media & democracy, part 2

Media & DemocracyPart 2 of 2

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Since December, 2010, there have been a series of uprisings, revolutions, and citizens protests throughout the world. The most widely known of these protests were the protests in Egypt which brought us images like this:


Tahir Square--Cairo, EgyptFebruary 2011


These protests happened because the people of Egypt grew tired of the country’s growing inequality and the corruption of President Hosni Mubarak.

They grew tired of waiting for “change,” so they decided to make it happen.

Mubarak had served as Egypt’s president since 1981; he resigned on February 11, 2011. He is currently on trial for crimes against his people.


As a result of these protests, uprisings occurred throughout Africa and the Middle East. Countries where uprisings occurred include: Algeria

BahrainIraq

IsraelJordan

MoroccoOman

Saudi ArabiaKuwait

LebanonMuraitania

QataSudan

United Arab EmiratesWestern Sahara

Palestine.


Here’s the map of where these events took place:


This movement was called the “Arab Spring,” and it challenged how many of us view the Arab world and the ability of its people to govern themselves.


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Here in the United States, there has been no coordinated effort to challenge the growing inequality in this country.

Yet, it seems evident that many of feel there needs to be such a call.

Across the country small movements are springing up, and “we the people” are beginning to demand a change in the way our government operates.


In February 2011, protests erupted in Madison, Wisconsin after newly-elected governor Scott Walker introduced language into the state budget that would strip all public sector unions (teachers, medics, police, firemen, nurses, transportation workers, etc.) of their ability to collectively bargain.

As a result, the streets of Madison erupted. Protestors occupied the capital building, democratic congressmen fled the state in protest, and 100,000 protestors (in a city of only 233,000 people) filed into the streets. It looked like this:


Wisconsin State CapitalMadison, WI

February 2011


On July 13, 2011, the anti-consumerism magazine Adbusters put out a call for a protest that they called “Occupy Wall Street.” Here is part of their message:

“On September 17, we want to see 20,000 people flood into lower Manhattan, set up tents, kitchens, peaceful barricades and occupy Wall Street for a few months. Once

there, we shall incessantly repeat one simple demand in a plurality of voices.

...We demand that Barack Obama ordain a Presidential Commission tasked with ending the influence money has over our representatives in Washington. It's time for

DEMOCRACY NOT CORPORATOCRACY, we're doomed without it.”


Word about the call for protest quickly spread throughout the internet and soon other groups, including the hacker’s group Anonymous and We are the 99%, quickly picked up the call. Despite the brewing of what might be a revolution, news of this call for protest did not penetrate the corporately controlled channels of our national media.


On September 17th, between 2,000-5,000 protestors did make

their way to Wall Street, but when they got there they discovered that

the NYPD had closed Wall Street and refused to allow the protestors

to enter.


None of this was reported on the evening news.


The occupiers set up camp in a nearby park that they have renamed “Liberty Plaza.” They are there right now.


This media blockade began to give way on September 24, 2011 when members of the NYPD

pepper sprayed unarmed, non-violent protestors. Video of these incidents found their way to Youtube and

spread from there.

On October 1, 2011 the protest made its way to the Brooklyn Bridge. Organizers claim that the NYPD

allowed them onto the bridge, but the “official” story from the NYPD is different.

Due to the protests, 700 people were arrested on Saturday.


The story, now entering its third week, finally made the front page of the New York Times.

And here’s where we begin to see just how biased our corporate controlled media really is:


None of the sources that we depend on for news has given the issues raised by this protest a fair hearing. The r e a s o n , we c a n l o g i c a l ly assume, is money. A movement that wants to overthrow the dominant power structure and shift political power in this country away from corporations and back to the people simply does not have a place to turn to. No corporate owned media source will take on this story.


A contrast:


For the last few years we have heard about the Tea Party revolution happening on the political right. The ideology of the Tea Party is hard to define, but their concerns seem to include: opposition to President Obama’s engagement with Muslim Counties, opposition to gay marriage, tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy, and an overall reduction of the federal government including privatization of many of the government’s services such as Social Security.

The Tea Party has been well supported, well covered, and in the 2010 elections 138 candidates ran for office under the Tea Party banner. Fox News has given the movement an unprecedented amount of coverage.

There is now a “Tea Party Caucus” in the House of Representatives, and there has already been a “Tea Party Debate” for the 2012 presidential election.


So the question becomes:

“Why does one political movement that calls for cutting taxes and a reduction in the size

and scope of government receive around-the-clock media coverage while a similar political movement that calls for flushing

corporate influence over our political system receive almost no coverage?”


The Answer:


Meet Charles and David Koch

The Koch brothers inherited their company Koch Industries--whose primary products are petrochemicals and coal--from their father. Together, the Koch brothers have a combined net worth of $50,000,000,000.


The Koch brothers have covertly given millions of dollars to Tea Party Organizations primarily through the non-profit organization “Freedom Works.”

Since the 1980s, it is estimated that the Koch Brothers have given $100,000,000 to such organizations.


Now, why have you heard so much about the Tea Party Movement and virtually nothing about Occupy Wall Street?


Even without media coverage, Occupy Wall Street is still going on and protests are now scheduled throughout the country. One of these protests begins tomorrow in Portland.


media & democracy, part 2

Documents

people of egypt

citizens protests

arab world

state budget

wisconsin state capitalmadison

series of uprisings

growing inequality

wall street