The Bias of Mainstream Media

Laura McCallum

17 years ago

Categories: Music & FilmUS

The Bias of Mainstream Media

<h3>Conglomerate Media:  No Room for in a Democracy </h3>
<h3>Specific purpose: To persuade my audience to use other sources for their news and information besides mainstream media.</h3>
<hr />
Our new conglomerate media is limiting our news and sanitizing our wars and disasters
A video called Peace, Propaganda and the Promised Land <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCL6WdnuNp4">Learn what is really going on that the media is not telling us!</a> is very enlightening and a must see for every patriotic american.
Meet <a href="http://www.geocities.com/vylucky@sbcglobal.net/images/murdock1.jpg">Rupert Murdock</a> ! The owner and founder of Fox News. You can see he inherited his first newspaper at a very young age and from there, there was no stopping him. He bought every type of media advertising available. <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/templates/sites/~temp00.html#outfoxed">Outfoxed 1:17:43</a>
Before 1999, there were regulations prohibiting owners from buying numerous radio, television stations, newspapers, and magazines: <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/templates/sites/~temp00.html#digest">digest 301-311</a> However, the 1999 telecommunications act that passed eliminated these vital regulations. Without these restrictions we are narrowing the newsroom views, and tying a nuce on the throats of our reporters so they can only speak in unison or when spoken to. This is the way <a href="http://www.geocities.com/vylucky@sbcglobal.net/images/mediaties.jpg">today’s media looks</a> . Only a handful of companies have power over the media and are controlling what the world sees and hears
There are many negative influences that big corporations have on our media.
One individual that benefited from this act was Murdock! Here is what Murdock owns today <img alt="Murdock’s Media Power Today" width="350" hieght="250" src="https://www.geocities.com/vylucky@sbcglobal.net/images/murdock2web.jpg" /> . He total audience reaches 4.7 billion people throughout the world. To put that in perspective that is ¾ of the population <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/templates/sites/~temp00.html#outfoxed">. (Outfoxed)</a>
These regulations were in place to keep the diversity within our news and information. Conglomerate owned media has too much advertising power over the people and an enormous influence on public opinion in our society.
For example: Think about how Johnny Cochran got OJ off the murder charges against him with a simple statement to the press "If it doesn’t fit, you must equit". Our media influences our decisions, like it or not. This means that the newsrooms that are tied to the opinionated Republican Rupert Murdock, like Fox News, are now not only conservative, but fully right wing only. It is a bias news channel and politically motivated to spread only thier own views and policies of the government’s propaganda.
Perhaps the worst example was demonstrated when George W. Bush’s Cousin, Marvin Bush, who was hired to crunch numbers for the election in 2000 when it was Bush/Kerry at Fox News, was the first to announce GW Bush the clear winner of Florida and new President of the US. The numbers he received that morning must have been different from the ones everyone else got, because they all were showing it was too close to call. The incredible result after the announcement is the part that still baffles me. Within minutes, all the other news channels followed suit and one by one they too announced GW President. It was this elucidation that held in the American people’s minds and had more to do with Bush becoming President than any recount, or flemsy ballot design ever did.
Although Fox News came out and publicly apologized for its terrible mistake, on some small channel and hidden network, very briefly. What good does that do anyway, it shouldn’t have ever happened to begin with.
What we need to do is cut their air time during the next election; let that be a statement of having a mistake like that happen in your newsroom. 
Our government has been passing acts based on a war of lies. The Patriot act slaughters our bill of rights all in one fatal swoop. All of it is said to be for "terrorists" in our country. The US has ordered 450,000 new beds for our jails. Are there 450,000 terrorists in our country?
An ex-member of parliament had put this in perspective in the Video, "Murdocks War on Journalism", "you cannot have any witnesses when you have a war based on lies". This is why the US is marking territories as "no reporting zones." They even tried calling Fallujeh a "no reporting zone" but a few videos slipped through like the one titled "Fallujeh, the hidden massacre". <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/templates/sites/~temp00.html#renucci">(º Renucci 24:34</a> It contains an interview with two US ex military men. The first soldier, a sniper, was asked if he targeted civilians. He said "yes, on a daily basis". The other soldier admits his personal involvement in a project called "Phantom Fury" (very appropriate name) in Fallujeh saying that there were many times commanders issued warnings over radio communications before dropping "whisky Pete". This is a military slang for napalm, although now it is called MK77, the effects of it are the same. Here are the dramatic pictures of the people killed by MK77 by our US soldiers.
