Bush 'planted fake news stories on American TV' (Independent)

[savemefromdumbya]

Bush 'planted fake news stories on American TV'
By Andrew Buncombe in Washington
Published: 29 May 2006
Federal authorities are actively investigating dozens of American television stations for broadcasting items produced by the Bush administration and major corporations, and passing them off as normal news. Some of the fake news segments talked up success in the war in Iraq, or promoted the companies' products.

Investigators from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) are seeking information about stations across the country after a report produced by a campaign group detailed the extraordinary extent of the use of such items.

more at http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article621189.ece

so that's what's been going on? Worse than Goebbels propaganda.

[wicket]

1. Again????

n/t

[Joe Bacon]

60. Why do we have to go to the UK Independent to read this?

Is it too much to ask ONE, just ONE Press Whore to STOP kissing Bush's ass for a minute and report this in AMERICAN media?

[In Truth We Trust]

67. REVOLUTION!!!

[fooj]

2. How long have they been SPEWING their propaganda?

[liberal N proud]

37. 6 years and counting

[journalist3072]

3. It just never stops with these folks, does it?

They are truly without any sense of decency.

[Kikosexy2]

82. will ..

this mean huge fines for Faux News?

[grytpype]

4. From the article

The range of VNR is wide. Among items provided by the Bush administration to news stations was one in which an Iraqi-American in Kansas City was seen saying "Thank you Bush. Thank you USA" in response to the 2003 fall of Baghdad. The footage was actually produced by the State Department, one of 20 federal agencies that have produced and distributed such items.

[savemefromdumbya]

7. FYI

copycats?

Much of Goebbels' overtly political propaganda was concentrated in the cinema newsreels, especially during the war. He was aware of the desirability of realism, which is not necessarily the same as reality. For example, the planned German invasion of Britain was filmed in Antwerp harbour so that audiences could be shown the 'invasion' as it happened. The problem with newsreels in a one-party state is that of course people went into the cinema expecting that the newsreels would contain propaganda on behalf of the party. As a result, audiences took to turning up late, coming into the cinema during the newsreel, thus ruining its intended effects. In an attempt to overcome this, Goebbels ordered that there should be a five minute break between the newsreel and the main feature. That didn't have the intended effect, though, as audiences just stayed out in the foyer until the newsreel and the break were over. Goebbels was finally obliged to order that all cinemas should be locked and stay locked as soon as the newsreel had started. Anyone who wanted to see a feature film now had no choice other than to watch the newsreel as well. Taylor (1979) describes how the captive audience, no longer able to vote with their feet, expressed their disapproval by laughing, jeering and shouting, especially during the latter stages of the war.

This hardly seems to support the common view of Goebbels as the consummate master of propaganda. The only way he can get his newsreels seen is to lock his audiences in. This also runs counter to the view we have expressed on occasion that the hypodermic needle view of audiences being injected with media messages can be a reasonably accurate representation in those circumstances where there is central control of the media and all competing messages are excluded. Of course, as the war wore on and death and destruction were brought ever more frequently right to the audiences at home, the optimistic messages of the official propaganda would have been contradicted by people's direct, lived experience.

http://www.cultsock.ndirect.co.uk/MUHome/cshtml/propaganda/pol9.html

[no_hypocrisy]

19. I heard that Goebbels had a newsreel of Theriesenstadt, a concentration

camp, looking like a holiday camp for refugee Jews with them happily working away and wellfed, in order to counter rumors about the death camps generally.

[Igel]

39. That was the reason for Terezin.

It was a model concentration camp; Jews were allowed to write home, saying how wonderful it was, and many voluntarily did. And, in fact, it wasn't at all bad for a while. They didn't have to alter it to make it look good.

Until one day, of course, the Ubermenschen decided it had served its purpose.

[savemefromdumbya]

48. Life at 'Halliburton's Gitmo' is rosy too isn't it

you would also think that GITMO is a holiday camp

[Beowulf]

30. Realism not necessarily the same as reality

Sounds a bit like Stephen Colbert's "truthiness."

Goebbels actually studied the public relations techniques of Edward Bernays, who is often called the father of public relations.

[NastyDiaper]

35. Like we laughed at the cei co2 ads.

But they were so funny, that we were drawn to them for the humor alone.

