Media

Disney's Iron-Fisted Marketing to Kids

by Anne Landman — March 12, 2010 - 3:28pm

The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood is a small advocacy group that last fall successfully got the Disney Company to offer full refunds to people who had purchased the company's "Baby Einstein" videos, which were supposed to make ver

Main Source: 
New York Times, March 9, 2010

Fooled You! The Military's Afghanistan PR Fib

by Anne Landman — March 9, 2010 - 1:42am

The U.S. media told the public for weeks that a big, offensive battle was taking place in Marja, in Afghanistan, a "city of 80,000 people" in Helmand province which was also the logistical hub of the Taliban. The description gave the impression that the U.S. presence in Marja was a major strategic objective, and that the city was more important than other district centers in the province.

Main Source: 
Interpress News Service, March 8, 2010

Groups Ramp Up Health Care Lobbying, Except AARP

by Anne Landman — March 8, 2010 - 2:17pm

As President Obama moves ahead with health care reform, interest groups on both sides of the issue are again ramping up their lobbying efforts. Robert Zirkelbach of America's Health Insurance Plans, the insurance industry's top lobbying group, said his industry is making "a big effort" to counteract attacks from Obama and other Democrats, who have pointed to hefty premium increases to show why health care reform is needed.

Main Source: 
Washington Post, February 28, 2010

CMD's Wendell Potter to Appear on Bill Moyers' Journal

by Anne Landman — March 3, 2010 - 12:43pm
  • Topics: Corporations, Health, Media

    • The Center for Media and Democracy's own Wendell Potter, former head Corporate Communications for CIGNA, and now the Center for Media and Democracy's Senior Fellow on Health Care, is going to New York Cit

    Cable TV Shows Rife with Hidden Flacks and Lobbyists

    by Anne Landman — March 2, 2010 - 4:44pm

    Cable news networks like MSNBC, CNN, CNBC and Fox News routinely use commentators who have financial conflicts of interest that are undisclosed to viewers. Former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge, for example, appeared on MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews, to discuss the economic crisis.

    Main Source: 
    The Nation, March 1, 2010

    Sarah Palin Gets a Hand Up

    by Anne Landman — February 8, 2010 - 2:45pm

    Ex-Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is becoming more vocal and visible in recent days, and indications are that the upswing will continue.

    Main Source: 
    New York Times, February 6, 2010

    The Right Wing Media's Lie Machine

    by Anne Landman — February 6, 2010 - 4:41pm
  • Topics: Right Wing, Media, Politics

    • In a video posted on YouTube on February 3, House Representative Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts) explains how the right wing media machine creates and spreads disinformation in an effort to smear the left. "Disinformation" should not be confused with "misinformation," the unintentional form of wrong information. Disinformation is produced by people who intend to mislead their audience.

    Step 1: Fabricate the Lie

    Frank tells how John Fund, an editorial writer for the Wall Street Journal, told a lie about him in November of last year: In a speech at a conservative function in Florida called "Restoration Weekend," Fund claimed that, after losing the special election in Massachusetts, Democrats Chuck Schumer and Barney Frank were going to propose a bill to create universal voter registration. Fund further stated that Democrats were going to add all welfare recipients and unemployed people to the voter rolls, and he called it "felon re-enfranchisement."

    In reality, Frank explains, there was no such bill.

    Boehner: "Prolonged Health Bill Debate Hurts the Economy" (Leaves Out GOP's Strategy to Stall it)

    by Anne Landman — February 4, 2010 - 11:56am

    House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) suggested on Fox News that the drawn-out process of passing health reform legislation is hurting the economy. Boehner told Fox News, “It’s the policies that are coming out of this administration and liberals here in Congress that are holding back employers ...

    Main Source: 
    Washington Independent, February 4, 2010

    NPR Includes Trash Talk in Obituary for Howard Zinn

    by Anne Landman — January 30, 2010 - 1:44am

    After progressive historian Howard Zinn died on January 27, 2010, National Public Radio ran an unusual obituary on its January 28 All Things Considered news program.

    Main Source: 
    Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR), January 29, 2010

    Journalists Hooked on Same Health Care Sources, Such as Jonathan Gruber

    by John Stauber — January 29, 2010 - 1:03pm

    Trudy Lieberman of the Columbia Journalism Review writes, "Jonathan Gruber is an economist from MIT. Jonathan Oberlander is a political scientist from the University of North Carolina. Both are health policy experts and, from what we can tell, both know their stuff. But the press has counted on Gruber rather than Oberlander to give gravitas to their stories.

    Main Source: 
    Columbia Journalism Review, January 28, 2010
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