. . . maybe this is the solution (via R. Crumb):

The corporate media hysteria about Biden’s age is reminiscent of a school of sharks circling their prey. As each shark takes a bite, media outlets increase their ratings and revenue. With each chunk taken out of the target the old adage of “If it bleeds, it leads” now has the addition of, “. . . and it pays well, too!”.

From an article in the Guardian 2/30/24 By Eric Berger:

Headline: “Deluge of ‘pink slime’ websites threaten to drown out truth with fake news in US election”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jun/20/fake-news-websites-us-election

From The Guardian 6/7/24 by Dharna Noor

Beware of “advertorials” disguised as “news”.

https://www.theguardian.com/media/article/2024/jun/07/united-nations-fossil-fuel-ads-news-tech-media

Headline: News and tech media mostly quiet after UN chief calls for ban on ads for oil and gas

For example, “‘Geoffrey Supran, an associate professor and scholar of fossil-fuel industry messaging at the University of Miami, said ‘there is also potentially a concern about the outlet’s editorial staff being exposed to the ads’ claims’. In a 1980s internal public relations assessment, ‘oil giant Mobil indicated that it believed its advertorials in the New York Times had shifted the outlet’s position in its favor,’ he said.

“‘The fossil-fuel industry’s advertising campaigns are state-of-the-art propaganda developed in partnership with public relations experts, executed via media outlets, and based on almost a century of collaborative experience,’ said Supran.”

According to the Nation quoted in the Guardian article, “Many outlets are not only accepting fossil-fuel advertisements, but also have arms that are producing them. Reuters, the New York Times, Bloomberg, Politico and the Washington Post all count oil majors as clients of their in-house production studios, events businesses and other branded content . . .”

From the Guardian, by Sakhidad Hatif 4/1/24

Headline: The Taliban targeted us, beat us and chased us out. This is how we run our Afghan newspaper from exile

“In the two decades before the Taliban returned to power, Afghanistan had a vibrant media sector. There were newspapers, television channels, periodicals, magazines and more, invigorating the public discourse by allowing citizens to express their views on national and local issues. That is completely gone now.”

LINK: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/may/01/taliban-afghanistan-newspaper-exile-us-reporters

Friends of Community Media sponsored a well-attended event with Palestinian non-violent peace activist Awad Mubarek at All Souls Unitarian Church in Kansas City last Saturday. FCM president Spencer Graves, interviewed by KCTV, MC’ed the event.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                  

Contact:  Spencer Graves (408) 655-4567                                   

PALESTINIAN PEACE ACTIVIST TO SPEAK THIS WEEKEND MAY 4 AND 5

Kansas City, Missouri – 4/29/24

Doctor Mubarak Awad, Palestinian-American from Jerusalem, will speak on “Standing up for Palestine”, with baklava donated by the Jerusalem Café available at 1:30 PM for the event at 2-4 PM, on Saturday, May 4th at All-Souls  Unitarian Universalist Church, 4501 Walnut in Kansas City, followed by a Q&A session.

Awad Mubarak is a Christian Palestinian, born in Jerusalem in 1943. He has a PhD in psychology and has US citizenship. In 1983 he founded the Palestinian Centre for the Study of Nonviolence in Jerusalem. He was expelled by Israel in 1988 for organizing nonviolent civil disobedience in the First Intifada.  He then founded Nonviolence International, advocating for active nonviolence and nonviolent campaigns worldwide.

In the session about events in Gaza and calling for a ceasefire, ideas to be discussed include actions that people can take.  These include contacting senators and representatives, participating in peaceful demonstrations and events, putting up yard signs protesting the treatment of Gazans, advising religious communities to host a educational forums, and how to contribute to humanitarian aid for the region.

Dr. Awad will also speak at the 9:30 All-Souls forum on Sunday, May 5 to be broadcast on community radio station KKFI 90.1 FM May 14^th 7-8 PM, and the event will also be available later on the YouTube “AllSoulsKC” the second “Forum”.

Donations requested.  Net proceeds will go to the Palestinian American Medical Association (PAMA) for humanitarian aid. Contributions may be made  through the “donate” button on the ourfcm.org website, or by mailing a check to “Friends of Community Media”, 3707 Pennsylvania Ave, KC, MO 64111.  

Friends of Community Media is a 501(c)3 Kansas City non-profit organization founded in 2007, with the goal of promoting community-based media.  It also assists local groups to create independent media, influence existing media, and promote diverse media ownership.

In its history it has conducted the “Media 4 Us week” literacy event, sponsored progressive media awards, brought in guest speakers on media topics, worked with the United Minority Media Association, and conducted media literacy classes. 

Information on this event and on Friends of Community Media may  found on the group’s website:  ourfcm.org.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                                                                        

PEACE ACTIVIST FROM PALESTINE LEADS WORKSHOP IN MAY

Kansas City, Missouri – 4/20/24

Doctor Mubarak Awad from Jerusalem and Spencer Graves, president of Friends of Community Media will lead a workshop on the role of the media in peace and standing up for Palestinians.  The event will be from 2-4 PM, on Saturday, May 4th at All-Souls  Unitarian Universalist Church, 4501 Walnut in Kansas City, with a Q&A session followed by a reception.  Dr. Awad will also speak at the 9:30 All-Souls forum on Sunday, May 5 to be broadcast later on community radio station KKFI 90.1 FM.

Mubarak is Palestinian, born in Jerusalem in 1943. He has a PhD in psychology and has US citizenship. In 1983 he founded the Palestinian Centre for the Study of Nonviolence in Jerusalem. He was expelled by Israel in 1988 for organizing nonviolent civil disobedience in the First Intifada.  He then founded Nonviolence International, advocating for active nonviolence and nonviolent campaigns worldwide.

Friends of Community Media is a Kansas City non-profit organization with a goal of promoting community-based media.  It also assists local groups to create independent media, influence existing media, and promote diverse media ownership.

– 30 –

Contact Spencer Graves (408) 655-4567

More information on this event and on Spencer Graves may be found at this link:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1w2jA8KWMSSI0MIjcKAByCAJhvTjlAAykQxr6pZeAgb4/edit

Photo of Mubarak Awad

4/20/24 – Information is also available at the PeaceWorks Kansas City Website:

https://peaceworkskc.org/standing-up-for-palestinians-the-role-of-the-media/

From the Guardian 4/17/24 by Arwa Mahdawi

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/apr/17/the-media-industry-is-dying-but-i-can-still-get-paid-to-train-ai-to-replace-me

HEADLINE: “The media industry is dying – but I can still get paid to train AI to replace me”

“I could get paid less than the the New York Minimum to train an AI model to take over my job. Is there a . . . word to describe that particular situation, I wonder? I’ll have to ask ChatGPT.”

From the New York Times article on 4/16/24 by Benjamin Mullen.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/16/business/media/npr-suspends-business-editor.html

Headline: “NPR Suspends Editor Whose Essay Criticized the Broadcaster”

“Uri Berliner, a senior business editor at NPR, said the public radio network’s liberal bias had tainted its coverage of important stories.”

Read the essay that caused the furor by Uri Berliner on an article in The Free Press on Substack om 4/9/24 headlined:
“I’ve Been at NPR for 25 Years. Here’s How We Lost America’s Trust.”

https://www.thefp.com/p/npr-editor-how-npr-lost-americas-trust

Update from Associated Press article by David Bauder 4/17/24 – Berliner is gone.

https://apnews.com/article/npr-editor-resigns-conservative-liberal-c259642e3920e99d5f05a7fe1a90012e

HEADLINE: “An NPR editor who wrote a critical essay on company has resigned after being suspended”