Month: September 2024

Online Media Catching on to Propaganda?

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Article in Washington Post by Niha Masih, 9/17/24

Headline:  “Meta bans Russian state media outlet RT for acts of ‘foreign interference”

Subhead:  “The U.S. recently imposed sanctions on RT’s parent companies, Rossiya Segodnya and TV-Novosti, accusing them of acting as an arm of Moscow’s intelligence operations.”

“Meta — the owner of Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram — said Monday that it is banning Russian state media outlets such as RT from its platforms, days after the United States imposed sanctions on RT’s parent companies and accused them of acting as an arm of Moscow’s intelligence operations.

“After careful consideration, we expanded our ongoing enforcement against Russian state media outlets: Rossiya Segodnya, RT and other related entities are now banned from our apps globally for foreign interference activity,” Meta said in a statement.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/09/17/meta-ban-rt-russia-state-media/

Should Media Cover Alleged Insanity?

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Photo from Raw Story

Article in Raw Story by Earl Stephens, 9/16/24

Headline:  “Corporate media keeps hiding the truth about madman Donald Trump”

“We have a complete madman running for the President of the United States, and it would be about damn time our national media started reporting it this way.”

. . . “At its core, the mission of the working press is cut and dry and pretty easily executed: Reporters and news departments are assigned to cover various beats and report out to the American people about what is happening in their coverage areas. The press has the privilege of being where we too often can’t, so that they can tell us what has transpired on the football field, or the court room, or a theater of war, or the school board meeting, or on the election trail.”

. . . “What the hell is going on in our nation’s newsrooms? WHAT can they possibly be covering that is more important than the most serious internal threat to America since the Civil War?”

https://www.rawstory.com/raw-investigates/corporate-media-keeps-hiding-the-the-truth-about-madman-donald-trump/?utm_source=brea

 

Murdoch Media Empire Fate Now in Court

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AP photo by Noah Berger

Article in Associated Press by Scott Sonner, 9/16/24

Headline: “Control of the Murdoch media empire could be at stake in a closed-door hearing in Nevada”

“A probate court in Nevada is set to begin reviewing evidence behind closed doors in a case that could determine who will control Rupert Murdoch’s media empire after his death.”

“The court’s ruling notes that Murdoch sought to give Lachlan permanent and exclusive control over his companies because the mogul was worried that a lack of consensus among his children could affect the strategic direction at his companies, including potentially leading to a change in editorial policy and content, according to the Times report.”

https://apnews.com/article/rupert-murdoch-news-corp-murdoch-family-trust-9a4b20037e43f46ad5934797579dcd8e

A WP Chat About Corporate Media

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Article in the Washington Post by Erik Wemple, 9/16/24

Question: “Is corporate media affecting reporting?”

“It appears that a recent and dramatic shift has occurred in major press and media entitles like the NY Times, CNN, Washington Post. The appearance seems to be a pursuit of the attention grabbing controversy issue over straight-forward journalism. My theory is that ad revenue has become a priority and this shift in approach is corporate driven. Thoughts?”

Answer:  “. . . this critique has been leveled at most, if not all, mainstream media outlets over the course of the internet era — nearly the past three decades . . . Traffic imperatives, indeed, pushed news outlets to splinter their output into traditional reporting/big projects as well as blog posts, short analysis pieces . . . ”

Question: “Why is Trump coverage lacking?”

“Why is the media not exposing Trump’s obvious lies and dictatorial rhetoric. Is it because they lean over backwards to appear “impartial”? We are obviously being threatened with a dangerous outcome, isn’t it the media’s job to inform?”

Answer:  “it is indeed the media’s job to inform the public about Trump’s authoritarian tendencies. It’s something that, in my view, the media has done quite well:  https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/07/15/trump-authoritarianism-media-stakes/  .”

Full article:  https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/09/16/erik-wemple-media-live-chat/

 

RT Media Outlet is More Than That

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Article in the Washington Post by Catherine Belton, 9/13/24

Headline: “U.S. says Russian state media outlet runs intelligence operations”

Subhead: “The State Department accuses RT, the Russian media outlet, of running intelligence operations and procuring weapons for the war in Ukraine”

“Secretary of State Antony Blinken said new information showed that the Russian state media company RT, formerly known as Russia Today, was now being deployed by the Kremlin to conduct cyberintelligence and covert influence operations targeting countries in Europe, Africa, and North and South America. It was also being used to procure weapons for Russia’s war against Ukraine, expanding RT’s remit far beyond that of a media outlet, officials said.

. . . “RT has become increasingly entrenched as a channel voicing Kremlin propaganda in Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, and it has gone underground to operate through a web of front companies in the West, according to RT’s editor in chief, Margarita Simonyan.