[ktowntennesseedem]

38. ...in a one party state, people expected propaganda

on behalf of the party. We, too, live in what is for all intents and purposes a one-party state, especially when you consider evidence such as this. But few Americans realize that, and still consider their favorite news-sources to be trustworthy and unbiased. Expect, of course, for the lost-causes that flock to Faux news because they actually want to hear biased, happy little stories that make them feel better instead of anything with a shred of truth.

Goebbels would have loved that bunch; forget the main feature, he could have shown endless newsreels to a packed house.

:banghead:

[The Wizard]

63. Pox News viewers

need to be strapped to a gurney and injected with LSD.

[lvx35]

47. Wow, fascinating.

Its just amazing to me how bad propaganda ultimatly is for the culture its being used on, yet its use keeps occuring, and the regime using it always fails, or has severe problems due to the propaganda.

[lumpy]

5. Kick up Bush propaganda scheme.

Read it and weep.

[Arugula Latte]

6. Jesus.

Nothing these criminals do surprises me anymore.

It's so weird when you think "it can't happen here" and then it just DOES, right before your eyes.

[NYC]

8. You're right. It's not surprising.

Things like this should be, but they're not.

[rodeodance]

9. the State Dept. produced and passed of as news this item:

..The range of VNR is wide. Among items provided by the Bush administration to news stations was one in which an Iraqi-American in Kansas City was seen saying "Thank you Bush. Thank you USA" in response to the 2003 fall of Baghdad. The footage was actually produced by the State Department, one of 20 federal agencies that have produced and distributed such items.

[mirandapriestly]

68. That explains those news bits that I just find a little too hard to buy

that is just unbelievable. Everything that is happening is unbelievable.

[tuvor]

10. They were caught doing this two or three years ago.

And apparently they're still getting away with it.

[AJ9000]

14. Yep:

It's nothing new for them

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/01/politics/01educ.html?ei=5088&en=55a295038c3630e7&ex=1285819200&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&pagewanted=all

snip> Buying of News by Bush's Aides Is Ruled Illegal

“WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 - Federal auditors said on Friday that the Bush administration violated the law by buying favorable news coverage of President Bush's education policies, by making payments to the conservative commentator Armstrong Williams and by hiring a public relations company to analyze media perceptions of the Republican Party.

In a blistering report, the investigators, from the Government Accountability Office, said the administration had disseminated "covert propaganda" in the United States, in violation of a statutory ban.” <snip

Be interesting to see what more we've got coming now.

And Ring of Fire recently had somebody from www.prwatch.org describing how the news media has been taking industry PR fed to them and just reporting it as their own “news” even though much of it was false or misleading.

[tuvor]

17. Welcome to DU, AJ9000!

:hi:

[AJ9000]

21. Thanks tuv

I am a veteran of offtopic's political section.

I finally got tired of arguing w/ righties who deny the truth no matter how clearly you present it to them, so I quit shortly after the 04 elections.

Maybe I'll go back one day to see what some of them have to say now.

Now I'm starting up over here w/ folks who are at least reality based.

[Lasher]

24. I got tired of that too.

I used to visit a couple of bipartisan sites and got tired of wasting my time trying to explain the obvious to right wing idiots:

Right Winger: Black is white.

Me: No, black is not white. (I furnish supporting evidence from sources such as Mein Kepmf because other references will be rejected for not being right wing enough. I funish quotes from Reagan, Poppy Bush, and Dubya, who say black is not white. God speaks to Right Winger that night in a dream and says black is not white.)

Right Winger, the next day: Black is white.

[peacetalksforall]

31. They got caught in Gulf War 1 with the pulling hospital support systems

for babies event. That was the unhonorable George Herbert Walker Bush.

[onehandle]

11. The difference between Karl Rove and Joseph Goebbels.

Joseph Goebbels didn't have televisions in every living room.

[savemefromdumbya]

49. LOL!

[Maestro]

12. Doesn't surprise me in the least

and I think that I remember this same thing happening over in Iraq, the military with Rummy planting fake success and feel-good stories.

[nicknameless]

13. The cabal's propaganda campaign is obviously similar to Goebbels'.

That's why rethugs are rushing to compare Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" to Goebbels.
They want to water down the importance of the topic.

[zonmoy]

15. I am surprised that anybody who isn't a brainwashed idiot

actually trusts the mainstream media news anymore.

