Friday, September 30, 2011

"Fairly Quiet on the Border" video -- censored by YouTube

A citizen journalist in Arizona who lives by the US/Mexican border made a video showing our taxpayer money -- and the US Border Patrol -- in action. Mostly the video showed how generally peaceful the border area is -- that it is not usually a "war zone." The US Border Patrol got YouTube to remove the original video. Here is her
remake of the video
, now titled "Border Patrol in the Bushes, Part Dos."

The ACLU leader in Arizona criticized the censoring of the original video: "This is yet another example of a private online community trampling on our First Amendment rights and trying to exercise greater control over what we share and watch online. People have the right to film government officials carrying out their duties in public places."

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Ida B. Wells School

How many newspaper editors who ignored or apologized for lynching have schools named after them? (School is in San Francisco, just across the park from the famous "painted ladies" Victorian mansions.)

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

AOL's journalistic values

Soon after AOL announced its merger with HuffingtonPost in February, the Boston Globe published leaked AOL documents offering a glimpse into that company's journalistic approach -- a bit different than that of HuffPost. (H/t to former indy media student Leah, for summarizing the Globe piece.)

Is U.S. media system failing U.S. democracy?

A 2008 academic study compared the level of public knowledge about current events in Denmark, Finland, England and the U.S. It found that the countries with TV/radio dominated by public broadcasting -- Denmark and Finland -- were the best informed. Our country, dominated by corporate commercial media, was the least informed. The study's authors suggest that differing media systems play a role in those results.

A 2003 study of U.S. public knowledge of facts related to the Iraq War found that misperceptions were greatest among those whose primary info source was Fox News -- and least among those whose primary info source was public broadcasting. (A Pew poll taken in Aug. 2010 found that almost 1 in 5 Americans believed President Obama to be a Muslim; only 34% knew he is a Christian. 43% chose "don't know.")

Friday, September 23, 2011

"Night(mare) in Tunisia" for its Dictator

Back in 2007, citizen journalists/bloggers had documented the tourism/shopping trips of the dictator's wife aboard the presidential plane. (H/t Global Voices)

Powerful photo of dictator Ben Ali visiting the hospital bed of the desperate young man who set himself on fire -- the young man didn't live long enough to learn that his act set off a revolution that overthrew Ben Ali.

Amid the protests, Tunisian rapper El General put out this widely-circulated music video attacking Ben Ali and urging folks to join the protests. El General was arrested for it. Soon after, the dictator fled. (H/t to Steve Zunes.)

After the Tunisian dictatorship fell, the bizarre allied dictator in neighboring Libya, Qaddafi, made a rambling speech denouncing the Internet, WikiLeaks, Twitter and Facebook, which he blamed for Tunisia events. In recent weeks, Qaddafi was driven from power by NATO air power and an armed insurrection.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

President to Disgruntled Citizen: "Get Lost, You Idiot!"

President Sarkozy caught on Net video, calling a disgruntled citizen -- depending on your translation -- "idiot" or "asshole" or "stupid bastard." French politicians are having difficulty tolerating the scrutiny from new media, Internet, YouTube -- especially compared to coverage they'd received from traditional media.

Our ex caught on video.

Video & blogging for human rights

The nonprofit group, Witness.org, distributes video cameras in hopes of minimizing human rights abuses. Their slogan: "See it. Film it. Change it."

Vancouver Film School students created an inspiring video, "Iran, A Nation of Bloggers", and put it online months before the tech-fueled protests over Iran's disputed 2009 election.

Murder of Kahled Said sparks uprising

In June of last year, 28-year-old Khaled Said was beaten to death by police in public for the crime of Internet use. His martyrdom inspired protests and Internet organizing that led to the victorious uprising. Google exec and activist Wael Ghonim set up the powerful Facebook page "We Are All Khaled Said."

Blogger Marwa Rakha, born and raised in Egypt, posted about a mass detention of bloggers, including Wael Abbas, who tried to cover the aftermath of a massacre of Egyptian Christians.

