All posts by Midnightschildren

TAKING JOURNALISM TO JAIL: an interview with David Gaither, by Elton Bradman

 

David Gaither is an associate editor at Pacific News Service (PNS), where he works on The Beat Within, a weekly newsletter by and for incarcerated youth in the Bay Area, as well as on New California Media: In Search of Common Ground, a television talk show aimed at members and readers of the ethnic press; Youth Outlook, a journal of youth life in the Bay Area; and the PNS wire service. He is a graduate of the 1997 Bay Area Mentorship for Reporters of Color (BAMROC) program, a month-long intensive internship that combined advanced journalism skills training with briefing sessions on issues important to local communities of color. The 22-year-old journalist and community activist lives in San Leandro with his wife, Karrima, and their eight-month-old daughter, Kalimah. Continue reading TAKING JOURNALISM TO JAIL: an interview with David Gaither, by Elton Bradman

PLATFORM FOR MEDIA REFORM. by Robert McChesney and John Nichols.

 

In the book It’s the Media Stupid, Robert McChesney and John Nichols argue for a broad-based media reform movement that can make media democracy a central political issue in the United States. Here is their platform.

Expand funding for traditional public-service broadcasting with an eye toward making it fully non-commercial and democratically accountable. In particular, substantial new funding should be provided for the development of news and public affairs programming that would fill the gap created by the collapse of serious news gathering by the networks and their local affiliates. Continue reading PLATFORM FOR MEDIA REFORM. by Robert McChesney and John Nichols.

TAKING BACK THE MEDIA: NOTES ON THE POTENTIAL FOR A COMMUNICATIVE DEMOCRACY MOVEMENT. By Bob Hackett

 

Originally appeared in Studies in Political Economy, Fall 2000.

Reprinted by permission of the author.

Of all contemporary popular struggles, the struggle to democratize the communication media is arguably one of the most important and least recognized. In this article, I first argue for the importance of placing media democratization higher on the progressive agenda, and briefly sketch its normative commitments. Then, I explore the potential social and political obstacles and bases for a media democracy movement, concluding with a few strategic suggestions. Continue reading TAKING BACK THE MEDIA: NOTES ON THE POTENTIAL FOR A COMMUNICATIVE DEMOCRACY MOVEMENT. By Bob Hackett

NOAM CHOMSKY: BEHIND THE HEADLINES ON COLOMBIA. AN INTERVIEW by David Barsamian.

 

DB: Talk about evolving U.S. policy in Colombia. The Interhemispheric Resource Center in Albuquerque has issued a statement: “U.S. Policy in Colombia: Towards a Vietnam Quagmire.” Do you think that’s an appropriate analogy? The New York Times writes in an editorial titled “Dangerous Plans for Colombia” that the aid to Colombia “risks dragging the United States into a costly counterinsurgency war.” Continue reading NOAM CHOMSKY: BEHIND THE HEADLINES ON COLOMBIA. AN INTERVIEW by David Barsamian.

WHO WILL COUNT THE DEAD? U.S. MEDIA FAIL TO REPORT CIVILIAN CASUALTIES IN AFGHANISTAN. By Marc W. Herold.

 

The air attack on Afghanistan began at 8:57 p.m. local time on October 7. The following day, Reuters carried an interview with a 16-year-old ice cream vendor from Jalalabad who said he had lost his leg and two fingers in a Cruise missile strike on an airfield near his home:

“There was just a roaring sound, and then I opened my eyes and I was in a hospital,” said Assadullah, who had been taken across the border to Peshawar for medical help. “I lost my leg and two fingers. There were other people hurt. People were running all over the place.” Continue reading WHO WILL COUNT THE DEAD? U.S. MEDIA FAIL TO REPORT CIVILIAN CASUALTIES IN AFGHANISTAN. By Marc W. Herold.

PBS SHUTS OUT INDEPENDENT PRODUCERS. by Jerold M. Starr.

 

Despite its auspicious and promising beginning, the Public Broadcasting Service largely has failed its congressional mandate. PBS was supposed to compensate for the inadequacies of advertiser-driven network programming by providing, in the words of its mandate, an “alternative” that expresses “diversity and excellence,” involves “creative risks,” and addresses “the needs of the unserved and underserved audiences.” Continue reading PBS SHUTS OUT INDEPENDENT PRODUCERS. by Jerold M. Starr.

ACTIVISTS FIGHT MEDIA CONSOLIDATION: FCC DROPPING OWNERSHIP LIMITS by Aliza Dichter

 

Under intense lobbying pressure and lawsuits brought by corporate media, the federal government is now considering removing the last few media-ownership limits. These rules–intended to protect diversity of viewpoints, competition and local ownership– keep major TV networks from merging into one and prevent a single company from dominating the local TV market or owning a town’s local newspaper, TV and radio station. Continue reading ACTIVISTS FIGHT MEDIA CONSOLIDATION: FCC DROPPING OWNERSHIP LIMITS by Aliza Dichter

STREET SOLDIERS SILENCED BY MEDIA MERGER, by Laura Saponara

 

Produced in San Francisco, the radio program Street Soldiers is well known as a live forum for youth to talk openly about their experiences with gang violence, crime, drugs, pregnancy, and countless other issues. Antiviolence activists credit the program with saving lives by mediating conflicts through dialogue and providing an on- and off-air system of social support. Continue reading STREET SOLDIERS SILENCED BY MEDIA MERGER, by Laura Saponara