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Being a journalist in the Middle East...

hanazuhair — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 00:11:14 +0000

In journalism you seek independence, you find truth, in the Middle East however, you seek independence, you find trouble. In a world were transparency lacks, and facts are in the hands of the powerful, independent journalists find themselves fighting many things, the system, the society, taboos and themselves—they fight not to be emotionally affiliated to any certain philosophy so that the struggle may become easier. But, then the “job” is definitely harder than anywhere else. We all have our biases; this is human nature, but what if beliefs were forced on you? What if you’re only to play within the rules, in order not to lose everything? You become troubled. This is the dilemma of an independent Middle Eastern journalist.

In this day and age, the flow of information is taken for granted— the fine art of journalism somehow is underestimated. The public doesn’t know the process of producing a brilliant piece. But it’s a double-barreled situation, when the truth may often be conveyed through the perception of a corrupt journalist or an organization. And governments suffocate those who have opinions till they stop expressing them—the culture of fear then conquers.

Though the constitution in many Arab countries assures freedom of speech, it’s only a written right instead of an implemented one. Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), states that “everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice”. However, according to The Egyptian Organization of Human Rights, the imprisonment of journalists is the norm. Journalist Ahmed Haridy of Mithaq Al-Araby, electronic newspaper, and editor in chief of Sawt El Umma, an important newspaper, Adel Hamouda, alongside many others were imprisoned in the past few years. Also, Wael El Ebrashy’s and Ibrahim Essa’s imprisonment back in 2006, for their outspoken criticism of government officials. These people fight the injustices to seek truth, but they also risk the safety of their families to ensure journalistic sovereignty. A price only the brave can afford. Several movements are taking place for change, and change is happening but through little, if not minimal space. Yet, journalists with strong ethical sense are seizing the opportunity. Shayfenkom (we see you) and Kefaya (enough) movements in Egypt are trying to ensure the media would become the watchdog on the government, in order democracy would find a sniff of fresh air. However, bias news agencies exist in the West as well, the methods are different though, and subjectivity is somehow subtle. But in the West you have laws that are actually applied, therefore in the end, a journalist’s independence is proclaimed. Objectivity then is subject to the person’s independence of one’s own beliefs.

Scahill and Greenwald on Media Elite Manufacturing Consent for Self-Proclaimed 'Establishment' (Video)

Editors — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:30:53 +0000

A must watch: Jeremy Scahill and Glenn Greenwald, two of our most respected voices speaking truth to illegitimate power, on GRITtv with Laura Flanders, Wednesday. Mr. Scahill and Mr. Greenwald discuss the media elite and how—in their own words—form the “political debate” by not reporting facts, but an ESPN-esque play-by-play of what those in power are asserting. They go after the major TV networks and print media, Chuck Todd, Tim Russert, Tom Brokaw and others on how they ‘manufacture consent’ for torture and immoral war in this 60 minute video, but the segment with Mr. Scahill and Mr. Greenwald ends at the 29:30 mark:

Michael Yon: Afghanistan will become far more deadly for our troops than even the darkest days in Iraq

BFP — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 14:43:36 +0000

When I hit the ground in Afghanistan in 2006, it was flatly obvious that we were losing the war. Th

Celebrating my independence as a journalist

Wendy Parker — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:23:48 +0000

On Independence Day I usually dispense with the overwrought, warmed-over patriotic platitudes that c

Welcome Back

garcialoca — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:03:08 +0000

Well I’m back in the Land of Enchantment! I had a long time on the road up north and am looking forward to being back in the Sangre de Cristos!

The writing is coming along at a regular clip – still trying to find a unifying theme – however futile that may prove.

On the publishing front, we are launching another blog based around the 400 year celebration of Santa Fe as the oldest capital in America. It will feature independent journalism, mixing multi-media, creative writing and journalism, cultural events and coverage, and everything esle worth celebrating.

We are currently in the design and brainstorming stage, but have come up with the name Forum505. Since I have been happy with the WordPress platform, we have decided to continue via this site.

The site is live now, but we have yet to publish anything other than our mission statement. Look for us in the upcoming weeks if you plan on traveling or if you are curious as to the cultural vibrancy of the City Different.

The Difference between Propaganda and Journalism

tonka2lips — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 05:22:54 +0000

“There are laws to protect the freedom of the press’s speech, but none that are worth anything to protect the people from the press”–Mark Twain

A central tenet of this blog is to show as many people as possible just how co-opted, corrupt, and propagandistic is our national press corps. And really, given the amount of evidence that is readily available, that in itself is not a difficult task. For far too long, the “mainstream media” has been little more than a tool used by the giant corporations that own them and the politicians they all too clearly pay for to maintain the status quo, as well as a willing, and largely unquestioning mouthpiece for whatever the federal government says and does. The toll this is taking on this country is staggering, especially in terms of citizen freedoms, the ability for us as a nation to honestly discuss the nation’s biggest problems and priorities, and to achieve anything remotely considered social and economic equality. It is also something that politicians, media conglomerates, and establishment media stars are simply unwilling to ever talk about honestly. After all, it is not in their interests to do so.

