...our primary enemy was the Soviets.

One of the many reasons (we were told), that we were morally superior to the Soviet Union was that we had a free and unfettered press, whereas they, in contrast, had an official state organ, Pravda ,that provided no news except party-approved propaganda.

Holding the government accountable wasn't just expected. It was a a patriotic duty.

It wasn't until the swift-boat campaign that I realized that much of what we're seeing happen now, is a direct result of people seeking revenge for what took place in the 70's.

I don't think we should lionize Cronkite, but by using him as a point of comparison we can see that it's much worse today then it was back then. All these criticisms are spot on and none of them are too minor to focus on. I like this quote from John Pilger. Even the Soviets could see it taking shape here way back then.

John Pilger addresses Columbia University in New York

On 14 April 2006, the Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University in New York brought together John Pilger, Seymour Hersh, Robert Fisk and Charles Glass for a discussion entitled 'Breaking the Silence: War, lies and empire'.

Tne following is a transcript of John Pilger's address - 'War by Media':

"During the Cold War, a group of Russian journalists toured the United States. On the final day of their visit, they were asked by their hosts for their impressions. “I have to tell you,” said their spokesman, “that we were astonished to find, after reading all the newspapers and watching TV, that all the opinions on all the vital issues were, by and large, the same. To get that result in our country, we imprison people, we tear out their fingernails. Here, you don't have that. What's the secret? How do you do it?”

What is the secret? It's a question now urgently asked of those whose job is to keep the record straight: who in this country have extraordinary constitutional freedom. I refer to journalists, of course, a small group who hold privileged sway over the way we think, even the way we use language.

I have been a journalist for more than 40 years. Although I am based in London, I have worked all over the world, including the United States, and I have reported America's wars. My experience is that what the Russian journalists were referring to is censorship by omission, the product of a parallel world of unspoken truth and public myths and lies: in other words, censorship by journalism, which today has become war by journalism.

For me, this is the most virulent and powerful form of censorship, fuelling an indoctrination that runs deep in western societies, deeper than many journalists themselves understand or will admit to. Its power is such that it can mean the difference between life and death for untold numbers of people in faraway countries, like Iraq...

http://www.johnpilger.com/page.asp?partid=267

"He's one of the smartest liberal journalists out there. His book Chain Reaction changed the way I thought about so many things."

Centrism is intellectual laziness. It's neither progressive nor liberal. It's regressive and reactionary. What "soaring ghetto crime rate"? Stop the war on drugs. The baby boomers have aged past the prime crime committing demo. That was your soaring crime rate. A statistical blip. The man is a Friedmanesque idiot.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/blog/AAMRLZFW9K2AR/ref=cm_blog_blog/002-4547876-6001661

Let's just let them move the goal posts as much as they want and do sit on our lazy asses and do nothing. In 50 years, Grover norquist will be a "liberal".

"The American fascist would prefer not to use violence. His method is to poison the channels of public information."

Henry Wallace

Glenn asked:

OK. So words are insufficient. The crisis is too grave for mere words to suffice. You said that three times (at least).

More is required. What beyond "words" needs to be done? Be specific.

Someone is always becoming impatient with the pace of change. But the most important thing being done is exactly what Glenn and others do, resisting this nonsense that Edsall is a "liberal" because he isn't Grover Norquist. At least not yet. You have made gains in the struggle when you have moved the goal posts, (the Overton Window), back to where they belong. And for too many years, we have just let it slide to the right. Acceptance of Edsall as a "liberal" is a concession, not even a compromise.

As Finley Peter Dunne once said, A journalist's job is to afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted, and you are way too comfortable.

In it's simplest terms, there are probably two types of money focused people. Dickens pictured both in the form of Ebenezer Scrooge... or look at Gordon Gekko or any of the jack asses that have found their way to prison lately, the guys at Enron who laughed about screwing over little old ladies in CA. Or see The Prime Gig with Vince Vaughn, or Boiler Room with Affleck. There are a few people, like Ross Perot who like to think of themselves as self-made men. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

http://www.responsiblewealth.org/press/2004/NotAlone_pr.html

Then there is Warren Buffet. That's what a decent billionaire looks like. I'm not super wealthy, but if I was, I'd like this site:

http://www.responsiblewealth.org/