[savemefromdumbya]

50. I think we have quite a number of brain-washed idiots still around?

about 32% of the USA (Bush approval)

[HamiltonHabs32]

16. Lewis Black caught this

just a couple weeks ago

http://throwawayyourtv.com/2006/05/lewis-black-reports-on-vnrs.html

[krispos42]

18. Thank god I work nights...

I tape The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. I watch them as soon as I get home at 5am, after a 12 hour shift, one hour of driving, and a half-hour lunch break. Thank God I miss all of this crap (except CSI... gotta have the CSI). I am currently going through withdrawal with John and Stephen on vacation. Damn, can't they stagger them or something?!?

Anyway, back to my point... www.evolvefish.com has a bumper sticker that sums all this up quite nicely: "Would Somebody Please Give Bush a Blowjob So We Can Impeach Him"

[savemefromdumbya]

51. What a wonderful bumper sticker

the site has some good ones

[Up2Late]

20. Good to see another major paper reporting this, PR Watch has had this...

...on their website for a while.

Here's the link:<http://www.prwatch.org/>

<http://www.prwatch.org/fakenews/execsummary>

They even have a list to search for your local station!

<http://www.prwatch.org/fakenews/stationlist>

[leftchick]

33. Holy Shit! Look at them all!

Thank you for the link. This is just stunning....

Fake TV News: List of Stations
Click on the station links below for details on how each television newsroom incorporated video news releases (VNRs) and/or related satellite media tours (SMTs) into their news broadcasts, without adequate disclosure to viewers. Click on the client links below for more information on the VNR they funded and how it was used across all stations.

You can also download the station list in PDF format.