But within the “independent media” (a term which should be clearly redundant, but in today’s world clearly isn’t), there are some truly shining stars. Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com and Amy Goodman of DemocracyNow.org are two such journalists. Both of them recently received the Park Center for Independent Media’s first annual Izzy Awards, an award named after the fiercely independent and prolific journalist Izzy Stone.

Below is the acceptance speech of Glenn Greenwald in two parts. It’s about 30 minutes total, and is well worth watching. He does an excellent job of delineating the differences between propaganda and journalism, as well as defining the similarities and differences between bloggers and journalists. He includes several excellent examples of the type of sycophantic relationship that exists between today’s mainstream “journalists” and those they cover, and the resultant problems that creates.

Pay particular attention to the part of the discussion where he talks about MSNBC star journalist Ashleigh Banfield and what happened to her career after she gave a revealing speech at Kansas State University critical of the way in which the Iraq War was being covered by the mainstream media. Her career was essentially destroyed the moment she “got out of line” and actually told the truth in a public venue about how the media and its relationship with the government really works. Here is one of the key quotes from her speech:

There is another whole phenomenon that’s come about from this war. Many talk about it as the Fox effect, the Fox news effect. I know everyone of you has watched it. It’s not a dirty little secret. A lot of people describe Fox as having streamers and banners coming out of the television as you’re watching it cover a war. But the Fox effect is very concerning to me.

I’m a journalist and I like to be able to tell the story as I see it, and I hate it when someone tells me I’m one-sided. It’s the worst I can hear. Fox has taken so many viewers away from CNN and MSNBC because of their agenda and because of their targeting the market of cable news viewership, that I’m afraid there’s not a really big place in cable for news. Cable is for entertainment, as it’s turning out, but not news.

I’m hoping that I will have a future in news in cable, but not the way some cable news operators wrap themselves in the American flag and patriotism and go after a certain target demographic, which is very lucrative. You can already see the effects, you can already see the big hires on other networks, right wing hires to chase after this effect, and you can already see that flag waving in the corners of those cable news stations where they have exciting American music to go along with their war coverage.

Well, all of this has to do with what you’ve seen on Fox and its successes. So I do urge you to be very discerning as you continue to watch the development of cable news, and it is changing like lightning. Be very discerning because it behooves you like it never did before to watch with a grain of salt and to choose responsibly, and to demand what you should know.

You can find the full text of her speech HERE

In addition, I HIGHLY recommend you check out Glenn’s blog using the link on the right side of this page. Also, Amy Goodman is such an excellent journalist. Her website, DemocracyNow.org is one of the few places on the net where you will truly get news that is “fair and balanced.” Her Izzy award is also much deserved.

Unfortunately, for some reason I couldn’t post the videos directly here, but you can see them all in one place. Just go here to enjoy them. And don’t be shy leaving me your thoughts and comments, or passing this blog post on to others who might find it worthwhile reading.

Resembling I.F. Stone

rogerhollander — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 23:06:27 +0000

Published on Wednesday, April 1, 2009 by CommonDreams.org

I.F. Stone’s Son on the Izzy Awards, Amy Goodman and Glenn Greenwald

by Jeremy Stone

This is adapted from comments made at Tuesday’s inaugural ceremony of the Izzy Awards for independent media – named after legendary journalist I.F. “Izzy” Stone. Blogger Glenn Greenwald and Amy Goodman of Democracy Now! shared the award presented by Ithaca College’s Park Center for Independent Media.

When I first heard about an award for people who most “resembled” Izzy, I had high hopes that I might finally win a prize. Unfortunately, the selection committee appears to have been concerned with behavior.

Resembling Izzy in behavioral terms does not lead to an easy life. His capacity for thinking independently, and acting on principle, isolated him from just about everyone.

In the McCarthy era, because he spoke in defense of Jeffersonian principles, people were afraid to be seen with him. When he supported the rights of Palestinians, Jewish institutions would not invite him to speak. And when the National Press Club refused to serve his black guest lunch, he quit the club, isolating himself from his colleagues.

He said he was so happy in his work that he should be “arrested.” But the consequence, for him, of speaking truth to power was loneliness.

Inevitably, the reward of such a man comes late. I.F. Stone knew this. He said: “I began as a pariah and then was treated as a gadfly. If I live long enough, I will become an institution.” And indeed in his lifetime, he moved on to become an icon.

Last year, Harvard’s Nieman Foundation for Journalism began awarding an annual I.F Stone Medal for Journalistic Independence with a follow-on panel on strengthening this independence. So two decades after his death, he became a fulcrum for journalistic independence.

Now, following the I.F. Stone Medal of 2008, comes the Izzy Award of 2009 with different criteria but a common goal. Rest assured that I.F. Stone is rotating in his grave with pleasure over these annual awards.

Today’s Izzy Award winners do have points of resemblance to I.F. Stone. Glenn Greenwald is a close reader of official documents and a principled critic of the tendency of the Executive Branch to exceed its rightful powers. He has been a fearless critic of government officials and complacent reporters. He has shown a willingness to challenge conventional pieties, including unthinking support for Israeli hardliners.

Amy Goodman career also has similarities. She speaks up for the disenfranchised and gives her audience facts they don’t hear from the traditional media. She is an investigative journalist and writes often about human rights. Like I. F. Stone and his weekly, she founded a vehicle, “Democracy Now!”, that takes no advertising or money from corporations or government. She confronts authority no matter how high. And she has repeatedly shown physical courage, something that I.F. Stone showed in accompanying Jewish refugees of World War II in their illegal and dangerous travel from Europe to Palestine.

I.F. Stone once said: “If the Government makes a mistake, the newspapers will find out and the problem may then be fixed. But if freedom of the press were lost, the country would soon go to pieces.”

What will this crucial freedom of the press amount to in coming years in the face of so much technological change? And how to protect it? The Park Center for Independent Media’s answer is to indentify role models by giving them Izzy Awards. It has made a good beginning.

In conclusion, I.F. Stone once said that he resembled nothing more than a “great Jewish bullfrog.” With this in mind, I congratulate the awardees on two grounds: their prize-winning resemblance to I.F. Stone in behavioral terms and their abysmal failure to resemble him in person.

Jeremy Stone is the president of Catalytic Diplomacy. He headed the Federation of American Scientists from 1970 to 2000; his name appeared on Richard Nixon’s Enemies List in 1973. He supervises the official www.ifstone.org website and is the elder son of Esther and Izzy Stone.

Meet me in St. Louis

mikefancher — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 05:11:22 +0000

A city is experiencing an upswing in crimes committed by young male African Americans. Should a journalist be worried that telling these crime stories day after day may lead citizens to falsely stereotype all young African Americans as criminals?

Right before an election, one candidate accuses the other of having an illegitimate child. Should a journalist report the allegation if there isn’t time to evaluate whether it’s true before people vote?

A journalist discovers that the CIA has committed illegal activities. Should the story be reported if it might reveal how the CIA is operating to lower the risk of terrorist attacks in the U.S.?

Journalists wrestle with judgments like these hypothetical situations all of the time, but they too seldom engage anyone outside the newsroom in their deliberations. They almost never do so before a decision is made, and rarely after the fact, unless the decision causes so much anger in the community that some explanation is unavoidable.

A free public forum at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 11, at the Missouri History Museum in St Louis will give citizens and journalists a chance to talk to each other about ethical questions like these. I hope the discussion will illuminate a dynamic tension among the ethical values at the heart of professional journalism. I also hope it will explore how citizens would have journalists wrestle with that tension.

A video of the event will be posted as soon as possible at the website of the Reynods Journalism Institute at the Missouri School of Journalism.

Anatomy of the Social Networking of a Strike: UO's Daily Emerald Sets Up Strike blog

pamcyt — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 23:30:32 +0000

The UO Journalism staffers at the Daily Emerald — currently on strike — are wisely using all social networking tools at their disposal to get their word out. They’ve set up a blog to update interested parties on their thoughts, progress, news, actions. I haven’t checked for a Facebook group but I assume if there isn’t one yet it’s coming any second.

Much to explore!!

The striking Emerald staff blog is:

Independent Journalism

The Oregon Commentator, of all publications, has come out in support of our strike. You can see the full text of the OC’s editorial here.

No Picture

Oregon Student Newspaper on Strike, Protesting Publisher Position « College Media Matters 3:18pm

Source: collegemediamatters.com

The editorial staff of The Emerald, the student newspaper at the University of Oregon, is officially on strike. As announced on the paper’s homepage:

Alternative Nobel Prize: IBS Television Liberty berichtet aus Stockholm, SWEDEN

regionalhilfe.de, Andreas Klamm Journalist — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:29:20 +0000

IBS Television Liberty berichtet aus Stockholm, SWEDEN

Liebe Leser und Leserinnen !

Liebe Zuschauer und Zuschauerinnen !

Liebe Hörer und Hörerinnen !

Zur Verleihung des Right Livelihood Award, Alternativer Nobel-Preis

8. Dezember 2008

IBS Television Liberty, das als Teil von IBS Independent Broadcasting Service Liberty, 1986 gegründet wurde in der deutschen Stadt Speyer am Rhein und in der englischen Stadt Leeds in England neben Radio IBS Liberty berichtet zum Right Livelihood Award, der Verleihung des Alternativen Nobel-Preises aus Stockholm, Schweden.

In diesem Jahr wurden ein Ehepaar aus Indien, Krishnammal Jagannathan, Asha Hagi aus Somalia, die Ärztin Dr. Monkia Hauser und meine Kollegin die amerikanische Journalistin und Autorin mehrerer Bücher, Amy Goodman mit dem Right Livelihood Award, dem Alternativen Nobel-Preis ausgezeichnet.

Die ersten zwei Fernseh-Sendungen sind bei http://www.youtube.com/andreasklamm zu sehen.

Da die Projekte alle der internationalen Völkerverständigung dienen, bitte ich um Verständnis, dass die Beiträge überwiegend in der englischen Sprache produziert sind, da die Englische Sprache eine Sprache ist, die fast in allen Teilen der Welt gesprochen wird, musste ich mich als Französischer ? deutscher Journalist schon 1984 sehr früh im Alter von 16 Jahren daran gewöhnen in deutscher, französicher und englischer Sprache zu kommunizieren.

Für die deutschen Zuschauer und Zuschauerinnen werde ich sobald wie möglich auch noch einen deutschen Übersetzungs- und Kommentar-Ton produzieren.

Stockholm in Schweden ist eine sehr schöne Stadt und zwei Flugstunden von Deutschland entfernt.

Daher bitte ich um Verständnis, dass es bei der Kommunikation zu erheblichen zeitlichen Verzögerungen kommen kann ? sowohl am Telefon, email, Brief und weiterer Kommunikations-Dienste.

Die Anrufe werden in der Regel weitergeleitet (kostenfrei) !

IBS Television Liberty wird ausschliesslich durch Zuschauer, Zuschauerinnen, Hörer und Hörerinnen finanziert. In unseren Sendungen ist Werbung nicht enthalten, wenn auch generell NICHT ausgeschlossen. Finanzmittel von staatlichen Stellen erhalten wir nicht.

Wer die Projekte, die Radio- Fernseh- und weiteren Medien-Projekte unterstützen will kann die gerne tun. Weitere Infos sind bei der Redaktion erhältlich: news247@btinternet.com .

Eine auszugsweise Beschreibung einer Projekte ist dem von mir kürzlich, Ende Oktober 2008 erschienenen Buch

Liberty and Peace NOW! Human Rights Reporters:: Medienprojekt Menschenrechts-Reporter:: Edition 2008, No. 1, Human Rights, abuses and violations of Human Rights, international understanding, author: Andreas Klamm, Journalist: Books on Demand Gmbh; Edition 1 (October 2008), Language: English / German, bi-lingual, ISBN-10: 3837072436 , ISBN-13: 978-3837072433

zu finden.

Jedem Zuschauer und Zuschauerin, die das Buch kaufen, bin ich sehr dankbar. Wer eine persönliche Widmung wünscht, kann diese gerne auch erhalten, als ein Deckblatt zum Einlegen mittels Post oder bei einer persönlichen Begegnung…

Meiner Kollegin, der amerikanischen Journalistin, Rundfunk-Journalistin und Autorin Amy Goodman, kann ich in jeder Beziehung nur zustimmen: Freie und unabhängige Medien sind auch für Deutschland ganz wichtig, — für jedes Land und deshalb habe ich auch 1986 IBS Independent Broadcasting Service Liberty, Radio IBS Liberty und IBS Television Liberty gegründet.

Wenn man ständig viele Radio- und Fernseh-Sendungen produziert, dann muss man sich auch mal eine kleine Pause gönnen und in diesen immer kürzer werdenden Pausen gönne ich mir dann das Beste, die Sendungen von Amy Goodman und dem Democracy NOW! – Team die ich nur sehr empfehlen kann, zu sehen via Satellit oder im Internet bei www.democracynow.org .

Das Buch “Standing up to the madness”, der Kollegin Amy Goodman und des Kollegin David Goodman kann ich ebenso jedem interessierten Menschen empfehlen. ISBN 978-1-4013-2288-5. Die Inhalte mögen für einige Menschen in Deutschland und in Europa sehr schockierend sein, doch vielleicht ist gerade deshalb das Buch so gut…

Es ist wichtig sich für die Demokratie zu engagieren. Das sagte mir auch vor kurzem Jakob von Uexkuell im Radio-Interview, den ich jetzt in Stockholm, Schweden persönlich kennenlernen durfte. Der Mann und Gründer des Right Livelihood Award, des Alternativen Nobel-Preises muss es wissen. Immerhin war er doch Mitglied im Europäischen Parlament.

Es ist ähnlich wie mit der Produktion von Radio und Fernseh-Sendungen. Wer sich nicht engagiert und zum Teil Tag und Nacht arbeitet, der kann doch nicht erwarten, dass etwas GUTES und gute Werke entstehen können. Gute Radio- und Fernseh-Sendungen entstehen nicht durch Zufall.

