affairs: Liberals and Alberto
Gonzales
Joshua
Frank
Plame Blame Game: the 5 Ws
Brian
Concannon, Jr.
Haiti's Elections: Time for a Reality Check
Patrick
Cockburn
The True, Terrible State of Iraq
and the Link to London
Website
of the Day
Who Blew Up the Murrah Building?
July
20, 2005
Cockburn
/ St. Clair
Judge Roberts: Business as Usual
Roxanne
Dunbar-Ortiz
Red Christmas
Ray
McGovern
Did Dick Finger Valerie?: the Hand
of Cheney
Chris
Floyd
Judge Dread: John Roberts and the "Enemy
Combatants"
Uri
Avnery
"Silence is Filth"
Dave
Lindorff
Westmoreland's Body Count Goes Up
by One
Norman
Solomon
Gen. Westmoreland's Death Wish
Bill
Quigley
Travels in Haiti with a Wanted Priest
July
19, 2005
Tariq
Ali
An Isolated Regime
John
Ross
Jihad Meets G-8
Davey
D.
More
Clear Channel Censorship: "Don't F--K Around with Tha Police"
Greg
Weiher
Muzzling Saddam: the Old Bait-and-Switch
in Iraqi Jurisprudence
Brian
McKinlay
An "Arse Licker" Goes to Washington: John Howard's
Grand Tour
Norman
Solomon
Nukes for India; Threats for Iran
Dave
Lindorff
Get Back to Where We Once Belonged
Bill
Christison
Bush's Itinerary: First Stop Syria,
Next Stop Iran
Joshua
Frank
Laura's Justice?: Meet Edith Brown
Clement
July
18, 2005
Joshua
Frank
An Interview with Ward Churchill
M.
Shahid Alam
A Muslim Problem: Did Thomas Friedman
Flunk History?
Jude
Wanniski
Memo to Patrick Fitzgerald
Ron
Jacobs
A Weekend to Stop the War
Mike
Whitney
The Straight Line Between Falluja and King's Cross Station
William
MacDougall
From "Bring It On" to "London Can Take It"
Seth
Sandronsky
Temporary Recovery: New Frontiers in Labor Flexibility
Richard
Lichtman
The Consolations of George Lakoff
Paul
Craig Roberts
Can Congressional Republicans End
Bush's Wars?
Website
of the Weekend
Novels of the Neo-Cons
July
15 / 17, 2005
Alexander
Cockburn
Don't You Dare Call It Treason
Jeffrey
St. Clair
Sticky Fingers: the Making of Halliburton
Paul
Craig Roberts
Economic Treason
Harry
Browne
"What They Do to Us, They Will
Do to You": Shell Oil in Mayo, Ireland
Uri
Davis, Ilan Pappe and Tamar Yaron
A Warning from Israel
Andrew
Rubin
End of the Enlightenment: an Open Letter to Stephen Plaut
Patrick
Cockburn
Iraq's Ghost Battalions
J.L.
Chestnut, Jr.
Changes in Selma: Standing Up to Racism in the South
Fred
Gardner
A Professional Bust
Christopher
Brauchli
An Olympic Feat: How to "Double" Aid with No New Money
Chris
Floyd
The Great Iraq Oil Giveaway
Ben
Tripp
The Dark Incontinent
Col.
Dan Smith
General Abizaid, I'm Glad You Asked
Jason
Leopold
What Did Rove Say and When Did He
Say It?
Jack
Random
Miller Time
Norman
Solomon
War and Venture Capitalism
George
Ochenski
Liberate Montana's Rivers: Come One, Come All!
Website
of the Weekend
Vote for CounterPuncher David Vest
July
14, 2005
Jeffrey
St. Clair
Sticky Fingers: the Making of Halliburton
Subcomandante
Marcos
This is What Will Do and How We Shall Do It: the Sixth Declaration
of the Selva Lacandona
Dave
Lindorff
No More Moral Relativism: the US is a Terrorist State
Joshua
Frank
Rove Agency: Liberals and the CIA
Jude
Wanniski
Those 8 Black Pages: What's the Real Story on Karl Rove?
Dave
Zirin
Storming the Castle
Kevin
Zeese
Exit Strategy: Within Reach?
Robert
Jensen
War Myths and the Press
Reza
Fiyouzat
A Worldwide Call to Free Akbar Ganji
Carol
Norris
Governor Paranoid: Schwarzenegger Comes Unhinged
Website
of the Day
Nate Osborn: Heroic Human Rights Activist and CounterPuncher
July
13, 2005
Brian
Cloughley
Cold Blooded Murders in Iraq
George
Galloway
We Can't Separate the London Bombings
from the Political Backdrop
Carlos
Fierro
A Supreme Waste of Time
Sarah
Knopp
Hate on the Border
Norman
Solomon
"Isolated Pockets of Problems": the Fake Optimism of
Washington's Warriors
Mickey
Z.
Water on the Brain
Jim
Minick
The Right Tree in the Right Place
Pat
Williams
American Indian Education for All
Andrew
N. Rubin
Life Behind the Wall: "We are
No Longer Able to See the Sun Set"
Website
of the Day
"London's Burning": the Mikey Mix
July
12, 2005
Laith
al-Saud
Voices of Resistance: an Interview with
Dr. Mohammed al-Obaidi of Iraq's Peoples' Struggle Movement
Kara
N. Tina
"This is How We Do It": Report
from the Gleneagles Battlefield
William
A. Cook
The London Bombings: Why Has It Come to This?
Jack
Bratich
2 Live Cruise: Tom Cruise v. Big Pharma
Amina
Mire
The Problem with Speaking in the Name of Others
Dick
J. Reavis
Lessons from the Christian Jihadists:
the Virtues of Burning Crosses and Colored Smoke
Kevin
Zeese
Depleted Uranium: States Take Action to Protect Their Vets
Paul
Craig Roberts
No-Think Nation
Website
of the Day
Coke Gags Indian Artist
July
9 / 11, 2005
Alexander
Cockburn
After the Bombings
Uri
Avnery
War of the Colors in Israel
Sheldon
Rampton
Blaming Galloway: Rhetoric vs. Reality
in London
Bill
Christison
Hiroshima's 60th Anniversary and Nukes in Iran: an Opportunity
or Just More Hand-wringing from the Peace Movement?
Robert
Fisk
Blair's Alliance with Bush Bombed
Stephen
Winspear
Collateral Damage in London?
Saul
Landau
Mission Accomplished: Iraq is Broken
Behrooz
Ghamari
Thomas Friedman's Muslim Problem
Karl
Beitel
False Promises and Real Debt Relief
Brian
Concannon, Jr.
Throwing Gasoline on Haiti's Fires
Fred
Gardner
Sentencing Season
John
Whitlow
And What Does the Market Say?
Niranjan
Ramakrishnan
The London Blasts: Who's Being Transformed, Them or Us?
Lila
Rajiva
Witches and Bastards
Laura
Carlsen
CAFTA: Deepening the Inequities
Jackie
Corr
Ted Turner and Jiminy Cricket
Dave
Lindorff
"My Brother Went Over There Gung Ho; Now He's Just Bitter"
N.
D. Jayaprakash
Why the CIA Tried to Kill Chou En Lai at the Bandung Conference
Seth
Sandronsky
Meet the "Truth Tour": Rightwing Radio Hosts Go to
Iraq
Norman
Madarasz
The Choking of Brazil's Worker Party
Ben
Tripp
The Inevitability of George W. Bush
Poets'
Basement
Louise, Albert, Landau, Davies and Engel
Website
of the Weekend
The Mother of All Enemies Lists
July
8, 2005
Paul
Craig Roberts
Blowback Hits Britain: Londoners
Pay Heavy Price for Blair's Deception
Tariq
Ali
The London Bombings: Why They Happened
Monica
Benderman
One Soldier's Fight to Legalize Morality
Rick
Jahnkow
Beyond Opt-Out: the Counter-Recruitment Movement
Christopher
Brauchli
Dear Vet: If You Want to Eat While You Recuperate, You Gotta
Pay Extra
Kim
Peterson
Bombs in the Underground: Terror Begats Terror
Joshua
Frank
Leakers and Liars: Inching Toward Indictments?
Norman
Solomon
Messages from the Carnage
Website
of the Day
An Interview with Ray McGovern
July
7, 2005
Cockburn
/ St. Clair
Judy Miller: the Luckiest Martyr
John
Walsh
More Hawkish Than Bush: Dems in Full
Battle Cry
Mike
Marqusee
Message from London
Gilad
Atzmon
London's Burning
Nicole
Colson
Showdown at the Supreme Court
Jack
Random
Judith Miller, Anti-Hero
Norman
Solomon
Judith Miller, Drum Majorette for
War
Len
Colodny
Is Bob Woodward Still Protecting Al Haig?
Cockburn
/ St. Clair
Judy Miller: the Luckiest Martyr
Hot Stories
Alexander Cockburn
Behold,
the Head of a Neo-Con!
Subcomandante
Marcos
The
Death Train of the WTO
Norman Finkelstein
Hitchens
as Model Apostate
Steve Niva
Israel's
Assassination Policy: the Trigger for Suicide Bombings?
Dardagan,
Slobodo and Williams
CounterPunch Exclusive:
20,000 Wounded Iraqi Civilians
Steve
J.B.
Prison Bitch
Sheldon
Rampton and John Stauber
True Lies: the Use of Propaganda
in the Iraq War
Wendell
Berry
Small Destructions Add Up
CounterPunch
Wire
WMD: Who Said What When
Cindy
Corrie
A Mother's Day Talk: the Daughter
I Can't Hear From
Gore Vidal
The
Erosion of the American Dream
Francis Boyle
Impeach
Bush: A Draft Resolution
Click
Here for More Stories.
|
August 16, 2005
The Inquirer's Minds Don't
Want to Know
The Mix is
Not Propitious
By
DAVE LINDORFF
Philadelphia-based journalist, I have
written about many issues that affect this fifth largest metropolitan
region in the nation. For national publications.
I have written what many reviewers have called the definitive
book on the biggest death penalty case in the state, the Mumia
Abu-Jamal case (Killing
Time: an Investigation into the Death Row Case of Mumia Abu-Jamal,
Common Courage 2004). I have written myriad columns and op-ed
articles on issues such as the Iraq War, the so-called "war"
on terror, civil liberties threats, etc.--for national publications.
I make no claim to scrivener stardom, but I've done my share
of investigative pieces that have appeared in national publications--and
that have even been cited locally in Philadelphia.
What I have never managed to do is get an op-ed submission published
in my hometown paper, the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Not for lack of trying, mind you. I've sent in many submissions
over the years. And certainly not for lack of quality. I've had
many a good piece passed over by the Inquirer (hardly a paragon
of stylistic excellence) that has won approval in other publications.
I've often wondered why, even after having my book, Killing Time,
favorably reviewed in the Inquirer, I have been so unsuccessful
with the paper's opinion page.
But I finally got my answer. It came from the opinion page editor,
John Timpane, whom I called recently to ask about the fate of
my latest submission, an op-ed piece about the state legislature's
recent passage of a resolution authorizing a legislative inquisition
of liberals on the state's public university campuses. Mr. Timpane
allowed that the piece was "well written" and addressed
"an important issue." But he said that unfortunately
his "mix was not propitious" for the foreseeable future.
I puzzled over that phrase
for a while after hanging up.
I had, in my 32 years as a journalist, certainly never been told
this before.
Then I realized what he meant. The paper, which runs opinion
pieces from the far right (Charles Krauthammer) to the center
(Matthew Miller), had recently made one of its rare forays to
the left, with a piece by New York Times columnist Paul Krugman.
That column, sort of like a dash of cayenne in a soufflé,
was enough to put poor Mr. Timpane off of left-leaning columns
for as far into the future as he could imagine.
His mix was not propitious
for another article from the left.
I've since learned from an Inquirer staffer that "mix"
is a common term among the paper's senior editors, to the dismay
of those hoary reporters who still hold to the old notion of
truth-telling that once was a staple of the profession. Editors
at the Inquirer reportedly discuss the "mix" of story
topics that will be assigned, or that are to run in the next
day's edition. They are referring, apparently, not to the matter
of what is the right proportion of local, national and international
news, the right ratio of sports, opinion, lifestyle, culture--these
are basically predetermined by the size of various sections of
the paper, and by the various news holes, and rarely change much.
What they are referring to, I'm told, is the mix of political
content of the news stories.
Only recently, at an editorial session, the matter of Cindy Sheehan
and her remarkable campaign to meet with President Bush came
up, and the news editor was heard to fret, "How can we cover
this story without appearing biased?" The comment raised
howls of protest from some staffers present, but it points out
the news managers' thinking clearly enough.
As one staffer grouses, "I used to think news stories were
decided on their own merits. If it was news, you ran it. Now
a story, no matter how good, has to be considered in the context
of other stories the paper is running. It's a question of the
mix."
This new crabbed concept of what a newspaper is willing, or dares,
to present to its readers is, I'm certain, not unique to the
Inquirer, though among major metropolitan dailies, this once
a proud standard-bearer of muck-raking journalism, today stands
apart for its shabbiness and timidity. The mix--the day's paper
taken in its entirety--must now adhere to a comfortable standard
of centrist conformity, so as not to offend any group of readers
(or at least any group of well-heeled readers). If there is an
article critical of the president's Social Security plan, there
has to be another article that presents the president in a favorable
light, or that embarrasses his political rivals. If there is
an article about things going badly in Iraq, there needs to be
another in a more positive vein, or at least some other brighter
foreign report.
This same kind of thinking about "mix" has long been
common in television newsrooms, where "balance" has
been a fetish for decades. But I know that in my days as a daily
newspaper reporter, which ended in the late '70s, the term "mix"
never came up. Stories were assigned and run, and given their
placement in the paper and on the page based upon their intrinsic
importance, not on how they fit politically with the rest of
the issue. There might have been concerns expressed about the
"balance" in an individual story, but I never heard
anyone talk about :"balancing" one story against another.
The joke of course is that there really is no "mix"
at the Inquirer, which has purged genuine left-wing views from
its pages, including its opinion pages, almost totally. As for
its news pages, when a story as compelling as Cindy Sheehan's
one-woman campaign to challenge a president and commander-in-chief
can produce such editorial angst, the situation is no better.
(And it is fear we're talking about here. After all, there would
be no such discussion about "mix" were the paper about
to run a story about a staged presidential appearance.)
The truly sad thing is that while the Inquirer may be a particularly
noxious example of this pathetic decline in journalistic standards,
most of the rest of the corporate media are not far behind.
When it comes to our mainstream sources of genuine information
about what is going on in our communities, our states, our nation
and the world, the mix is not propitious. Nor do I expect to
be seeing my byline on the Inquirer opinion page any time soon.
The politics are not propitious either
Dave Lindorff is the author of Killing
Time: an Investigation into the Death Row Case of Mumia Abu-Jamal. His new
book of CounterPunch columns titled "This
Can't be Happening!" is published by Common Courage
Press. Information about both books and other work by Lindorff
can be found at www.thiscantbehappening.net.
He can be reached at: dlindorff@yahoo.com
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