Station

Network

Owner

City

State

VNRs/SMTs

Clients
WBRC-6 Fox Fox/News Corporation Birmingham AL 1 Panasonic
WHNT-19 CBS New York Times Huntsville AL 1 Flower Promotion Organization
KAIT-8 ABC Liberty Corporation Jonesboro AR 2 Trend Micro, Cadillac
KGUN-9 ABC Journal Broadcast Group Tucson AZ 2 Panasonic, Knowledge Adventure
KABC-7 ABC ABC/Disney Los Angeles CA 1 Quest Diagnostics
KCBS-2 CBS Viacom Los Angeles CA 1 NetTrekker
KEYT-3 ABC Smith Broadcasting Group Santa Barbara CA 1 Texas Instruments
KMAX-31 UPN Viacom Sacramento CA 1 American Dental Association
KPIX-5 CBS Viacom San Francisco CA 1 Pfizer
KTLA-5 WB Tribune Broadcasting Los Angeles CA 1 Trend Micro
KTXL-40 Fox Tribune Broadcasting Sacramento CA 1 American Dental Association
KRDO-13 ABC Pikes Peak Broadcasting Colorado Springs CO 1 Trend Micro
KWGN-2 WB Tribune Broadcasting Denver CO 1 Trend Micro
The Daily Buzz Synd. Acme Communications National FL 1 Victoria's Secret
WBBH-2 NBC Waterman Broadcasting Ft. Myers FL 1 Capital One
WBFS-33 UPN Viacom Miami FL 1 Towers Perrin
WJXT-4 IND Post-Newsweek Corporation Jacksonville FL 1 Subway
WGCL-46 CBS Meredith Corporation Atlanta GA 1 Flower Promotion Organization
WRDW-12 CBS Gray Communications Augusta GA 1 AdSpace Networks
WTVM-9 ABC Raycom Media Columbus GA 2 AICPA, DaimlerChrysler
KGAN-2 CBS Sinclair Broadcasting Cedar Rapids IA 1 Subway
WCIA-3 CBS Nexstar Broadcasting Champaign IL 1 Siemens AG
WGN-9 WB Tribune Broadcasting Chicago IL 1 Trend Micro
WFXW-38 Fox Nexstar Broadcasting Terre Haute IN 1 General Foods
WRTV-6 ABC McGraw-Hill Indianapolis IN 1 American Dental Association
WSJV-28 Fox Quincy Newspapers South Bend IN 1 General Motors
WXIN-59 Fox Tribune Broadcasting Indianapolis IN 1 Trend Micro
WHAS-11 ABC Belo Corporation Louisville KY 1 American Dental Association
KSLA-12 CBS Raycom Media Shreveport LA 1 General Motors
KTBS-3 ABC Edwin Wray Shreveport LA 1 Panasonic
WBRZ-2 ABC Manship Media Baton Rouge LA 1 Siemens AG
WVUE-8 Fox Emmis Communications New Orleans LA 1 American Dental Association
WHDH-7 NBC Sunbeam Television Boston MA 1 Toshiba
WBFF-45 Fox Sinclair Broadcasting Baltimore MD 1 Heinz
WBOC-16 CBS Draper Communications Salisbury MD 3 Siemens VDO, General Motors, General Foods
WILX-10 NBC Gray Communications Lansing MI 2 General Motors, General Foods
WJBK-2 Fox Fox/News Corporation Detroit MI 2 NetTrekker, Cadillac
WWTV-9 CBS Heritage Broadcasting Co. Tustin MI 1 General Motors
KAAL-6 ABC Hubbard Broadcasting Rochester MN 1 Pfizer
KFJX-14 Fox Surtsey Media Joplin/Pittsburg MO 1 Siemens AG
KTVI-2 Fox Fox/News Corporation St. Louis MO 2 Masterfoods,Trend Micro
WDAF-4 Fox Fox/News Corporation Kansas City MO 1 American Dental Association
WCCB-18 Fox Bahakel Communications Charlotte NC 1 Knowledge Adventure
WCTI-12 ABC Lamco Communications New Bern NC 3 Panasonic, Sallie Mae, DaimlerChrysler
WGHP-8 Fox Fox/News Corporation Greensboro NC 1 American Dental Association
WLFL-22 WB Sinclair Broadcasting Raleigh NC 1 Panasonic
KASA-2 Fox Raycom Media Albuquerque NM 1 American Dental Association
KTNV-13 ABC Journal Broadcast Group Las Vegas NV 1 Siemens AG
NY1 Cable Time Warner New York NY 1 Sandals Resorts
WCBS-2 CBS Viacom New York NY 2 Leiner Health Products
WKBW-7 ABC Granite Broadcasting Buffalo NY 1 Heinz
WPIX-11 WB Tribune Broadcasting New York NY 1 Trend Micro
WSYR-9 ABC Clear Channel Syracuse NY 1 Bioibérica, Stiefel Laboratories
Ohio News Network Cable Dispatch Broadcast Group Cleveland OH 1 Siemens VDO
WCPO-9 ABC E.W. Scripps Company Cincinnati OH 2 Stiefel Laboratories, Flower Promotion Organization
WSYX-6 ABC Sinclair Broadcasting Columbus OH 1 Panasonic
WYTV-33 ABC Chelsey Broadcasting Youngstown OH 1 Stiefel Laboratories
KOKH-25 Fox Sinclair Broadcasting Oklahoma City OK 6 Trend Micro, Panasonic, Intel, Cadillac, Chemistry.com, Towers Perrin
KYW-3 CBS Viacom Philadelphia PA 1 Bioibérica
WHP-21 CBS Clear Channel Harrisburg PA 2 Subway, Flower Promotion Organization
WNEP-16 ABC New York Times Wilkes-Barre PA 1 Leiner Health Products
WPGH-53 Fox Sinclair Broadcasting Pittsburgh PA 1 Trend Micro
WPMT-43 Fox Tribune Broadcasting Harrisburg PA 1 General Motors
WPVI-6 ABC ABC/Disney Philadelphia PA 1 Panasonic
WLTX-19 CBS Gannett Broadcasting Columbia SC 1 Panasonic
WHBQ-13 Fox Fox/News Corporation Memphis TN 1 Texas Instruments
WKRN-2 ABC Young Broadcasting Nashville TN 1 Jackson Hewitt
KLBK-13 CBS Nexstar Broadcasting Lubbock TX 3 Siemens VDO
KLST-8 CBS Nexstar Broadcasting San Angelo TX 1 Flower Promotion Organization
KOSA-7 CBS ICA Broadcasting Odessa TX 1 General Motors
KYTX-19 CBS Max Media of Montana Tyler TX 3 Knowledge Adventure, Subway, General Foods
KZTV-10 CBS Eagle Creek Broadcasting Corpus Christi TX 1 Cadillac
WFAA-8 ABC Belo Corporation Dallas TX 1 Bioibérica
WCYB-5 NBC BlueStone Television Bristol VA 1 Texas Instruments
WHSV-3 ABC Gray Communications Harrisonburg VA 1 DaimlerChrysler
WVTV-18 WB Sinclair Broadcasting Milwaukee WI 1 Masterfoods
WVVA-6 NBC Quincy Newspapers Bluefield WV 1 Matrixx Initiatives

[Peace Patriot]

22. "Federal authorities are actively investigating..." Ahem. Federal...

authorities appointed by Bush are out to stop people from making fake news? Right.

