Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Q Tips

NPR related comments welcomed.
Posted by Mytwords at 6:28 AM
Labels:

12 comments:

Porter Melmoth said...

Our ostensibly 'neutral' oldtimer newsreader Jean Cochrane today read that Israel was bombing 'Hamas military targets' in Gaza. Oh, that must mean that they're bombing ONLY military targets... (Take a look at how huge the Gaza Strip is on Google Earth - just about room enough to land a 747!)

Followed by: Kenyon in Cairo, visiting maimed and ruined Gaza civilians in hospital. (Funny, how civilians get confused with military targets.) Kenyon's report had a distant, dispassionate air to it, though. I thought his reference to a child patient's 'large, DARK eyes' rather ... strange.

OK, then Inskreep allows a West Bank Palestinian, Mustafa Barghouti, to comment on the Gaza situation, which he does quite well. Mercifully, The Kreep doesn't do his 'technique' on Barghouti, and just lets him talk. Well, in typical NPR/MSM fashion, they're talking to the right people AFTER little girls' legs have been blown off and the general suffering and tragedy is so obvious it can't be ignored. So, NPR, even in these types of interviews, is guilty of the most blatant tokenism and subversive cooperation with interested powers.

Then it's on to a 'fun' segment about a wine-producing family in (whew!) Napa Valley...

12/31/08, 12:37 PM
Anonymous said...

Good summary from the sh*t, Port!

Ever see Guy Maddin's brilliant picture "The Saddest Music in the World"? Therein is portrayed two radio announcers (covering both genders i.e. the flighty femme and the effeminate fella), which caused me to draw up an amusing comparison study against you-know-who and you-know-who. Your assessment of the program "mood shift" made me recall this fun-but-harrowing flick.

"Time's a-wasting if you're not tasting ... Lady Port Huntley's Beer!"

12/31/08, 12:55 PM
Anonymous said...

NPR always has a slant:

Israel rejected the 48 hour truce proposed by France..but

Hamas has also previously rejected talk of a truce that does not include Israel reopening all of the border crossings to allow goods to flow into the territory.

So, by (NPR's) implication, both sides rejected the French truce, right?

So, all sides agree, "on with the bombing..."

NPR also implies that the Arab league blames the palestinians for "Israel's punishing attacks".


Meanwhile, at an emergency meeting in Cairo of the 22-member Arab League, foreign ministers blamed Palestinian divisions for opening the door to Israel's punishing attacks.

You know, one really tires of this subtle (and often not so subtle) propagandizing by NPR.

NPR reporters apparently belive that their listening audience is not smart enough to pick up on this BS.

12/31/08, 1:02 PM
Anonymous said...

NPR is part and parcel of the Israeli Information War. They probably get little badges and shit.

Loved the "Lady Port Huntley's Beer" comparison, b!p!f!b!!!!

See also, "Sissy Boy Slap Party," which can be compared to our country's elite, illustrious leadership. ;)

12/31/08, 1:39 PM
Anonymous said...

Interesting analogy there, War On - a post over at the imdb board likened SBSP as a metaphor on "Man Disobeying God's Commandments." So, hmm.

"I gotta go to the shop and buy some condoms. And remember: NO SLAPPING!"

(incidentally, just got through 'Brand Upon the Brain!' which is partly to blame for my current Maddin fixation)

12/31/08, 2:07 PM
Anonymous said...

NPR is part and parcel of the Israeli Information War"

I doubt it.

What is more likely is that they (like the rest of the MSM in this country) are simply trying to cover all their bases so that they do not offend their primary donors -- their corporate underwriters.

So they play these word games that are not really lies, but not the truth, either.

And they interview victims after the fact so they can cover their ass down the road when someone accuses them of bias.

It is all very clever on the part of NPR management.

Too clever.

News is not supposed to be about packaging in order to offend the least number of people and thereby maximize income. But that is precisely what it has become in thios country.

NPR is NO different from all the rest of the mainstream medi in that regard.

These people are out to maximize their salaries rather than dig up the truth.

It is all very disgusting and has nothing whatsoever to do with journalism.

12/31/08, 2:10 PM
Porter Melmoth said...

Hey b!...b!, I am currently Madden-illiterate, but Isabella on wheels is something I've gotta see...

12/31/08, 4:24 PM
Buzztree said...

Saying that NPR and the "MSM" are just "covering bases" misses the point. They may or may not be deliberately passing on Israel's propaganda, but effectively that's all they're doing. And it's not just bias -- it's the dehumanization of the victims and the denial of what's actually happening.

The NY Times, for example, writes these headlines in today's online edition:

"Israel stepped up its diplomatic activity while continuing its airstrikes against Hamas's infrastructure [!] for a sixth straight day. Hamas continued to fire rockets into Israel."

And..."In Dense Gaza, Civilians Suffer [SUFFER? How about "Are Being Slaughtered"?!]: Despite the precision of the strikes [WTF?!?!], Israel's missiles have splintered families and shattered homes in one of the most densely populated areas on earth."

And..."Striking deep, Hamas employs upgraded rocket arsenal" [Oh, really?]

In a similar vein, here's MSNBC:

"Israel's attacks on Gaza deepend Palestinian rift"

"In standoff [?!], it's civilians who suffer."

"Sickening thud in an Israeli town" (link to Newsweek article about a Hamas rocket that killed a single person in Israel)

I know we are talking about NPR here and not these other outlets, but it's the exact same thing. The language is so twisted that simply ascribing it to "covering bases" is not satisfactory. It is, to borrow a word, sickening.

1/1/09, 8:17 AM
Anonymous said...

Yesterday I noted how often I heard the verb "pound" in reports on Israel's continued bombardment of Gaza. The Israelis don't bomb or kill, they pound the Palestinians.

1/1/09, 8:22 AM
Anonymous said...

I agree that the way NPR twists things is sickening, but "covering their bases" (or asses) is exactly what they are doing.

Their bases are the ones who pay their salaries.

They understand this all too well.

Not to excuse it, just acknowledge the way it is.

1/1/09, 9:31 AM
Buzztree said...

I am inclined to agree that WOWO is right -- NPR is part and parcel of the Israeli (dis)information war. That doesn't necessarily mean NPR takes its orders from Israel or AIPAC. Perhaps it's to molify its corporate supporters. But again, the outcome is the same.

1/1/09, 10:14 AM
Anonymous said...

NPR is part and parcel of the Israeli Information War" implies collusion.

I don't think that is the same as trying to make your corporate sponsors happy.

Now, if you said NPR reports are an indication that the Israeli Information War" is working, I would agree.

In other words, as a result of said information war, NPR sponsors pressure NPR to present a certain slant and/or shy away from certain reports that do not present Israel in a good light. And NPR complies because they want the money and have actually convinced themselves that "balance" (however unbalanced it might be) is the only thing that matters, anyway.

It's a subtle difference, but a difference nonetheless.

but i agree, the end result is the same: we (the listeners) get fed propaganda.

1/1/09, 12:12 PM

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)