Ähnlich ist es auch in der Politik. Eine gut funktionierende Demokratie, die Pflege und der Erhalt von Meinungs- Presse- und Informations-Freiheit entstehen keineswegs durch Zufall. Diese und andere wichtige Werte und Errungenschaften sind nur möglich, wenn sich in der Vielfalt viele Menschen mit guten Ideen engagieren. Im Schwedischen Parlament durfte ich Augenzeuge werde, dass dies übrigens sehr gut funktioniert.

Daher: Engagement ist wichtig und es lohnt sich, für das GUTE !

Einen guten 3. Advent wünscht mit lieben Grüßen

aus einer sehr schönen Stadt, Stockholm, Sweden,

Andreas Klamm, Journalist, Moderator, Nachrichten-Korrespondent

IBS Television Liberty

Radio IBS Liberty

IBS Independent Broadcasting Service Liberty

www.ibstelevision.com

www.youtube.com/andereasklamm

** für die verzögerte Übermittlung von Nachrichten und Mitteilungen bittet die Redaktion von IBS Television Liberty und Radio IBS Liberty um Verständnis ! DANKE !

Freie und unabhängige Medien sind wichtig: Journalistin Amy Goodman liest „Standing up to the madness“ in Berlin

regionalhilfe.de, Andreas Klamm Journalist — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 19:14:48 +0000

Freie und unabhängige Medien sind wichtig:

Journalistin Amy Goodman liest „Standing up to the madness“ in Berlin

Von Andreas Klamm

New York / Hamburg / Berlin/12. Dezember 2008/3mnewswire.org/– Die amerikanische Top-Journalistin und Produzentin des amerikanischen Nachrichten-Fernseh- und Radio-Programmes, Democracy NOW! wird am Freitag, 12. Dezember 2008, ab 18.30 Uhr in der Humboldt Universität in Berlin aus ihrem New York Times-Best-Seller „Standing up to the madness – Ordinary Heroes in Extraordinary Times“ ( ISBN: 1401322883) lesen.

Zu Beginn dieser Woche wurde die Journalistin mit drei weiteren Empfängerinnen, Dr. Monika Hauser, Krishnammal Jagannathan und Asha Hagi mit dem Right Livelihood Award, der auch als Alternativer Nobel-Preis weltweit bekannt ist, in der Stadt Stockholm im Schwedischen Parlament ausgezeichnet.

Der Vortag: „Die Wichtigkeit unabhängiger Medien – Von Bush bis zu Obama“ beginnt um 18.30 Uhr. Die Lesung von Amy Goodman findet in der Humboldt Universität in Berlin statt. Eine Beschreibung für die Anfahrtswege kann im Internet bei www.hu-berlin.de/hu/lage/ abgerufen werden.

Der Eintritt ist frei und die Lesung der amerikanischen Journalistin Amy Goodman ist öffentlich.

Die Veranstaltung wird unterstützt von American Voices Abroad (www.avaberlin.org ) und von Books in Berlin ( www.booksinberlin.de ).

Morgen am Samstag, den 13. Dezember 2008 wird die beliebte und exzellente Journalistin, Amy Goodman in München einen Vortrag um 19.30 Uhr, im Weltsalon auf dem Tollwood Festival auf der Thersienwiesen in München halten.

Die Fernseh-Journalistin wird zum Thema „Vergessen Sie die Depression und schaffen Sie Optimismus für die Zukunft“ sprechen.“ Nach dem Vortrag wird Amy Goodman eine Diskussion über die Wichtigkeit unabhängiger Medien führen.

Mit öffentlichen Verkehrsmitteln kann mit der U-Bahn U4 / U5 zur Theresienwiese gefahren werden. Es stehen nur wenige kostenpflichtige Parkplätze auf dem BRK-Parkplatz zur Verfügung.

Der Eintritt zur Lesung der erstklassigen Journalistin und Autorin mehrerer Bücher ist auch in München kostenfrei.

Weitere Hinweise im Internet bei www.tollwood.de/english/winterfestival-2008/weltsalon .

Die Autorin schreibt die Bücher in Zusammenarbeit mit ihrem Bruder David Goodman.

Das Buch „Standing up to the madness – Ordinary Heroes in Extraordinary Times“ ( ISBN: 1401322883) wurde geschrieben von Amy und David Goodman und ist im Jahr 2008 neu erschienen. Es wurde innerhalb kürzester Zeit zu einem New York Times-Best-Seller. Amy Goodman wurde für zahlreiche weitere Werke mit angesehenen und internationalen Preisen ausgezeichnet, unter anderem mit folgenden Auszeichnungen: The Paley Center for Media She Made It Award, 2007, Gracie Award for American Women in Radio and Television Public Broadcasting, 2007, James Aronson Award for Social Justice Journalism, 2007, Webby Award Honoree, 2007, Puffin/Nation Prize for Creative Citizenship, 2006, Ruben Salazar Journalism Award, George Polk Award, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Prize, Communication for Peace Award und zu Beginn dieser Woche mit dem Right Livelihood Award in Stockholm in Schweden geehrt.

