That is all anyone needs to know.

Doesn't EVERYONE want a man like Putin????

above. On the other hand, some of the discussions are thought-provoking, and I love Thom Hartmann. He does not get a fair hearing on American radio and TV, but he is a really good man who tries to present various sides to issues.

That RT has any viewers and listeners in the US is mostly a sad commentary on the state of American media. Its owners are few and decidedly for the most part extremely right-wing. The American media is dishonest and dominated by ridiculously poorly educated news-spokespeople.

The female commentators appear to be chosen for the creases in their cleavages which they are apparently paid to open for all the gawkers in the Fox TV viewership.

We have some good TV commentators, especially on MSNBC and to some extent on PBS, but for the most part, our TV commentators are just eye-candy or pompous pronouncers rather than serious news journalists. There are exceptions if you can stand to sit through the entertainment portion of the news.

I, for one, gave up on cable TV some years ago. I will watch specific programs on the internet occasionally, but I mostly get my news from Pacifica radio (I don't always agree with it, especially on issues like Israel and Palestine, but at least you get a little in-depth interviewing and discussion), from specific articles and short excerpts on the internet and from books. I like to read history. If you read history and then you read the headlines of today, you probably know more about what is going on, about the most likely back story, than if you read the idiotic commentary that emanates from the mouths of the barely educated, poorly read "commentators" on our media.

So much for RT as well as for our media.

Thom Hartmann I like because he researches topics and because he is a compassionate, intelligent man from what I can tell. Never met him. I also like Ian Masters' show on Pacifica Radio. Intelligent, calm reporting.

Putin. I'm not even going to start. What a loser.

Last edited Thu Dec 4, 2014, 09:27 PM - Edit history (4)

I will absolutely defend them (and maybe a few others as well) on RT.


You have to be a pretty dense, uninformed and ignorant person not to be able to see the
entirely expectable pro-Putin propaganda served-up on RT.

I remember vividly when in the early 2000s US cable tv network news sources who were owned by mega-companies who also
had weapons divisions and military contract$ were cheerleading for the Iraq War.
Talk about conflict-of-interest---And those were American stations!

You do remember that don't you? (Or at least you know of it, right?).

RT's propaganda is obvious and heavy-handed, almost comical.
For myself, I just switch channels when the propaganda starts flowing, as it does on several of RT's shows.
No problem--I am an educated, media-savvy person who can smell propaganda of almost any sort a mile away.

I can make distinctions between propaganda and good muckraking reporting (as done by Hartman and Martin).

Surely, you Putin-slammers out there are educated, media-savvy people as well (I assume).
Then why all the fear and hate?
It comes off as very sophomoric, IMO.

You other posters (so far) on this thread...

You mean to tell me you don't see the corporate spin/censorship in Comcast/MSNBC? The sycophancy of CNN?
Fox is obvious.
But even PBS has heavy corporate/Koch Bros sponsorship (read:$$$) that has affected the quality and content of
their news and programming including shows on foreign policy and climate change (all well-reported-have you not read about this?).

Al Jazeera has some good reporting, but IMO, they are just 1 source, and are subjective to the spin
of their ownership as well. I don't watch them nearly as much as RT. Maybe I should watch them more?

Thank God for Amy Goodman and Pacifica, but they are not enough by themselves.
America needs 100 Amy Goodmans, IMO.

IMO, we need ALL sources, even Fox (to use as the gold standard of comparison for corporate/RW BS).

Go ahead---Criticise the obvious Putin-burnishers at RT all you want (Like I said, I usually choose to switch channels at that time).

General principle I have learned to be true:
That which is obvious and heavy-handed is far less dangerous than subtle, skillful manipulation (or omission) of news.
You do get that, right?

RT is as obvious as FOX when it goes over-the-line. Visible a mile away.

But luckily, RT also gives some good reporters a free-hand who dig up bad things that are actually
happening in America, and under-reported by our own corporate news.
And unlike MSNBC/FOX, there is no Democratic-Republican Party "horse-race" spin.

And there are other reasons Thom Hartmann/Abby Martin and a few others on RT get my viewing:
Noam Chomsky
Chris Hedges
Richard D Wolff
Brad Friedman
Danny Schecter
Greg Palast
David Sirota

There are others as well.

Why are these important voices NEVER heard on CNN, MSNBC, FOX, etc?
Never.

Only Pacifica and RT.

So--There's no censorship on US Corporate news?
Don't make me laugh you out of the room.

Oh yes---Another small reason I like RT---No commercials.

Of course, any corporatist would be deeply offended by that, I'm sure.

But you folks aren't corporatists, are you?

So make fun of RT all you want (shirtless Putin jokes all day long, ha ha ha---I might even laugh along too ).

But there's no reason to hate or fear RT, that is,
if you can handle the "information" part about living in an Information Society.

