#free press

[ridenwithbiden]

#WHITE HOUSE #FREE PRESS #PRESIDENT BIDEN

[republicansaredomesticterrorists]

#dictator trump #republican assholes #traitor trump #crooked donald #maga morons #never trump #free press

[mysharona1987]

Wait, they did worse than Saudi Arabia?

How is that even possible!?

#Israel #middle east #free palestine #democrats #republicans #politics #lebanon #free press #gop #books #Woc #poc #women of color #donald trump #biden #fox news

[curtvilescomic]

by Juanjo Guarnido

#comics #bande dessinée #BD #Superman #Tintin #Fantasio #Black sand #Juanjo Guarnido #Free speech #Free press

[poetessinthepit]

@Rootsmetals accusing a well-known Palestinian journalist having Hamas ties with no evidence. In the video, the journalist is showing people living in tents in Gaza on the 100th day of the siege. This is endangering journalists. The callousness here is incredible.

#bisan #gaza #palestinian journalists #free palestine #palestine #gaza genocide #hasbara #anti arab racism #free press #rootsmetals #propaganda #right wing rhetoric #genocide

[whatbigotspost]

Damn, y'all. This is very, very bad news:

I have an unshakable belief that "democracy" is a joke in any place where a free media cannot exist. As I've eluded to many times, I'm a big believer in more progressive leaning sources like NPR, the Texas Tribune (the source link in that^ story), and formerly, the Texas Observer. Things are NOT in a good place right now, financially, for any of those entities.

This trend is something that anyone who cares about the threat of the rising Christofascist right wing extremists should be paying a LOT OF FUCKING ATTENTION TO. If you can, you should be donating to any entity you depend on, like this. It's why I'm a member of my local NPR station. I mean, I can't help but feel like we are about 2 seconds away from just accepting that algorithms like TikTok are going to drive all of the "information" we have, and I hopefully don't need to explain why we'll all be thoroughly fucked if that happens. Here's an Austin local writer/journalist I trust, with more behind-the-scenes input about what happened w/ the Texas Observer.

#The Texas Observer #living in texas is an exercise in frustration #free media #NPR #access to information #free speech #free press

[eretzyisrael]

by David Propper

A smiling Jerry Seinfeld waved off anti-Israel protesters who accused him of supporting genocide as he exited an event on the Upper East Side Sunday night, according to footage.

The New York City comedian was heckled after he left an event at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan that featured former New York Times columnist Bari Weiss, founder of the Free Press.

“Genocide supporter, you support genocide,” one protester yelled at Seinfeld, who gave a quick wave before getting into the back seat of a black SUV that was surrounded by NYPD officers, according to footage obtained by The Post.

3Jerry Seinfeld was jeered by anti-Israel protesters following an event on the Upper East Side.FreedomNewsTV

The protesters continued to shout at Seinfeld before the SUV pulled away.

“F–k you, you support genocide,” the demonstrator seethed.

#jerry seinfeld #protesters #bari weiss #free press #genocide supporter

[pratchettquotes]

Vetinari walked over to the window and stared down at the city in silence for a moment and continued, "What can a mere jobbing tyrant achieve in the face of the even greater, multiheaded tyrant of public opinion and a regrettably free press?"

Terry Pratchett, Raising Steam

#havelock vetinari #moist von lipwig #raising steam #discworld #terry pratchett #politics #politician #tyrant #power #authority #public opinion #free press #a mere jobbing tyrant #the even greater tyrant #vetinari for democracy

[undergroundrockpress]

Opus Incertum / Fanzine - 1987.

#fanzine #underground press #punk #Opus Incertum #1987 #1980s #free press

[feckcops]

Palestinian journalists are risking their lives to counteract the ‘Israeli narrative’

“Reporters working in Gaza told Novara Media they are living and working in constant fear of death. ‘I’m under huge psychological pressure, as I feel I could be killed at any moment,’ said freelancer Rakan Abdelrahman. Last month, three of Abdelrahman’s colleagues were killed while trying to film a building in Gaza which was about to be bombed. Wearing jackets and helmets that clearly identified them as press, the men set up hundreds of metres from the stated target, only for the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) to instead strike a different building, much nearer to where they were standing.

“Last week, the IDF told Reuters and Agence France Presse it could not guarantee the safety of their journalists in Gaza, leading the news agencies to release a joint statement describing the situation on the ground as ‘dire’. ‘The IDF’s unwillingness to give assurances about the safety of our staff threatens their ability to deliver the news about this conflict without fear of being injured or killed,’ the statement said.

“In its letter to the news agencies, the IDF claimed Hamas is deliberately putting military operations “in the vicinity of journalists and civilians”. But several journalists who spoke to Novara Media said they believe they are being deliberately targeted by Israeli forces. ‘There were threats to several places where I was present, including Hiji Tower and Al-Tabbaa Tower’, said Abed Elhakeem Abo Riash, who has worked as a freelance journalist in Gaza for 14 years. ‘These towers all house the offices of journalists and foreign agencies.’

“Last week, Abo Riash was told to evacuate a residential tower by Israeli forces. He struggled to carry all of his equipment – which included his sleeping gear, two cameras, a laptop and a first aid kit – down from the 14th floor, and feared he would not make it out in time. ‘I was very afraid. The army has mercy on no one,’ he said.”

#free gaza #free palestine #from the river to the sea #palestine will be free #palestinian journalists #targeting journalists #journalistic freedom #journalists #freedom of the press #free press #israeli genocide #genocide of palestinians #ethnic cleansing #israeli war crimes #israeli war machine #war crimes #gaza #palestine #israel #middle east

[kneedeepincynade]

This school work is boring as hell, have some photos from yesterday pro palestine rally that will later be featured in my article

#multipolar world #multipolarity #multipolar reports #sov posting #sov #pro palestine #palestina libera #free palestine #free press

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Republican state legislators In North Carolina are establishing a new investigative body that Democratic critics have aptly compared to a “secret police force.”

This new entity, formally known as the Joint Legislative Committee on Government Operations, or “Gov Ops” for short, will be chaired by Senate Leader Phil Berger (R) and House Speaker Tim Moore (R). It grants the state the authority to investigate various matters, including “possible instances of misfeasance, malfeasance, nonfeasance, mismanagement, waste, abuse, or illegal conduct.”

Gov Ops, a product of North Carolina’s most recent state budget, was established via a comprehensive bill passed in late September. Despite Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s refusal to sign the legislation, the Republican majority in the state legislature pushed it through just 10 days later, thanks to their veto-proof majority and the state’s laws restricting the governor’s ability to make line-item vetoes. