Media Blackout and Arrests taking place at the Gulf?

[Gene Steinberg]

I think you may have fallen for the "liberal media" Kool-Aid. All of the news organizations you mention are owned by large, multinational corporations that care about the bottom line and nothing else. On the radio band, conservatives have 90% of the stations for the simple reason that the stations are owned by a handful of big corporations that swing right.

Of course that situation is true for Fox News, which is managed by a former Republican political operative. Fair and balanced my foot!

And, of you actually listen to media reports, you'll see that both the left and right are slamming Obama these days. The left says he's too moderate. The right says he's a socialist.

 

[cottonzway]

Both sides of the media are ignorant and flatout wrong in how the world works IMO. The day actual Progressives and Libertarians can agree on this is the day we can begin to get rid of the dreck both "parties" have to offer.

 

[davide]

I think you may have fallen for the "liberal media" Kool-Aid.

It's interesting to find that the media coverage of the Gulf disaster has any support -- especially here of all places. I didn't attack Democrats or defend Republicans -- I belong to neither of those parties. I'm just a little angry that many influential reporters have been slow or reluctant to ask tough questions of this administration. Even some Democrats (particularly those in the Gulf area) have expressed the same concern. But raising the issue seemed to make some here defensive. I realize that party loyalty or just plain hatred of the other party can be a strong emotion and emotions can block out any objectivity.

There's no Kool-Aide involved. Much of my family (mosty Democrats for generations) lives is in the affected Gulf area. I can tell you that even "good loyal Democrats" who are on the scene and know more than the posters here are asking why the MSM, in general, has not been aggressively challenging the feds as to why proven containment and cleanup solutions have been ignored for weeks. And if anyone here thinks that NBC wouldn't have eviscerated a Republican president when we have dozens of weeks-old stories like, "Dutch consul slams US foot-dragging on oil spill", "Nearly 50 Supertankers Are Waiting", etc. then this really is a paranormal forum.

Clearly, FOX has a conservative bias, despite the "fair and balanced" slogan. But ABC, CBS, NBC and especially MSNBC have a bias that tends to favor the Democrat party agenda. And, in general, many reporters tend to give their guys the benefit of the doubt. This is not the time for politics -- a region is dying. But the tossing out of tired slogans like "Kool-Aid drinker" when someone merely wants the media to do its job shows that my time is wasted here.

 

[Gene Steinberg]

Clearly, FOX has a conservative bias, despite the "fair and balanced" slogan. But ABC, CBS, NBC and especially MSNBC have a bias that tends to favor the Democrat party agenda. And, in general, many reporters tend to give their guys the benefit of the doubt. This is not the time for politics -- a region is dying. But the tossing out of tired slogans like "Kool-Aid drinker" when someone merely wants the media to do its job shows that my time is wasted here.

Buzz, wrong answer!

Fox News is a unabashed promoter of far right-wing causes, such as the "Tea Party," which was not a grassroots movement, but created by a Republican lobbyist organization, and then promoted via Fox News, conservative radio and conservative bloggers. Many of the Fox News "correspondents," such as Dick Morris, use their appearances to promote their personal causes and think tanks, where they solicit donations. Although they have fairly conventional coverage of the day's news, their politically oriented stories, even during supposed "straight news" time slots, is notorious for misleading and clearly cropped quotes, false information and misleading analysis.

CNN, which has historically treated both sides of the political spectrum fairly, has experienced ratings declines in key evening time slots. More than likely, people want to be entertained and not informed. That's why the liberal-oriented MSNBC has seen some ratings growth. But they aren't available on basic cable (it requires a tier upgrade to get them), so they don't reach near as many homes as Fox.

As to NBC, CBS and ABC, it's clear to most people their only bias is ratings. Period! But at least you have at least some hope of getting information not filtered through a political machine.

 

[CapnG]

I'm angry at the media for not aggressively challenging the administration on why help has been turned away and proven cleanup technoligies are being ignored.

Then you're wasting you're anger and flat out wrong about the administration (in the sense of whose "team" it is). Left... right... it doesn't matter, the media is just another tool and they do what they're told by the people with the money.

Me being Canadian, I don't really have a dog in this fight but our news is covering it all the same (as is the international media I'm sure). Not ten minutes ago I saw a news item on CBC about a synthetic powder developed in Alberta that mops up oil instantly and harmlessly (basically turns it into cake so it can be easily scooped up and disposed of).

Have you heard about it? No? I wonder why...?

 

[davide]

far right-wing causes, such as the "Tea Party," ... Dick Morris [promoting] personal causes

Thanks for the chuckle. Maybe we should drop accusations of overt political bias -- I've listened to every Paracast episode (maybe only half an episode when Vaeni was on). But I have a news flash ... the government is broke, yet spending continues and the deficit is increasing at a rate that nobody can fathom. At this rate, it can never be paid back. As with any organization, some kooks have filtered in, but their core focus of the Tea Party is not social issues -- it's out of control spending, and they have exposed both Republicans and Democrats. But they do especially annoy Democrats who like single party control of the government (as long as it's their party). To them, those in the Tea Party don't understand that all the spending is for their own good, so they should shut up. Now, when I think of far-right or far-left, I think of violence -- McVeigh and Ayers -- not the Tea Party.

I do agree that Morris is sleazy, but I guess he was OK when he worked for Clinton.

 

[Gene Steinberg]

The Tea Party was a fabrication of right wing causes and Fox News. They managed to drag in tens of thousands of innocent people who, between the racist attacks against Obama, believed the cause meant something. I think some have already realized they were deluded.

As to Morris, wasn't he fired by Clinton after it was discovered he'd be doling out political advice while sucking a prostitute's toes? At least it's nice to know that he's almost always wrong!

The Paracast doesn't pretend to be a straight news show.

 

[CapnG]

Democrats who like single party control of the government (as long as it's their party).

Equally true of Republicans (if not more so, given their borg-like voting record).

I do agree that Morris is sleazy, but I guess he was OK when he worked for Clinton.

Nope, always sleazy. Morris is the guy who puts the DICK in "Dick" when Cheney's not around. He's a great example of how the whole thing's based on money anyway. Clinton's paying the bills? Guess that makes him a Democrat. Oh but FOX wants to pay him now? Guess he's a Republican then.

 

[Paul Kimball]

The left says he's too moderate. The right says he's a socialist.

The progressives are right. He is too moderate, to the point of being a right-winger in any country other than the corporatist regime that has taken root in the United States.

 

[Kieran]

I find it crazy that Republicans speaking for the People would attack Obama for Being a socialist. Who's agenda is this? The ordinary working man has nothing to fear from a socialist Government. I'm a firm believer in democratic socialism. If you took away the "ist" You have social, a bad word!!! lol.. Sweden and Canada are perfect examples of Democratic socialism in action. People need to stop confusing socialism with communism. Socialism is an economic system of doing things and Communism is more of political ideology or belief of how a government should be run. Socialism does what a Government is suppose to do and that is protect it's citizens, and offers services to it's Citizens. Many Citizens in socialist countries have better lives than people in America. That is what realistically your elected officials are saying. They don't want you to have better lives..

 

[CapnG]

SHhh! Stop talking sense Keiran, you're going to upset people.

 

[Kieran]

SHhh! Stop talking sense Keiran, you're going to upset people.

lol thanks.

 

[davide]

The Tea Party ... the racist attacks against Obama, believed the cause meant something.

That's a cheap shot and is condescending to Obama. And concern over out of control government spending means nothing? When all else fails, yell racism and you win. The fact is, there's racism on both sides -- black and white, Democrat and Republican. Ever heard of Farrakhan? It's a shame that you can't disagree with Obama based on the merits of a particular policy without being branded a racist. So, if someone is fed up with out of control spending and they can't associate with the Tea Party, what do they do? How about joining an organization funded by George Soros? Oooops, he only supports the Democrat party and leftist causes. I know -- just sit down and shut up.

Apparently it only applies to Republican administrations when Hillary said, "I am sick and tired of people who say that if you debate and you disagree with this administration somehow you're not patriotic. We should stand up and say we are Americans and we have a right to debate and disagree with any administration."

 

[Gene Steinberg]

Farrakhan is not a part of the Obama administration or even acceptable to him and his staff.

It's not a cheap shot to tell the truth, just as some Tea Party activists spit upon Democrats walking from one building in Washington, D.C. building to another during the deliberations over the health plan. One of those victims was a well-known figure in the civil rights demonstrations of the 1960s. Pathetic.

If you want to know about out-of-control spending, consider passing huge tax cuts for wealthy people and starting two wars, all without finding ways to fund those expenses. That's what happened during the Bush administration. You want to deal with the budget busters, look at who ran things in the last administration. As far as Obama is concerned, he is no less corporatist, alas. So nobody, except the extremes on both sides, truly expects things to change all that much.

 

[davide]

Ugly things happen on both sides. Tea Party rallies are nearly always peaceful. But do we overlook the assault on former congressional candidate Nathan Tabor during a recent Tea Party demonstration in NC? During what police said was an otherwise peaceful rally, an Obama supporter and and a black liberation activist shouted vulgarites at the crowd and attacked Tabor. Pathetic.

And who is defending spending by the Bush administration and the Democrat Congress of the past four years?

Geez! I make a comment saying that the MSM wasn't being as aggressive as they could in finding out why we turned away Dutch and other international help during the Gulf spill and I end up on a Kos forum. The take away here is that you don't criticize the media unless you target FOX. Wow.

 

[Gene Steinberg]

Ugly things happen on both sides. Tea Party rallies are nearly always peaceful.

Unfortunately more of this crap is happening on the Tea Party side. There are enough documented cases to raise serious questions. You need to do a little more homework. The liberal demonstrations tend to be far more peaceful, far more often. And you don't see pictures of a U.S. president with a skull and crossbones, or sticks in his nose either on the liberal side of the fence.

 

[cottonzway]

I have to step in here and give a little bit of facts straight.

The "Tea Party" in large still has a lot of good people in it. It has been largely been co-opted by Neo-Conservatives (Dick Armey and Glenn Beck) but a lot of the core members are actually Libertarians that re-started the concept in political activism in 2007 up until now. How do I KNOW this as FACT? Because I was actually part of this concept that was indeed grassroots. I started a Ron Paul Meetup group in 2007 and went to rallies through the 2008 presidential election. The core members are still this group of people and not the Neo-Cons once again posing as anything other then scum.

The media spin by the left-wing of the media spins this or flatout ignores this. Instead a bunch of bombastic stories using race bating try to blanket the whole concept. Now I am aware of the Freedom Works types that use the concept to spread their bullshit about our pre-emptive wars of aggression being part of this concept, but they are liars no different then the left media that also and lies about reality.

Don't believe the hype and spin. The concept is NOT racist nor is it Neo-Conservative. It's a Libertarian message more then anything with the voices of Constitutionalists, Progressives, and Independents included more then anything.

 

[davide]

Unfortunately more of this crap is happening on the Tea Party side. There are enough documented cases to raise serious questions. You need to do a little more homework. The liberal demonstrations tend to be far more peaceful, far more often. And you don't see pictures of a U.S. president with a skull and crossbones, or sticks in his nose either on the liberal side of the fence.

I don't know where to begin. Do a Google search on Bush and Hitler. Because the Tea Party protests were peaceful, a group named crashtheteaparty.org was formed to embarass the group. They've since gone underground. Again, you're going to have kooks associated with any large group, but you can't judge the whole based on a few. So again, if you want to protest an out of control government, I guess you just shut up because you don't understand its all for your own good.

Just to refresh your memory on how wonderful and peaceful a liberal demonstration can be, take a look at these images: http://www.zombietime.com/zomblog/?p=621.

 

[Gene Steinberg]

I'm more concerned when some of the people responsible for an out of control government are pushing the so-called protests.

 

[cottonzway]

Unfortunately more of this crap is happening on the Tea Party side. There are enough documented cases to raise serious questions. You need to do a little more homework. The liberal demonstrations tend to be far more peaceful, far more often. And you don't see pictures of a U.S. president with a skull and crossbones, or sticks in his nose either on the liberal side of the fence.