Project Censored announces itspick of the top 25 news stories to
be spiked in the last 12 months...
Where the hell is Israel or Palestine
on this list?
Did the folks over at project
censored miss something?
Each year since 1976, hundreds of student researchers,
faculty, and volunteer members have presented the
most important news stories that were under-covered,
glossed over or ignored by the US’s major media outlets.
Their 25 stories this year make up the first chapter
of the Censored 2008 yearbook, which also offers
real news about internet freedom, images of the
war, and the impact of Big Media on children.
With an introduction by Dennis Loo and the political
cartoon commentary of John Jonik, this year’s book
covers some of the most critical issues facing the
American people today.
The Top 25 stories focus on issues such as civil
rights, politics, economics, foreign policy, food and
health, the environment, energy, domestic policy,
and the military.
“Corporate media in the United States is interested
primarily in entertainment news to feed their bottom-
line priorities,” states Peter Phillips, Director of the Project.
“Some of the most important news stories that should
reach the American public falls on the cutting room floor
to be replaced by sex-scandals and celebrity updates.”
The Sonoma State University research group is
composed of over 200 faculty, students and community
experts who review hundreds of story submissions for
coverage, content, reliability of sources and national significance.
The top 25 stories are submitted to a panel of judges
who then rank them in order of importance.
Phillips says we must broaden our understanding of
censorship in the US.
"No longer is the dictionary definition of direct government
control of news adequate. The private corporate media in
the US significantly undercover and/or deliberately censor
numerous important news stories every year," he adds.
"The systemic erosion of human rights and civil
liberties, in the US, is the common theme of many of the
most censored stories of 2006-07.
"Most people in the US believe in our Bill of Rights and
value personal freedoms. Yet, our corporate media in
the past year failed to inform us about serious changes
in our civil rights and liberties."
People want to be informed about serious decisions made
by the powerful and rely on the corporate media to keep
us abreast of important changes, despite their busy lives,
Phillips says.
"When a media fails to cover these issues, what else can
we call it but censorship?"
Top Censored Stories of 2006-2007
1/. No Habeas Corpus for “Any Person”
The Military Commissions Act of 2006 (MCA) ushered
in military commission law for US citizens and non-citizens
alike. Text in the MCA allows for the institution of a military
alternative to the constitutional justice system for “any
person” arbitrarily deemed to be an enemy of the state,
regardless of American citizenship.
“Who Is 'Any Person' in Tribunal Law?”
Robert Parry, Consortium, 10/19/2006
“Still No Habeas Rights for You” Robert
Parry, Consortium, 2/3/2007
2/. Bush Moves Toward Martial Law
The John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007
allows the president to deploy military troops anywhere
in the United States and take control of state-based
National Guard units without the consent of the
governor or local authorities in order to "suppress
public disorder.”
“Bush Moves Toward Martial Law” Frank
Morales, Uruknet, 10/ 26/2006
3/. AFRICOM: US Military
Control of Africa’s Resources
In February 2007 the White House announced the
formation of the US African Command (AFRICOM),
a unified Pentagon command center in Africa.
Presented as a humanitarian guard in the Global
War on Terror, the real objective is procurement and
control of Africa’s oil and its global delivery systems.
“Understanding AFRICOM” Parts 1-3,
b real, MoonofAlabama.org 2/21/2007
4/. Frenzy of Increasingly
Destructive Trade Agreements
The US and European Union (EU) are vigorously
pursuing increasingly destructive trade and investment
agreements outside the auspices of the WTO, resulting
in unprecedented exploitation, loss of livelihood,
displacement, and degradation of human rights
and environments.
“Signing Away The Future”
Emily Jones, Oxfam, 3/2007
“Free Trade Enslaving Poor Countries” Sanjay
Suri, IPS coverage of Oxfam Report, 3/20/2007
5/. Human Traffic Builds US Embassy in Iraq
The enduring monument to US liberation and
democracy in Iraq is being built by forced labor.
Contractors subcontracting to the US State
Department are using bait-and-switch recruiting
practices to smuggle Asian workers into brutal and
inhumane labor camps—in the middle of the US
-controlled Green Zone.
6/. Operation FALCON Raids
Under Operation FALCON—Federal and Local
Cops Organized Nationally—more than 30,000
“fugitives” were arrested in the largest dragnets
in the nation's history. Over 960 state, local and
federal agencies were directly involved. Only
promotional coverage supplied by the DOJ was
ever aired. We have yet to be told who these
fugitives were and what became of them.