Egypt: Bloggers/Net activists laid groundwork for uprising

With the state in control of all major media in Egypt, brave Egyptian "citizen journalists" have risked imprisonment and torture to blog or tweet about human rights abuses. Here's renowned Egyptian blogger Wael Abbas interviewed by BBC. Over the years, Abbas was harassed, censored and assaulted by authorities, and was briefly detained during the uprising earlier this year.

I've been showing this fascinating 2008 video (with not-great English translation) -- "Internet Freedom in Egypt" -- since it appeared online.

Global Voice Online

Always something interesting, including this new post featuring short videos on gender equality from Ukraine. This post from last year features a public protest by a very brave professor and blogger in China, offering himself as a slave.

One of U.S. media's biggest voices...

...explains Egypt last Jan/Feb, and how an Islamic Caliphate was ready to take over much of the world. Daily Show excerpt of GLENN BECK from his now-defunct Fox News show. Fuller Beck excerpts here.

Murdoch's Minions

Fox Sports announces "actual headlines" that weren't.

New study suggests that outlets owned by Rupert Murdoch/News Corp give more positive reviews to movies produced by Murdoch/NewsCorp's 20th Century Fox. (H/t Jim Naureckas of FAIR)

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Important websites...

...that are good sources of story ideas: Voices of New York (formerly Voices That Must Be Heard) and Color Lines.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Izzy Award-Winners Glenn Greenwald and Amy Goodman

Soon after accepting their Izzy Awards in Ithaca, NY in March 2009, Greenwald and Goodman spoke about independent media with Bill Moyers.

Nonprofit online news sites...

. . .have sprouted as local dailies have shrunk. These nonprofits include the
well-funded VoiceofSanDiego.org and the professionally-staffed MinnPost -- "a thoughtful approach to news."

Blogger Glenn Greenwald explains...

Journalism 101 to a CNN correspondent, in a debate over WikiLeaks.

Friday, September 9, 2011

Are young people...

raised on the Internet, LESS likely to be taken in by hoax emails such as Obama as "radical Muslim" than Jon Stewart's 80-year-old aunt?

Short Indy Video Impacts 2008 Election

This 2008 Brave New Films video short "McCain's Mansions" (with over 600,000 views) boiled up through the media food chain to become part of the mainstream diet. It impacted the campaign, as shown by this self-promotional video, "The Making of McCain's Mansions."

Does the need for access to newsmaker sources...

...undermine unfettered journalism? Yes, says indy TV host Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks, one of the most successful web-based TV shows.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Top CNN Executive Admits...

...to giving the Pentagon an advisory role on who its on-air experts would be during the controversial Iraq war.

Upstart Blogger Launches Big Controversy

Former IC journalism student Chris Lisee tells an important story about the impact a single off-key journalist can have.

Dancing With Your Source?

Here's video from 2007 Radio-Television Correspondents Association Dinner. While these are social events where journalists and newsmakers are expected to have some fun,is this symbolic of too much coziness?

You Tube video...

...ends the political career of a powerful Republican.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Huffpost: News, Entertainment, Celebs, plus Sports et al

So well-rounded now, HuffingtonPost posted this amazing football play on its frontpage this weekend. (When HuffPost distorted a political story, there was Talking Points Memo on Friday to correct the error.)

Friday, September 2, 2011

"Independent Media in a Time of War"

Video made by indy collective based on speech delivered by Amy Goodman in April 2003, when many in mainstream media were cheering what they saw as a quick, clean, successful Iraq invasion.

Daily Show on end of NY Times

The Daily Show's mean 2009 look at the struggles of the New York Times...and its "day-old news." It made me unusually sympathetic to the Times.

"Stickin' It To The Man"

In the movie "School of Rock," a substitute teacher (played by Jack Black) explains the purpose of rock and roll to his 5th grade students. Do rock & roll and independent media share a purpose?