If they're doing anything "actively" at all, we should be asking: Who are they trying to purge? Who is threatening to disclose something far more threatening than this? (Oh, I don't know...say, snuff film parties in the WH, done by special production teams at their torture dungeon in Poland...). What's the real story here?

"Investigators...are seeking information about stations across the country...." Ah, raids on "stations across the country" --to intimidate, silence, destroy evidence of something, harm Fox News business rivals, set precedents for invading studios and confiscating film...what? "Seeking information"...hm-m-m.

That the Bush junta FCC would be seriously seeking to uncover Bush junta wrongdoing is ridiculous on its face. Equally laughable, that it would be sincerely and objectively pursuing corporate wrongdoing, except as a vendetta against someone, say, who hadn't contributed as much as they were told to, to Republican coffers, or who had crossed them in some way.

Later, the article says, "The FCC has declined to comment on the investigation but investigators from the commission's enforcement unit recently approached Ms Farsetta for a copy of her group's report."

This investigation has been entirely conducted by non-profit public interest groups, which found a surprisingly high usage, by stations, of fake news videos, both government and corporate. No doubt, the FCC would love to, a) shut these public interest groups down, and b) figure out how to use their information to protect friends and punish enemies.

This article offers zero evidence that the FCC is doing jack shit. In that sense, it is misleading--unless it has sources that it hasn't identified. It's conceivable that some well-meaning person in the FCC, who somehow escaped junta purges, is try to highlight this report. But the impression that the FCC is running around the country trying to find out who used Rumsfeld's "sieg heil, Amerika" videos of Iraqis, or big drug companies' fake product news, in order to PUNISH them for it, is without foundation in the article, and likely way wrong.

The investigative groups involved claim that there is a distinction between fake news and real news. I don't know. Is there? Remember when all the war profiteering corporate news monopolies broadcast that fake event of Iraqis pulling Saddam's statue down as real? Turns out the Iraqis were Chalabi's henchmen, just recently flown into Baghdad, and that the square where this occurred was mostly empty (if you pulled the camera back off the small crowd around the statue). How is this different from Pentagon or corporate P.R. firms themselves filming the staged footage, or fake product news, and distributing it? Is NBC's or CNN's stamp on video footage any more credible than GM's or Pfizer's or the Office of Special Plans? The propaganda that PASSES for news in so-called legit news organizations is actually more shocking, and more newsworthy (in the real sense), than that a fascist government like this one--or the corporations that it models itself after--is making fake news videos.

Are we getting subtle disinformation here? I would like to think that the FCC is jumping into action, in response to scandalous discoveries by vigilant public interest groups, and that wrongdoers will be exposed and punished, and this nefarious practice of faking news--and the even more nefarious practice of creating an entirely faked other reality of Cowboy Bush killing the Bad Guys--will be stopped. But does promoting real news seem like something a Bushite agency would get behind?

[Peace Patriot]

23. Interesting news bit from Judi Lynn re a new FCC rubber stamp

appointment, at

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2311578

It seems the FCC has been in a partisan 2-2 deadlock. That is about to change. Don't hold your breath waiting for fake news to be exposed by Republicans. It looks like more news monopolies are in the works.

[savemefromdumbya]

53. but we have Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid who can make sure that

this is investigated?

Haven't we?

[depakid]

25. Now THIS is what huge fines and license non-renewal

Should be used for.

But no- Republicans and so called "Christian" groups are more concerned with common 4 letter words o the briefest flash of Janet Jackson's nipple jewlery.

This is the number 1 reason why America is in the sorry state its in- and why the prospects of it ever improving are so poor.

Hell, we even have to read about this in the forign press.....

[savemefromdumbya]

54. It would seem so

we seem to find out about ourselves in the foreign press?

[keopeli]

26. ProWar Videos made by Powell's State Dept.

"The range of VNR is wide. Among items provided by the Bush administration to news stations was one in which an Iraqi-American in Kansas City was seen saying "Thank you Bush. Thank you USA" in response to the 2003 fall of Baghdad. The footage was actually produced by the State Department, one of 20 federal agencies that have produced and distributed such items."

That's Colin Powell's State Department.

Did FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, Michael's Powell's successor, plant this bomb? Somebody started this ball rolling and it happened right when the FCC chairmanship was being handed over.

[ArmchairMeme]

43. Military push

We currently have a news article about a man with brain damage who dons his military fatique to tell elementary school children how thrilled the soldiers are at receiving cookies from school children. He is currently on a 30 day leave after that doctors will decide whether he is capable of returning to duty! He wants to do anything he can to serve in the war on terra.

This is shown as a positive yardage story.

[muriel_volestrangler]

27. A subtle dig by Buncombe, here?

The report, by the non-profit group Centre for Media and Democracy, found that over a 10-month period at least 77 television stations were making use of the faux news broadcasts, known as Video News Releases (VNRs).

[Time for change]

28. One more sign that Fascism has come to America

:grr:

[Demeter]

29. This Hasn't Been in the NYTimes! Do We Have To Import News, Too?

There's something wrong with a country that has to turn to foreigners for information on the wrongdoings or any doings of their own government. Anybody going to set up a Voice of Europe and beam it over the Lower 48? How about a Radio Jefferson? Liberty Tom Paine, anyone?

[Igel]

40. Actually, the parts that seem to be important in this thread

were. For that, it's an old story that's been resurrection, made new again.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/01/politics/01educ.html?ei=5088&en=55a295038c3630e7&ex=1285819200&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&pagewanted=all

The main story isn't that the government's placed these videos; it's that these videos are much more common than generally assumed. The vast majority of the VNRs were *not* government-produced.

But then again, the report is sloppy--good enough for its purpose, and it shows what it wants to show, but not what otherrs will want it to show. Is the news independently produced in every case, and therefore can we assume that every story is as trustworthy as the local newschannels can make them? No. That was the goal. No more, no less.

But it's too sloppy for nearly any other use: We don't know how often the non-news videos were used, or even when the government's were used. Lots stations aired "at least one" such video 'at least once' over a 10-month period that began last June 2005. One station--gasp--ran 6 of the VNRs investigated, with no evidence cited that there were others in addition to the ones investigated. They say there's a 'great likelihood' that this is something like 1% of what's actually happened. the presumption is that there were skads more, and that's what you take away, there's not one bit of evidence cited in support. Also, there's no actual claim that the government's involvement didn't fully stop before the NYT article; you're left with the impression that it didn't, but not a fact in support of that impression.

The report serves its purpose--a good purpose, to be sure--but not much more.

[savemefromdumbya]

56. remember

a lot of people don't know that this is going on. One fake video is too many.

[Igel]

86. Precisely the reason for the report.

That's easily bad enough and merits the report's production.

But making more of it than it says isn't a very tenable, either.

[savemefromdumbya]

87. having said that

it is a major problem and this should have been brought to the attention of the general public not just hovering around a leftish site or a left leaning UK newspaper.

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

65. New York Times

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0317-30.htm

Published on Thursday, March 17, 2005 by the Capital Times (Madison, Wisconsin)
Fake News Revelation Creates a Bit of Hope
by< Rob Zaleski

Amid all the gloom and doom, maybe there is some hope.

That, at least, was John Stauber's reaction to the startling expose in the New York Times last Sunday about the Bush administration's widespread use of politically biased, taxpayer-funded video news releases that the nation's TV stations are routinely airing as news stories.

"In all, at least 20 federal agencies, including the Defense Department and the Census Bureau, have made and distributed hundreds of TV news segments in the past four years," the Times reported, noting that the practice has long been common among major corporations.

http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site/pp.asp?c=klLWJcP7H&b=457263

Bush Administration Deceives Public with Fake News

March 14, 2005

The New York Times reported this weekend on the Bush administration's extensive abuse of public funds and trust in producing television propaganda. Over the past four years, at least 20 different federal agencies have been involved in producing hundreds of fake TV news segments, many of which were "subsequently broadcast on local stations across the country without any acknowledgement of the government's role in their production," according to the Times.

http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50914FC3E580C708DDDAA0894DD404482

THE MESSAGE MACHINE: How the Government Makes News; Under Bush, a New Age of Prepackaged News

March 13, 2005, Sunday
By DAVID BARSTOW AND ROBIN STEIN; ANNE E. KORNBLUT CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FOR THIS ARTICLE.