“Operation Falcon and the Looming Police
State” Mike Whitney, Ukernet, 2/26/2007
“Operation Falcon”
SourceWatch, Updated 11/18/2006
7/. Behind Blackwater Inc.
Blackwater, the most powerful mercenary firm in the
world, is the company that most embodies the
privatization of the military industrial complex.
Bush’s contracts with Blackwater have allowed
the creation of a private army of more than
20,000 soldiers, operating with almost no
oversight or effective legal constraints, to
deploy in nine countries and aggressively
expand its presence inside US borders.
8/. KIA: The US Neoliberal Invasion of India
The Knowledge Initiative in Agriculture, quietly signed
by Bush and India’s Prime Minister Singh, trades
India’s agricultural sector for US nuclear technology.
The KIA allows for the grab of India’s seed sector by
Monsanto, its trade sector by giant agribusiness
ADM and Cargill, and its retail sector by Wal-Mart.
“Sowing Trouble: India's ‘Second
Green Revolution’” Suman Sahai, SciDev.Net, 5/9/06
9/. Privatization of America’s Infrastructure
More than 20 states have enacted legislation
allowing public-private partnerships to build
and run highways. We will soon be paying
Wall Street investors, Australian bankers, and
Spanish contractors for the privilege of
driving on American roads.
“The Highwaymen” Daniel Schulman with
James Ridgeway. Mother Jones, 2/2007
“Bush Administration Quietly Plans NAFTA
Super Highway” Jerome R. Corsi, Human Events, 6/12/2006
10/. Vulture Funds Threaten
Debt Relief for Poor Nations
Vulture funds, as defined by the IMF, are
companies that buy up the debt of poor
nations cheaply, when it is about to be
written off, and then sue for the full value
of the debt plus interest—which might be
ten times what they paid for it. Otherwise
known as “distressed-debt investors,” these
companies profit off plunging impoverished
nations into crippling debt.
“Vulture Fund Threat to Third World”
Greg Palast with Meirion Jones for BBC
Newsnight, 02/14/2007
11/. The Scam of “Reconstruction”
in Afghanistan
Much of the US tax money earmarked to
rebuild Afghanistan actually ends up going
no further than the pockets of wealthy US
corporations. Paychecks for overpriced,
and often incompetent, American “experts”
under contract to USAID go directly from
the Agency to American bank accounts.
Seventy percent of the aid that does make it to
a recipient country is carefully “tied” to the
donor nation for further fraud and exploitation.
“Why It's Not Working in Afghanistan”
Ann Jones, Tomdispatch.com, 8/27/06
“Afghanistan Inc: a CorpWatch
Investigative Report” Fariba Nawa,
CorpWatch, 10/6/06
12/. Another Massacre in Haiti by UN Troops
On December 22, 2006 more than 30
unarmed Haitian civilians, including women
and children, were killed by extensive and
indiscriminate gunfire from UN “peacekeeping”
forces, reportedly as collective punishment for
a massive demonstration days earlier calling
for the return of President Aristide.
“UN in Haiti: Accused of Second Massacre”
Haiti Information Project, Haiti Action, 1/21/2007
13/. Immigrant Roundups to Gain Cheap
Labor for US Corporate Giants
In the wake of 9/11, Immigration Customs
Enforcement has conducted raids and roundups of
“illegal” immigrants under the rubric of preventing
terrorism and keeping our homeland safe. The real goal,
however, is to replace the immigrant work force in the
US with a tightly regulated, exploitive guest-worker program.
“Migrants: Globalization’s Junk Mail?”
Laura Carlsen, Foreign Policy in Focus, 2/23/07
“Which Side are You on?”
David Bacon, Truthout, 1/29/07
“Workers, Not Guests” David
Bacon, The Nation, 2/6/07
14/. Impunity for US War Criminals
A last minute adjustment to the Military Commission
Act of 2006 redefined torture, removed the
harshest definition of war crimes, and exempts
the perpetrators from prosecution for such
offences dating back to November 1997. The source
of this provision is, however, a mystery. The White
House denies any involvement or knowledge
regarding the insertion of such language into the MCA.
15/. Toxic Exposure Can Be Genetically
Transmitted to Future Generations
Research suggests that our behavior and our
environmental conditions may program sections of
our children’s DNA. New evidence about how genes
interact with the environment suggests that many
industrial chemicals may be more ominously
dangerous than previously thought. One
researcher points to a revolution in medicine:
“You aren't eating and exercising just for yourself,
but for your lineage.”
