War / Peace

How Dare They?

by Laura Miller — November 14, 2001 - 3:41pm

Public Campaign, an advocacy group that campaigns for election finance reform, has launched a new website called HowDareThey.org to challenge wartime profiteering by corporate lobbyists. The site features information on topics such as the airline bailout, airline security weaknesses, the high cost of pharmaceutical drugs like Cipro, and the "economic stimulus package" that recently passed the House of Representatives. "We have our hands on our hearts, saluting the flag, mourning the people who are dead, and at the same time these special interests are trying to pick our pockets.

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http://www.howdarethey.org

Changing of the Guard

by Sheldon Rampton — November 14, 2001 - 10:15am

As the Northern Alliance routs Taliban soldiers in Kabul and other cities, the news media has been uncannily silent about the Northern Alliance's own history of ruthless human rights violations.

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http://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/asia/afghan-bck1005.htm

In Too Deep With Our Friends from the North

by Sheldon Rampton — November 14, 2001 - 12:00am

"Any city freed from tyranny is a place of joy," writes Simon Jenkins of the Times of London. "Yesterday the Afghan capital, Kabul, was joyful. Its people lined the streets cheering the demise of their latest oppressors. As the latter fled south, civilized people cried good riddance and wished the Afghans well. Any change must be for the better. Any change is an opportunity." Unfortunately, "I could have written the above paragraph, more or less, in 1996, 1992, 1989, 1973, 1919, 1879, 1841, 1504, 1219 and possibly in 329BC.

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Times (London), November 14, 2001

Lollypop Lobby for the Northern Alliance

by Sheldon Rampton — November 14, 2001 - 12:00am

The Northern Alliance is using Otilie English, the sister of Republican Congressman Phil English, to head "Operation Ragtag," a low-rent, high-profile public relations offensive to boost financial and military aid for her clients. The Alliance's marketing team works out of English's crowded apartment. Tom Lauria, formerly a publicist for tobacco companies, manages press inquiries for the Alliance's made-for-TV spokesperson Haron Amin, who pops by between interviews.

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Australian Financial Review, November 14, 2001

Where are the Women?

by Sheldon Rampton — November 8, 2001 - 12:00am

"Here's one sure thing you can learn from watching TV: Almost all of the people who seem to know anything are men," comments Washington Post writer Paul Farhi. "Men know about Afghanistan. They know about anthrax. They know foreign policy and military strategy. They know about terrorism and counter-terrorism.

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Washington Post, November 8, 2001

Inside US Army Psyops

by Sheldon Rampton — November 8, 2001 - 12:00am

The Army's 4th Psychological Operations Group, the only US active-duty unit dedicated to psyops, is conducting a campaign to persuade Afghan Taliban troops to defect to the opposition and Afghan civilians to join with the United States in ousting the Taliban. The group consists of about 1,200 soldiers, selected from among Army's brightest, and about 35 civilian analysts, two thirds of whom have doctoral degrees.

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Wall Street Journal, November 8, 2001

Journalists Report What They Don't See

by Sheldon Rampton — November 8, 2001 - 12:00am

In the war in Afghanistan, journalists report what they don't see. Most war dispatches are based on what both U.S. and Taliban officials tell the reporters. There is almost no real reporting. Quetta, the provincial capital of Pakistan's southern Baluchistan province which borders the Taliban stronghold of Kandahar, is home to hundreds of Western journalists, both print and television. They depend on Pakistani commandos because it is not safe to move around without protection. "Most of us have no access to independent information and no means to verify what we are told," said one journalist.

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NewsAlert, November 8, 2001

Tell Them Nothing Till It's Over

by Laura Miller — November 6, 2001 - 4:42pm

Government needs the media on its side to keep public support in times of war. Journalist Phillip Knightley writes for the Public I, "In democracies like Britain and Australia, with a powerful press and a tradition of dissent, or like the United States, where freedom of expression is constitutionally guaranteed, the media cannot be coerced into supporting the war. They have to be seduced or intimidated into self-censorship.

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The Center for Public Integrity

Taliban Propaganda Suddenly Embraces the UN and Human Rights

by John Stauber — November 6, 2001 - 10:22am

The totalitarian Taliban regime has never been friendly to human rights or UN relief organizations, but now that it serves their propaganda they are demanding that UN relief agencies that they have consistently harassed "help the people of Afghanistan." A statement released by the Taliban appears aimed primarily at outside media and public opinion.

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New York Times

US PR War, Snagged in Mixed Messages, Readies Celebrity Ads

by John Stauber — November 6, 2001 - 10:02am

The Bush administration is launching a major PR offensive this week to sell its Afghanistan bombing campaign to Muslims, and top US PR coordinator Charlotte Beers is working on a TV and advertising campaign to be aired abroad that "could feature American celebrities." However, the US is already tripping over mixed messages, preparing the citizenry at home for a long bloody conflict, while Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld assures foreign leaders and media that the war "might be over in a matter of months," just what they want to hear.

Main Source: 
New York Times
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