(NYT); National Desk
Late Edition - Final-
It is the kind of TV news coverage every president covets. ''Thank you, Bush. Thank you, U.S.A.,'' a jubilant Iraqi-American told a camera crew in Kansas City for a segment about reaction to the fall of Baghdad. A second report told of ''another success'' in the Bush administration's ''drive...


http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F50914FC3E580C708DDDAA0894DD404482

Times Select Article-6032 words

[paparush]

32. I'm going to use the N- word... ready? Here it Comes.....

NAZIS!!

[NastyDiaper]

34. News is easier to produce than results.

[savemefromdumbya]

57. yes

[speedoo]

36. One more impeachable offense.

The 2006 elections will be crucial. We have to get these fascists out of the WH.

[dogday]

41. I am so sure the M$M will pick up on this story....

NOT!!!!! This should be on every channel, on every station, in every newspaper... You can't believe anything this administration says....

[savemefromdumbya]

58. MSM are being very cooperative

[NVMojo]

42. All I can say is DUH!!! Faux News proved this theory a long freaking time

ago.

[Name removed]

44. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[XemaSab]

64. Wait, I thought the MSM was out to make the war look BAD

But you're saying that they're complicit in a conspiracy to make the war look GOOD? I'm confused. :freak:

[sarahlee]

45. Links from the past

Bush admits to propaganda
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/blog/2005/05/25/BL2005052501250.html


Agencies Warned to Halt Fake News Videos
http://www.capitolhillblue.com/artman/publish/article_6267.shtml

Bush: Pundit payments will stop
Democrats push bill to end practice, question rise in PR funds
http://www.cnn.com/2005/ALLPOLITICS/01/26/paid.pundits/


President Urged to Order Disclosure of Covert Propaganda
http://www.house.gov/pelosi/press/releases/Jan05/PropagandaLetter012805.html


Democrats Call on President to Stop Covert Propaganda in U.S
http://democraticleader.house.gov/

[sarahlee]

46. Semi Related

Local news stations use fake news put out by corporations

"Many television news stations, including some from the nation's largest markets, are continuing to broadcast reports as news without disclosing that the segments were produced by corporations pitching new products, according to a report to be released today by a group that monitors the news media.

Television news directors have said that the segments, known as video news releases, are almost never broadcast, but the group assembled television videotape from 69 stations that it said had broadcast fake news segments in the past 10 months. "

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/040606N.shtml


More on this:
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/04/06/1432239

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/04/06/1432244

And . . .

In an update on a story we have been tracking, a major California television station has announced it will no longer use material from video news releases in any news reports. Last week the Center for Media and Democracy revealed at least 77 TV stations around the country have been caught airing corporate-sponsored propaganda disguised as news releases in the past 10 months. One of these stations was KCBS, Channel 2 in Los Angeles. On January 27 the station aired an edited video news release promoting the child-safe Internet search engine for the company NetTrekker. The station used part of the script and video provided by the company without revealing its source. On Wednesday the management at KCBS announced it was barring the use of video news releases.

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/04/14/147225

.

[savemefromdumbya]

59. The urging doesn't seem to be enough

didn't do much?

[Clyde39]

52. "Dozens" of stations? I'd like to know which ones

I can't imagine the owners of those stations using the defense, "I didn't know".

[savemefromdumbya]

61. a link from above

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=103&topic_id=213657&mesg_id=213727

[cassiepriam]

55. How do we get a free press? If we don't , forget the elections. nt

[savemefromdumbya]

62. buy out the others

buy out or take over the press TV and radio stations by force. 1st might be an option?

[Joanne98]

66. This is good...... Thank you Bush.... HAHAHA!!!!!!

The range of VNR is wide. Among items provided by the Bush administration to news stations was one in which an Iraqi-American in Kansas City was seen saying "Thank you Bush. Thank you USA" in response to the 2003 fall of Baghdad. The footage was actually produced by the State Department, one of 20 federal agencies that have produced and distributed such items

[bonemachine]

69. Nothing New Here

I tried about a year ago to assemble a team of folks to research, get copies of and post online all known VNR's produced by this administration, but I got pretty much no response :(

[savemefromdumbya]

70. no response from whom?