16/. No Hard Evidence
Connecting Bin Laden to 9/11
Osama bin Ladin’s role in the events of September
11, 2001 is not mentioned on the FBI’s “Ten Most
Wanted” notice. Six years later the FBI spokesperson
explains, “The reason 9/11 is not mentioned on
Osama bin Laden's Most Wanted page is because
the FBI has no hard evidence connecting
bin Laden to 9/11…”
“FBI says, ‘No hard evidence connecting
Bin Laden to 9/11’” Ed Haas, Muckraker
Report, 6/6/06
17/. Drinking Water Contaminated
by Military and Corporations
Corporations, municipalities, and the US military
are using America’s waters as their dumping ground
—often with little or no accountability. The average
major facility discharges pollutants in excess of its
permitted limit by over 275 percent, nearly four
times the legal limit, while more than 40 percent
of US waterways are already unsafe for swimming
and fishing,
“Military Waste In Our Drinking Water”
Sunaura Taylor and Astra Taylor,
AlterNet, 8/4/2006
18/. Mexico’s Stolen Election
US interests were significantly invested in
the outcome of Mexico’s 2006 presidential
election in which overwhelming evidence
reveals massive fraud.
“Evidence of Election Fraud Grows in México,”
Chuck Collins and Joshua Holland, AlterNet, 8/2/2006
“Mexico: The Political Volcano Rumbles”
Revolution, 9/10/06
19/. People’s Movement Challenges
Neo-Liberal Agenda
In Latin America, massive opposition to US
economic domination has demanded that populist
leaders and parties take control of national
governments, building powerful alternatives
to neo-liberal exploitation.
“Is the US Free Trade Model Losing Steam?”
American Friends Service Committee, Trade Matters, 5/3/06
“Is Hugo Chaves a Threat to Stability? No.”
Mark Weisbrot, International Affairs Forum, 3/31/07
20/. Terror Act Against Animal Activists
The Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act of 2006
expanded the definition of “terrorism” to include
acts that interfere, or promote interference, with
the operation of an animal enterprise. Over 160
groups opposed this Act on grounds that its
terminology is dangerously vague and poses
major conflict to the US Constitution.
21/. US Seeks WTO Immunity for
Illegal Farm Payments
The July 2006 Doha round of WTO negotiations
broke down over the contentious issue of farm
trade and the unrestricted opening of markets
to agricultural products. In a last-minute proposal,
one not included on the original agenda, the US
insisted that all trade agreements include a special
“Peace Clause” that would make its use of illegal
farm subsidies immune from prosecution by the
countries affected.
“Canada launches WTO case on US
subsidies” Eoin Callan, Financial Times, 1/9/2007
“US seeks “get-out clause” for illegal
farm payments” Oxfam, 6/29/2006
22/. North Invades Mexico
The number of North Americans living in
Mexico has soared from 200,000 to 1 million
(one-quarter of all US expatriates) in the past
decade. With more than 70 million American
baby-boomers expected to retire in the next
two decades, experts predict “a tidal wave” of
migration. The land rush is sending up property
values to the detriment of locals whose children
are consequently driven into slums or forced to
emigrate north.
“Border Invaders: The Perfect Swarm Heads
South” Mike Davis, TomDispatch.com, 9/19/2006
23/. Feinstein’s Conflict
of Interest in Iraq
Dianne Feinstein is involved in monumental
conflicts of interest as she promotes and exploits
the Global War on Terror. As a member of the
Military Construction Appropriations subcommittee,
Senator Feinstein voted for appropriations worth
billions of dollars to her husband's military
construction firms, while consistently voting
to fund US military proliferation.
“Senator Feinstein’s Iraq Conflict” Peter Byrne, Bohemian, 1/24/2007
24/. Media Misquotes Threat
From Iran’s President
A mistranslated quotation attributed to Iran’s
President Ahmadinejad, which threatened that,
“Israel must be wiped off the map,” has been
spread around the world. Ahmadinejad’s actual
statements, however, were significantly less
threatening.
25/. Who Will Profit From Native Energy?
The US government and energy industry intend
to market a shift away from dependence on
foreign energy by deregulating and stepping
up their exploitation (“development”) of wind
and solar resources located on Native American
reservations.
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