I realize many FOX-watchers can't.

But I assume you folks who posted earlier on this thread, are way smarter than that.

to the McCarthyites.

Thom Hartmann sold his soul when he didn't quit when Liz Wahl did.
BTW I agree with most of Hartmann's views but he gets creepy when it comes to anything that might criticize Russia http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/03/10/1283668/-Thom-Hartmann-Sticking-with-RT-despite-Resignations-over-Putin-s-Actions-in-Ukraine

But Abby Martin--really?

Reading over some of your other posts on RW talk radio and Healthcare, you seem pretty astute.

But you seem unable to sift thru RT and find anything of value,
obviously.

You see one image of Putin with his shirt off and you lose your faculties?
Just kiddin'.

Is Putin worse than Hitler? Are Russian Oligarchs meaner than the Koch Bros?
Are the Russky devils out to get us again?


Beware the virus of "neocon-fever"---I have seen highly-educated people, very enlightened in some areas,
but when it comes to certain areas (Israel, Russia, Iran, Arab terrorists in general) they seem to have a vulnerability/fearfulness
that makes them susceptible to this "neocon-itis", and react in the manner of Dick Cheney on certain issues.

It can even happen to people who support abortion choice, Gay rights, higher wages
and policies to mitigate climate-change.

Why such a non-progressive turn in this area?

What do you fear so much that neocon-fever can infect you?

Maybe I'm the one who should be more scared(?)


Please feel free to tell me why I should be, if you like.

Go ahead---Scare me.

what you should ask is why any progressive would stand for RT's ridiculous bias and lies in order to "sift through" to "find anything of value."

Should I watch FOX to "sift thru" and find value? How about Press TV or Drudge or Stormfront? Why should anyone supporting gay rights give one second to Putin's paid propaganda channel?

I call BS

The words/ideas or reports of:

Noam Chomsky
Chris Hedges
Brad Friedman
Grag Palast
Dahr Jamail
David Sirota
Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson (Iceland president) ??

There are others of worth who appear on RT, but these are the most significant ones, IMO.
And not one of them is a Putin sycophant---They are NOBODY'S sycophant, actually.

Many of these people report frankly and revealingly on American issues that have nothing to do with Russia.

Do you really write-off all these voices as well?
And if so, why?

Do you honestly equate these people with Fox News talking-heads?

Please clear this up for me.

Not saying you have to write another Moby Dick in the explanation, but another quickie,
non-sequitur response will not be adequate.

You've got some s'plainin' to do.
Please stay away from the personal, if you can, and just focus on the above people.

You might also include why you think American corporate networks are so great and
superior to RT for shutting them out almost completely on US network & cable airwaves.

Wasn't really expecting a coherent comeback to that question in my last post.

It was a wise move not to reply, IMO.

Of course some legitimate voices sometime make the mistake of going on RT. The same happens at FOX and there has been a debate on the left about whether it's smart and/or justified to go on FOX. You're actually just changing the subject--RT is a joke, and your little list doesn't change that

Such impressive arguments.


Folks who persist in emotional outbursts with no backup argument except feelings, but keep
vacantly insisting their ideas have merit,
make less impression than they will ever realize.

To put it kindly.


But hey, they are your feelings, and they are indeed strong.
And feelings do have value.

Clearly, you're a Morris Albert man...

must be your feelings about Putin that make you defend him, I guess.
Giddy up!

Watch out---Your wife may be carrying Putin's baby.

I'll bet that's why your so upset, huh?


Old Putie's probably hiding in your closet right now (next to ISIS).




Maybe you should watch this again (for the 50th time?):

Like, I really do respect his physical stamina and political acumen. Don't trust the guy any farther than I can throw him (and he's three belts above me in Judo, so that's not probably very far), but there's definitely a "cool" factor there.

That was not her first public "slip up".

I see you also got caught in neocon orchestrated propaganda:

TruthDig: How Cold War-Hungry Neocons Stage Managed RT Anchor Liz Wahl’s Resignation

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/how_cold_war-hungry_neocons_stage_managed_liz_wahls_resignation_20140319

You don't need to watch RT to know that the western media has been misrepresenting or under-reporting all the facts around what is happening in the region. There are plenty of progressive sites that have investigated and learned that we are being fed lots of propaganda ourselves by our tabloid media.

Project Censored:
Project censored (an academic media watchdog) validated and reported on the underreported facts on what is happening in the region.

Project Censored has chosen the story on Ukraine as one of the
Top 25 Most Censored Stories of 2013-2014
(It is #9)
http://www.projectcensored.org/category/top-25-censored-stories-of-2014/page/2/


US Establishment Media Neglects Neo-Nazi Role in Ukraine Uprising
http://www.projectcensored.org/us-establisment-media-neglects-neo-nazi-role-ukraine-uprising/

It is constructive in content and style....

Putin is popular in Russia because he successfully defends Russia's national interests - he is behaving no differently than any Russian leader.

Demonizing any leader as a tactic of foreign policy is a frequent tool employed by the West. Although the West/the US has a legacy of strategic policy failures in the Middle East, it has been effective in playing the regime change card.... This tactic has not and will not work in Russia because (fortunately) Russia as a former super power still has a military and also still is a player internationally (BRICs/ UN Security Council, etc.). This enables Russia to stand up to the US/NATO and of course contributes to Russia's international popularity while being a thorn in the side of the US.

Does it break Godwin's law to call Putin a Fascist?

RT at it's very worst...pathetic Putin "shining", which of course he needs, but I don't need parochial lies...YOU?

And that host is more biased than O'Reilly.







I'm gonna need a couple of hours to let that sink in.

Is a sawed off runt of a man that wishes he was bigger. That's called little man syndrome, like a lot of cops here in Vermont. Putin is like working in a job that is at least a hundred pay grades over his head. He reminds me of the Republicans here in America that seem to swim against the current of what is socially excetable, or just plain wrong...

Robert Parry, an independent journalist with strong creds addresses the issue of propaganda and also takes to task the author you cite your op, Richard Stengel, under secretary of state for public diplomacy:

Robert Parry of Consortium News (independent news)
"Robert Parry (born June 24, 1949) is an American investigative journalist best known for his role in covering the Iran-Contra affair for the Associated Press (AP) and Newsweek, including breaking the Psychological Operations in Guerrilla Warfare (CIA manual provided to the Nicaraguan contras) and the CIA and Contras cocaine trafficking in the US scandal in 1985. He was awarded the George Polk Award for National Reporting in 1984. He has been the editor of Consortium News since 1995."


Who’s the Propagandist: US or RT?
May 1, 2014
...
Hide the Neo-Nazis

Although the State Department has tried to hide the crucial role of neo-Nazi militias in overthrowing Yanukovych’s elected government, it was well known at the time (and acknowledged by the Maidan protesters themselves) that far-right groups had organized 100-man brigades to carry out the final attacks. There was also widely broadcast news footage of these Maidan protesters hurling Molotov cocktails at police, more than a dozen who died in the clashes.

Is Stengel really unaware of the involvement in the coup by neo-Nazi storm troopers from the Right Sektor and the Svoboda party, which both lionize World War II Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera? Does Stengel really not know about the prevalence of banners honoring Bandera, Nazi insignias at rallies and even the appearance of the Confederate battle flag unfurled at the Kiev City Hall as the universal symbol of white supremacy?
...
http://consortiumnews.com/2014/05/01/whos-the-propagandist-us-or-rt/

In this segment begins to discuss the situation in Gaza and the news as portrayed in the West. At about minute 18:00 he says that the difference between the news in the West and the late 1970's totalitarian societies, in the totalitarian societies, the public knew that the news was being censored and distorted and was to be laughed at.

Tymoshenko doesn't deny that she urged slaughtering and ethnic cleansing of Russians.

Her ONLY disagreement is that she urges the slaughter of Russians who live in Ukraine,
and not slaughter of Russians in Russia.
(Eastern Ukraine has mostly Russian speaking people)

Tymoshenko confirmed that the conversation took place on Twitter from her verified account. But she pointed out that the end of the leaked recording, when she threatens to use atomic weapons against eight million Russians living in Ukraine, has been edited and manipulated.

A translation reads: "The conversation took place, but the 'eight million Russians in Ukraine' piece is a manipulation. In fact, I said that Russians in Ukraine are Ukrainians. Hello FSB [the Russian secret service] Sorry for the obscene language."

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/ukraines-ex-pm-tymoshenko-take-arms-kill-russians-1441651

Do pictures speak louder than words? This one does

That map has a NATO base in fucking Kazakhstan.

military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq are coming from?

http://www.globalresearch.ca/kazakhstan-suggested-us-to-open-military-base-on-its-territory/18661


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazakhstan%E2%80%93United_States_relations#Military_.26_Security_Cooperation

It's pure bullshit. I actually live in South Korea and there is NO NATO base here.

Of course people will keep posting the lies and bs that feed into the CS.

But I confess to giving in to temptation and willingly participating in this drivel.

Crap like this neocon paranoia thread always suck me in.



It's like having an appetite for the worst junk food.
The DU Post equivalent of pork rinds, coated with cheez-Whiz & Dorito's crumbs, and deep-fried,
in aardvark fat.





But since Putin is 234,000 times worse-than-Hitler, a little "brain-cholesterol" is totally worth it.



=================================================================================

I know it's been a bad day for neocons,
what with the Torture Report coming out and all.