[bonemachine]

73. Anyone, really

I posted about it on here, on several other political sites I post on, and on a wide range of blogs discussing the issue, and I got no response from anyone...

[savemefromdumbya]

78. sorry

I didn't see it. However, this board travels too fast!

[bonemachine]

90. Yeah, I know what you mean

It's still a project that would be good to do; unfortunately I no longer have the free time to head such an effort. Between running my own website, working a job for pay and working a second job without pay life is real busy right now!

[rateyes]

71. ITMFA dammit! nt

[banana republican]

72. I love this comment

The report, by the non-profit group Centre for Media and Democracy, found that over a 10-month period at least 77 television stations were making use of the faux news broadcasts, known as Video News Releases (VNRs). Not one told viewers who had produced the items.

[Divine Discontent]

74. yikes - it's like the old news being repeated!

am I living in Deja VuVille???

I just posted in the Top 10 about Tweety saying Bush's mea culpa was great, but I say it's nothing new, and in fact, I'm shocked Tweety was getting all Tweeterpated over his comments because Bush already said he messed up a couple years ago about "bring em on" and that Laura yelled at him and said "why did you say that!".


AND NOW -----

I'm seeing an old story with a new twist, which is partially months or a year old, if I'm not mistaken. Many corporations used this service to crank out commercials that were placed as news, and there was some discussion about this on DU back then -

The difference in THIS story, that saves me from feeling like I'm living my days over, is the comments that the government is sending pro-war propaganda and other issues...

I can't take this friggin Administration anymore, please America boot them out - ugh!


www.cafepress.com/warisprofitable

[savemefromdumbya]

79. that's the twist

and it takes a foreign newspaper to report it!

[Divine Discontent]

89. go figure, right???

heavens forbid we have a truthful reporting of the facts in our country, by a big paper or "News Channel"

[Blue_Tires]

75. lol...who didn't already know this?

[savemefromdumbya]

80. probably 80% of the population!

[JPZenger]

76. Air America Report on Drug Company Ads as News

Air America had a report on Saturday about drug companies and health supplement companies preparing fake new stories about their products. In some cases, the pieces had FDA warnings of side effects at the end - which the reporters cut before broadcasting them. The worst was a piece run by WCBS TV news in New York, which is CBS's flagship station. They packaged the news release as if it was a report by their own reporter. Then they said that the health supplement was found to be effective in the New England Journal of Medicine. In fact, the study in the New England Journal found it was ineffective.

[raccoon]

77. I want the junta out of power as much as anyone else.

I think it's disgusting that they do this sort of thing.

And I betcha the Democrats would do it too.

Two party system? Two heads of the same snake. The Democrats are slightly less reprehensible than the Repubs. They'll at least give the rabble a few crumbs. The Republicans begrudge them even that much.

[Doctor_J]

81. And the wingers say that GORE = Goebbels

1984 is here.

[savemefromdumbya]

83. At least Gore didn't have to lock anyone in?

They are priceless!

[Pissed Off Cabbie]

84. 2+2=5

If anything resembling a news report announced that 2+2=5, over 80% of Americans would believe it. How many of today's college graduates would associate the word "conditioning" with anything other than that which keeps their hair looking shiny? How many would think George Orwell was a CBS sports commentator in the 60's?

I'm waiting for those "news" stories funded by Exxon that report on the new
water-skiing in the Arctic craze. If you can't ski with a beer in one hand, then you're not in MY fraternity.

http://pissedoffcabbie.blogspot.com/2006/05/faux-news-latest-in-lying.html

[savemefromdumbya]

85. 'American Idol' mentality

The general public say Bush is doing such a good job on terrorism, kill all those nasty muslims and we're more interested to what happened in American Idol so don't bother us?

[CPMaz]

88. Lewis Black covered this on The Daily Show

on May 10th.

Amazing that a story this important only gets media coverage outside of the country or on a 'fake news' comedy show.

On edit: I should specify that he covered the corporate PR aspect of the issue, not the Bush Admin's.

[Blue_Tires]

91. ttt n/t