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The news is what we tell you it is.
Chez posts a gem of a story about media machinations in Florida:
Steve Wilson and Jane Akre -- WTVT's husband-and-wife investigative team -- had discovered that, despite promises to the contrary, grocery stores across Florida were selling milk produced through the use of recombinant bovine growth hormone, or rBGH. ... To make a long story short, Wilson and Akre's story never aired because Monsanto found out about it ahead of time and put pressure on Hutt-like Fox News chief Roger Ailes who told Dave Boylan to handle it. After putting them through the ringer -- forcing rewrite after rewrite in an effort to supposedly try to give the story more "balance" -- Boylan killed the thing outright and fired Wilson and Akre for reportedly refusing to include what, by almost all accounts, was false information in the story, but not before telling them (according to the lawsuit they immediately filed against the station), "We paid $3 billion for these television stations. We will decide what the news is. The news is what we tell you it is."
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Comments (9)
wow, it would be great if that quote was on tape.
July 17, 2008 3:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, barring that here are the reporters themselves on YouTube:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=9E-5KivgwO4
July 17, 2008 3:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
I wonder if Fox in their infinite wisdom (please read sarcasm) realized by firing these two reporters it has now become a bigger story than a local Florida story? Got to love it.
And Ben, thanks for the video.
July 17, 2008 5:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, well, that explains it.
July 17, 2008 6:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Pretty outrageous. It's an argument for going around with a hidden recording device at all times, isn't it?
If that's too extreme, maybe there's another way to do something.
For information about how Sudden Citizens' Action Against Media Distortion (SCAAMD) project plans to combat this kind of abuse, take a look at my recent post:
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/07/scaamdthe-media-isnt-going-to.php
July 17, 2008 6:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Monsanto is completely out of control. If you haven't read the May issue of Vanity Fair, it's chilling. We probably should take on Monsanto just as vigorously as we take on the MSM, that is if we want to have viable crops for food in our future.
July 17, 2008 6:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
It certainly seems that there is a food cartel in the world's future.
July 17, 2008 7:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
A cartel that may intersect food and energy.
July 17, 2008 10:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thanks. Unfortunately, this comes as no surprise. It is definitely time to put a stop to this. This just adds more fuel to the Sudden Citizen Action Against Media Distortion (SCAAMD) project fire.
To any who want to learn more about or participate in the SCAAMD effort, here are just a few TPM reader posts on SCAAMD that provide more information:
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/07/can-our-voices-be-heard-how-do.php
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/07/followup-our-voice-and-the-med.php
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/07/our-ammunition-countermeasures.php
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/07/sudden-citizens-action-against.php
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/07/msmwatch-weekend-edition.php
July 17, 2008 9:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
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