“In comments posted on Telegram, Simonyan responded to Blinken by saying, ‘We have done this, are doing this and will do this.’ ”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/09/13/rt-propaganda-intelligence-weapons-ukraine/

Are Media Strait-Jacketed About Sane-Washing?

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Article in Raw Story by Tom Boggioni, 9/14/24

Headline: “Mary Trump bashes media outlets for ‘sane-washing’ Donald’s ‘delusional’ rants”

“During an appearance on MSNBC on Saturday morning, Donald Trump’s psychologist niece fumed at media outlets that have been accused of “sane-washing” her uncle’s rambling speeches and answers to question to make it appear he was delivering a coherent messag

. . . “”The problem is that, it’s not simply that many media outlets think that they need to translate Donald. First of all they are not telling us that is what they are doing but they are just pretending that he said these understandable coherent things.”

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-sane-washing-mary-trump/

Getting the Media Ready for the Election

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Article in Al Jezeera by By Niko Vorobyov, 9/12/24

Headling:  ” ‘Guerrilla projects’: Russia revels in US allegations of media warfare”

Subhead:  “Public figures close to President Putin goad Washington after the DoJ alleged that RT is puppeteering social media influencers.”

“Last week, the United States Department of Justice unsealed an indictment accusing a Tennessee-based company, believed to be Tenet Media, of accepting millions of dollars from the Russian state-owned media outlet RT and promoting ‘pro-Russia propaganda and disinformation across social media to US audiences’.

. . . “As well as federal indictments, the US Treasury slapped RT, whose employees are accused of funneling cash to Tenet, with sanctions.

“Separately, the Russian-born former Trump adviser and conservative pundit, Dimitri Simes, was indicted for allegedly working on behalf of another sanctioned Russian broadcaster, Channel One.

“In Russia, news of the sanctions and indictments were framed as another front of informational warfare.”

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/9/12/guerrilla-projects-russia-revels-in-us-allegations-of-media-warfare

Fox & Wall Street Journal in Jeopardy?

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Getty Image

Article on Reuters by By Dawn Chmielewski, 9/12/24

Headline: “Murdoch succession battle to play out in Nevada courtroom”

“A closed-door court battle over control of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire begins Sept. 16, and could determine the future of Fox News and the Wall Street Journal.

“Murdoch, 93, is attempting to change the terms of the family’s irrevocable trust to ensure his newspapers and television networks remain under control of his eldest son and chosen heir, Lachlan Murdoch, according to the New York Times, which obtained a sealed court document detailing the succession drama.

. . . “The news organizations say the public has immense interest in which of Murdoch’s children will succeed him at the helm of the influential media empire, an outcome that will affect thousands of jobs, millions of worldwide media consumers and the political landscape.”

https://www.reuters.com/legal/murdoch-succession-battle-play-out-nevada-courtroom-2024-

 

Debate Break Info by Pool Reporter

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Article in the Political Tribune by Terry Lawson 9/11/24

Headline:  “Pool Reporter Details Events That Took Place During Second Commercial Break Of Debate, Showing Stark Differences Between Harris and Trump”

“The presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris on Tuesday night revealed more than just their policy differences. How each candidate spent their time during the debate’s commercial breaks was a telling sign of their personalities and priorities.

. . . “The way Trump and Harris spent their commercial breaks during the debate may seem like a small detail, but it speaks volumes about their leadership styles. Trump’s stress and frustration reflect a candidate struggling to stay in control, while Harris’ calm focus shows a leader ready to take on the challenges ahead. The choice in 2024 couldn’t be clearer.”

https://polinews.org/pool-reporter-details-events-that-took-place-during-second-commercial-break-of-debate-showing-stark-differences-between-harris-and-trump/

Social Media and the Debate

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Article In The Guardian by Alaina Demopoulos, 9/10/24

Headline: “How the Trump-Harris debate played out on social media: ‘Maga mad libs’ “

Subhead:  “Users react to viral moments as Democratic and Republican candidates face off in presidential debate”

Social media users responded in many ways as to how the moderators kept people to account during the Harris/Trunp debate.

“ABC moderator “David Muir countered Trump’s assertion that Haitian immigrants abducted and ate pets in Springfield, Ohio – a rumor that began on Facebook, but was quickly shot down by city officials, even as JD Vance and other Republicans repeated the claims this week.

“ ‘They’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats, they’re eating the pets of the people that live there,’ Trump rambled, adding more pet lore to an election season filled with talk about ‘crazy cat ladies’.

. . . “But overall, the feeling on social media was that the former president floundered, and that Harris successfully baited him. A rare, bipartisan statement we might all be able to agree on: from Trump’s batty zingers to Harris’s lack of a poker face, both sides delivered enough meme fuel to last until November.”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/sep/10/trump-harris-debate-reaction