<img height="430" alt="Fallujeh and MK77" width="310" src="https://geocities.com/vylucky@sbcglobal.net/cross.jpg" />
New polls taken in Fallujeh have shown that more people believe in violence now against American troops since the administrations attack, proving that efforts to liberate the country have failed miserably and only strengthened the resistance. <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/templates/sites/~temp00.html#hanley">(Hanley 14)</a> Of course, when your country is attacked with a blatant disregard for human life, it portrays that country as a rogue nation, and you can no longer trust that country from there forward. So no democratic country would ever do that unless they had strong evidence against that country for its wrongdoing, and based their decision to go to war on intellectual reason and knowledge that had strong support from other countries or at the very least strong support from the people. Right? The thing is: Even if September 11th was justification for this attack, which I do not feel satisfied with any of the findings of the 9/11 commission, it still would not be acceptable to use chemical weapons on innocent women and children.
These pictures of this war, graphic or not should be published if nothing else than for the future history books, so we can provide pictures with our documentation of world news. <a name="#We the People">We</a> need to see images, so we can remember vividly the pictures in our mind, so we can know the full scope of what has happened or is still happening now. Maybe so we do not forget the events of the past easily
First, Americans need to use various sources for their news and information outside of mainstream media. The power of the people can change the effects that a conglomerate media has on society. BBC and other media have proved that by telling the truth they can withstand government pressure. <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/templates/sites/~temp00.html#hanley">(2)</a> Unfortunately, now that regulations were lifted, it is highly unlikely we can change them back. What we can do is make other changes to counteract theirs.
First, we need to set new guidelines for our reporters, like by making a certain line of questioning mandatory. Then hold our networks responsible for news reports that do not follow the guidelines we set. 
<ul type="circle">
<li>Most effectively by imposing steep fines.</li>
<li>If necessary pulling their air time</li>
<li>Multiple offenses could even Ban them from ever reporting news completely under any name or network in the future.</li>
</ul>
Before that happens though more people need to participate in making a difference. Most people don’t even know that any group of citizens can go to any editor and demand things.
<ul>
<li>This not only gets results immediately</li>
<li>It allows the people to be able to share thier thoughts on issues</li>
<li>Plus, it lets the media know we ARE watching and WE WELCOME AND DEMAND change.</li>
</ul>
Perhaps if the American people knew the truth about this war, they may just rethink of new ways to bring our soldiers home. They may not see it the same way as our President does. <a name="#We the People">We</a> may see the truth is we are the problem in Iraq, not the answer. All you have to do is make other people you know aware of things you know are happening throughout our media and administration and the people will take over from there. Even our government knows that with the power of the people…anything becomes possible. Word of mouth spreads easy as butter but sometimes gives mixed truth.
<ol>
<li>Direct people to websites that provide the same information every time they read it.</li>
<li>Send your friends links to the following websites:
<ol>
<li><a href="http://www.moveon.org/">Moveon.org</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.wanttoknow.info/060127newsstoriescensored">Censored News Stories</a></li>
</ol>
</li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li>Have them watch the following videos:
<ol>
<li>Griggs part 1</li>
<li>Griggs part 2</li>
<li><a href="http://www.currentissues.tv/fallujah_phosphorus.wvx">Fallujeh:The Hidden Massacre</a></li>
<li>Outfoxed-Rupert Murdocks War on Journalism.</li>
</ol>
</li>
</ol>
If we don’t demand answers now:
<ul>