Bereits gestern sendete die erfolgreiche investigative Journalistin aus der Stadt Hamburg in Co-operation mit Europas größten Magazin Der Spiegel (www.der-spiegel.de ), heute sendet das Democracy NOW! Team aus Ost-Berlin.

Seit 1984 ist Amy Goodman zudem als Rundfunk-Journalistin tätig und gründete vor rund 12 Jahren das freie und unabhängige Fernseh- und Radio-Nachrichten-Programm Democracy NOW!. Das Fernseh- und Radio-Programm ist die größte U.S.-Medien-Vereinigung, die auf mehr als 700 Fernseh-Stationen, Satelliten-Fernsehen, im Internet und bei rund 200 Radio-Stationen in den Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika und in der Welt zu hören und zu sehen ist. Democracy NOW! Ist täglich von 8.00 bis 9.00 Uhr nach U.S. EST zu sehen und von 13 bis 14 Uhr GMT-Zeit zu sehen auch im Internet bei www.democracynow.org .

Für Recherchen steht ein großes Online-Archiv kostenfrei zur Verfügung.

Das Programm wird durch die Zuschauer, Hörer und durch verschiedenen Stiftungen finanziert. Es werden Dienste in englischer und spanischer Sprache geboten. Zudem gibt es einen Transcript-Dienst und ein Dienst für taube Hörer bzw. Zuschauer.

Die Bücher von Amy Goodman und David Goodman sind in jeder Buchhandlung und zudem auch im Internet bei www.democracynow.org/store/category/5 erhältlich.

Ausführliche Informationen zu Democracy NOW! sind bei www.democracynow.org im Internet zu finden.

3mnewswire.org

Freie und unabhängige Medien sind wichtig: Journalistin Amy Goodman liest „Standing up to the madness“ in Berlin

regionalhilfe.de, Andreas Klamm Journalist — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 18:33:11 +0000

Freie und unabhängige Medien sind wichtig:

Journalistin Amy Goodman liest „Standing up to the madness“ in Berlin

Von Andreas Klamm

Der Eintritt ist frei und die Lesung der amerikanischen Journalistin Amy Goodman ist öffentlich.

Die Veranstaltung wird unterstützt von American Voices Abroad (www.avaberlin.org ) und von Books in Berlin ( www.booksinberlin.de ).

Mit öffentlichen Verkehrsmitteln kann mit der U-Bahn U4 / U5 zur Theresienwiese gefahren werden. Es stehen nur wenige kostenpflichtige Parkplätze auf dem BRK-Parkplatz zur Verfügung.

Der Eintritt zur Lesung der erstklassigen Journalistin und Autorin mehrerer Bücher ist auch in München kostenfrei.

Weitere Hinweise im Internet bei www.tollwood.de/english/winterfestival-2008/weltsalon .

Die Autorin schreibt die Bücher in Zusammenarbeit mit ihrem Bruder David Goodman.

Für Recherchen steht ein großes Online-Archiv kostenfrei zur Verfügung.

Die Bücher von Amy Goodman und David Goodman sind in jeder Buchhandlung und zudem auch im Internet bei www.democracynow.org/store/category/5 erhältlich.

Ausführliche Informationen zu Democracy NOW! sind bei www.democracynow.org im Internet zu finden.

3mnewswire.org

Not Embedded

Muller — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:35:11 +0000

When I recently wrote about the scandal of embedded journalism in war regions, I unintentionally missed to mention a man whose consistently informative reports from Tehran on his blog I read with increasing interest, especially when planning and organizing my next trip to Iran. Martin Ebbing has died two days ago after a massive heart attack and an emergency evacuation to a hospital in Berlin. I can only offer my sincerest condolences to his wife, the photographer Zoreh Soleimani, and his two sons who I have never met.

Mr. Ebbing’s appraisal of Iran’s controversial nuclear program, his careful analyses of difficult to perceive day-by-day politics in Iran, his reportages about provincial life in Iran, and his continuous fight for human rights in a country where freedom of expression is not at all safeguarded I always saluted. He really loved the people in this enigmatic country with its millennia-old history and that makes the difference.

Thank you, Martin Ebbing, for your commitment, your dedication, and service for us who are interested in the people of Iran and other countries in the Middle East.

In Praise of Izzy

stevenhart — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 11:51:45 +0000

The great independent journalist I.F. Stone, remembered and celebrated by a proud grandchild. Not only was Izzy, in her words, a proto-blogger, but he was forever cutting against the grain of people’s expectations:

He was a true force of nature, and no brief discussion of his works and days could begin to capture his many wonders. But Jack Beatty’s talk came close. Jack’s book on Curley and the Democratic Machine, The Rascal King, is simply the greatest biography of a man and big city machine politics ever written. He and his wife were old, old, friends of Izzy and Esther and accompanied them to everything from parties to movies. Early in the proceedings he leaped to the podium and his booming, genial voice simply filled the space and cleared out any clutter left by more timid, reverential, hagiographic approaches to Izzy. Look, he said, (more or less and forgive me, Jack, for any misquotes) Izzy was increasingly both blind and deaf. And he was always and eternally himself. He never let the audiences expectations govern his behavior. He spoke at a dinner celebrating Walter Lippman and instead of complimenting the great man launched into a tirade against him, leaving my poor grandmother, who could actually see the faces in the celebrity audience, to face the brunt of the audience’s rage and horror as Izzy ceremonially stomped Lippman’s legend into the dust. Picture Izzy doing the same thing at a film about the wonders of communism when, as an imagined “man of the left” the audience turns to him for approbation and gets a fifty minute disquisition on the horrors of communism and the glories of the red, white and blue.

Izzy was also a man who could be an uncomfortable dinner guest — at least, if the host was a pious clod like Morton Kondracke:

My favorite of Jack’s stories–man, he crammed a lot in–was his technicolor rendering of a Thanksgiving Dinner with Morton Kondracke and Kondracke’s family of young children. In high mid-twentieth style the great men assembled for dinner are asked, ceremoniously, to speak on the wonders of g-d and when they came ’round to Izzy he said forthrightly (and oh, how Jewishly) something on the order of “G-d? that *&^%$ criminal? If there is a g-d he’s responsible for more war, pestilence, and murder of children than any single human in history. He’s got a lot to answer for. I’d rather believe in no g-d than have to impeach the bastard with his crimes.” (that’s a paraphrase, but thinking back on my own thanksgivings with Izzy probably not by much). Jack left us with the image of the young Kondrackes pleading with their mother and father “but…but…isn’t there a g-d?”

There’s a good deal more about indepedent journalism and whether Stone would have been comfortable with the back-and-forth commentary of the Internets. I tend to think he would have had a ball with this technology.

Finding our way to the future of journalism

mikefancher — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 03:10:50 +0000

Imagine a compass with different labels for north, east, south and west. The labels say:

Independent

Socially Responsible

Tell the truth

Do no harm

You are a journalist. Where is true north on your compass?

You are a citizen who wants journalism you can trust. Where should true north be?

Amy Goodman of Democracy Now! is First Journalist to Win "Alternative Nobel"

Angela Hayden — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 04:01:19 +0000

2008 Right Livelihood Awards honour champions of
independent journalism, peace-building and social justice.
(aka Alternative Nobel)

Amy Goodman

Photographer: Michael Kee

Amy Goodman (USA), founder and award-winning host of Democracy Now!, a daily grassroots, global tv/radio news hour, is honoured “for developing an innovative model of truly independent political journalism that brings to millions of people the alternative voices that are often excluded by the mainstream media.”

The media is sometimes called the fourth power in a democracy. But in many countries of the world, the media is today no longer willing or able to play this role. Instead it defers to commercial and political interests, thus eroding democracy. With Democracy Now!, Amy Goodman has shown what the alternative to this dangerous trend can look like. Democracy Now! is the largest public media collaboration in the U.S. which is now available to people seeking alternative viewpoints around the globe.

Career
Amy Goodman was born in 1957, graduated from Harvard in 1984 and became news director at the New York radio station WBAI a few years later. In 1996 she launched the daily one-hour news broadcast Democracy Now!, which she now hosts with Juan Gonzales, and which is produced live from 08.00 to 09.00 US EST.

Unembedded reporting
Democracy Now! focuses on issues its producers consider under-reported or ignored by mainstream news coverage, like global news or reporting on anti-war activism in the U.S. It provides hard-hitting, independent, breaking coverage of war and peace, U.S. domestic and foreign policy, and struggles for social, racial, economic, gender and environmental justice in the U.S. and abroad.

Democracy Now! seeks to give voice to the voiceless. Its broadcasts include:

in-depth interviews with community members, activists, academics, artists and journalists shut out by the mainstream media,
debates between activists and people in power,
investigative reports and exclusive interviews with usual and controversial guests,
and on-the-ground reporting from protests, the recent conventions and hot spots round the world.

Democracy Now! – Facts and figures
Democracy Now! is the fastest growing independent news program in the USA. The show is now syndicated to more than 700 radio and TV, satellite and cable TV networks in North America reaching millions of people worldwide.