<li><a name="#We the People">We</a> will see more patriot acts.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>More telecommunication acts.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Hear even less accountability for mistakes.(if that’s possible)</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><a name="#We the People">We</a> will only be saying "it is acceptable to tell us lies and it is just to go to war based on those lies."</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Worst of all, more of our soldiers will die along with innocent civilians in Iraq.</li>
</ul>
Bush’s low poll numbers are our power. I will end with the words from a video entitled "new world order".( <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/templates/sites/~temp00.html#world">New World Order</a> ) "They are the gatekeepers and sooner or later someone will have to stand up to them, but where all others have failed you will succeed, your weapon is your knowledge and awakening the sheeple. All the information is out there free online, but you must seek it." So what will you do?
<ol>
<li>Will you stand idly by and watch our democracy crumble to a newly born dictatorship? or</li>
<li>Will you fight and help drive the poll numbers down with rapid decline, until we replace the whole administration and get new competent leaders who put the American people before the golden gavel’s of the industry’s individualism?</li>
<li>Will you have the will to fight for your country?</li>
<li>Show our troops you really appreciate thier efforts by making an effort of your own, on your own, before this administration decides they own you!</li>
</ol>
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<ul>
<li><a name="hanley">Hanley, Delinda C.</a> Al Jazera world forum takes a hard look at freedom of the press. (SpecialReport) ………. InfoTrac Washington Report on Middle East Affairs Oct 2004. v23. i8. p14. (2).</li>
<li><a name="freeman">Freeman, Steve.</a> Censored News Stories. Distorted Election Coverage. "A Corrupted Election," ………. Josh Mitteldorf, In These Times, Feb. 15, 2005; "Jim Crow Returns to the Voting Booth, ………. <a name="palast">Greg Palast and Rev. Jesse Jackson.</a> Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Jan. 26, 2005. ………. <a>http://www.wanttoknow.info/060127newsstoriescensored </a></li>
<li><a name="Daraghmeh">Daraghmeh, Mohammed.</a> Effects of the Conflict on the Palestinian Media. Palistine. Israel. ………. Journal of Politics. Economics & Culture. 2003. Vol. 10. Issue 2. p13. 4p. ………. (AN 10677890). PDF Full Text(533K).</li>
<li><a name="world">New World Order</a> (Top Secret)(VCD)Pt.1 <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/My%20Documents/templates/sites/www.Infowars.com">www.Infowars.com</a> ………. 7:37. 77MB. MPEG Video. 1394Kbps. 2. ………. Rights Summary There are no rights or restrictions associated with this clip</li>
<li><a name="niman">Niman, Michael I.</a> CQResearcher. Yes, <a name="#We the People">We</a> Murder Journalists. Humanist. Mar/Apr2006.Vol. 66. ………. Issue 2. p7-9. 3p. (AN 19862037). PDF Full Text (1.5MB).</li>
<li><a name="outfoxed">Outfoxed – Rupert Murdoch’s War On Journalism</a> Robert Greenwald.1:17:43. MPEG Video. 2. ………. <a href="http://www.moveon.org/">Moveon.org</a> . Rights Summary There are no rights or restrictions associated with this clip.</li>
<li><a name="renucci">Renucci, Sigfriao and Torrealta, Maurizio.</a> "Fallujeh, Phosphorus". ………. <a>http://www.currentissues.tv/fallujah_phosphorus.wvx </a>. ………. 24:34. Windows Media Video. 218Kbps. 2. ………. Rights Summary: There are no rights or restrictions associated with this clip.</li>
<li><a name="digest">Congressional Digest.</a> "Should Congress Pass the Free Flow of Information Act?" Dec2005. ………. Vol. 84 Issue 10, p301-311, 6p, 2bw. (AN 19550929) PDF Full Text (2.7MB).</li>
<li><a name="trotochaud">Trotochaud, Mary. And McDowell, Rick.</a> "The Invasion of Fallujah," Peacework. ………. Dec. 2004-Jan. 2005. "Fallujah Refugees Tell of Life and Death in the Kill Zone," Dahr Jamail. ………. New Standard, "The War in Iraq: Civilian Casualties, Political Responsibilities," Richard Horton. ………. Lancet, Oct. 29, 2004. Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. April 15, 2004.</li>
<li><a name="york">York, Byron.</a> EBSCO. Taboo. National Review. 7/26/2004. Vol. 56 Issue 14, p17-18. 2p. ………. Article. <a href="http://web18.epnet.com/citation.asp?">http://web18.epnet.com/citation.asp?</a> Other Works Cited and References Used Media Coverage Fails on Iraq: Fallujah and the Civilian Deathtoll part 1: Fallujah-War Crimes Go Unreported. Peacework. December 2004-January 2005. "The Invasion of Fallujah: A Study in the Subversion of Truth". Mary Trotochaud and Rick McDowell. World Socialist Web Site, November 17, 2004. "U.S. Media Applauds Destruction of Fallujah". David Walsh The NewStandard, December 3, 2004. "Fallujah Refugees Tell of Life and Death in the Kill Zone." Dahr Jamail</li>
</ul>

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Laura McCallum: I am currently attending CSUN and in the process of obtaining my Bachelors Degree in Journalism.