Democracy Now! is produced by seven producers, 20 full-time and 15 paid part-time staff as well as many volunteers. Broadcast daily as an hourly TV show, but with its founding on radio, it is produced in such a way that the stories never rely on the pictures, which allows it to be sent out as a radio show on community radio stations all over the US.
Democracy Now! has an outreach team working to encourage communities to demand that their community radio stations transmit the programme.

Democracy Now!’s innovative technical solutions allow for high usability for any kind of audience. There is ‘close captioning’ for deaf people and numerous voluntary transcribers produce full transcripts of the show. On the website, there are different types of streams and downloads, e.g. audio files, but also high-quality video files that are sent out, for example, by a Japanese TV channel once a week. Democracy Now! also keeps a complete archive of all its shows, which people can research for free.

Democracy Now! receives no government or corporate funding. Because of its educational mission, it has charitable status according to US law (501c3). Major organisational donors have been the Lannan Foundation and the Wallace Global Fund. Significant contributions also come from listeners themselves.

Trickle-up journalism
Goodman describes Democracy Now! as ‘trickle-up journalism’, because the stories it runs are often taken up by the mainstream media and her interviewees are very often interviewed by other channels after they have appeared on Democracy Now! Thus, the significance of Democracy Now! goes beyond the show as such: It also serves to open up the media landscape, acting as a ‘conveyor belt’ for stories that otherwise would not reach the mainstream media.

Awards and books
Goodman’s awards include the Golden Reel for the Best National Documentary for ‘Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria’s Oil Dictatorship’ in 1998, and the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Prize for ‘Massacre: the Story of East Timor‘. This story had almost cost her life: In East Timor, she survived a massacre in 1991 in which Indonesian soldiers gunned down 270 Timorese.

Goodman has also written three hard-hitting books with her brother, David Goodman: The Exception to the Rulers (2004); Static: Government Liars, Media Cheer-leaders and the People who Fight Back (2006); and Standing up to the Madness (2008). She also syndicates a column to national papers.

Democracy Now! is broadcast daily from 8-9am EST/1-2pm GMT. To watch today’s show and for a list of international and domestic stations that carry DN!, please go to www.democracynow.org.

Quotation

“I am completely honored to have my work and the work of my colleagues held in such high regard, it makes me realize how important the work of bringing a truly independent voice to broadcast news and journalism really is. I really believe in free speech and independent journalism as a tool for peace, for understanding. It is so important, especially during times like these, that the media hold the politicians feet to the fire… we all need the real answers, the truth as best we can. This is why I get up every morning and go to the red firehouse we broadcast from everyday, still as excited as my first day at Democracy Now! over 12 years ago.”

Amy Goodman

Mapping the Recent Conflict

jdnajem — Sat, 10 May 2008 18:36:01 +0000

(Above: Detail of Ras Beirut, where much of the recent fighting is/was, captured from a Platial map created to document the events of the past few days.)

I just sent this email out to everyone I know in Lebanon. Please move it around:

Dear friends close to Lebanon,

I hope each and every one of you is safe and sound in the midst of the recent fighting in Beirut and elsewhere in Lebanon.

I am conducting an experiment with mapping this recent conflict with a social web application called Platial maps. On this map, to which I’ve added only a few markers to get started, you can set a marker, create icons (because there’s a pretty limited selection and they weren’t designed to document conflict) upload pictures, and write descriptions of what you saw or experienced or read about while you were inside waiting for it to end.

The map is here:

http://platial.com/map/Beirut-Crisis/112814/

Whether the powers that be come to an agreement today or not, I would like to try to engage in some safe, yet collective action to document the events of the past few days. Anything that you saw is worth remembering, worth documenting. If a friend told you a story that you think should be on this map, please ask him or her to add it. If they don’t have internet access, ask for the information, what happened and where, and add it for them.

Also, I know many of us work with slow internet connections, and I imagine this map is somewhat bandwidth intensive, but if you can get access to a faster connection through an internet cafe, at the office, or at a friends, I think it will be well worth all of our time to contribute. On our 256k Mobi modem, it took about 3-4 minutes to load. You may have to register with Platial to add data. Again, I hope you’ll think it’s worth it. It will not end anytime soon and you can visit as often as you like.

A note: You can also edit icons. Feel free to do so, keeping in mind that what you are editing is another person’s experience. In most cases, I imagine it is better to add a new marker or to add to (but not edit) an existing marker. This project is much more about preserving and honoring our memories than about reporting facts, though the facts that will naturally appear also help construct the fabric. If you are writing and you’re not sure of a fact, you may want to include a (?). Then, someone else may come along and help.

If you have specific questions about this project, please email me directly. I’ll do my best to answer them. But for the moment, I’ll just say that this was inspired by other maps I’ve seen of conflict, by Zeina Maasri’s maps of the 2006 war, and by the possibilities of working together, though dispersed with online media.

Thank you for your participation and for forwarding this email to others who might like to contribute.

Hopefully,

Jessica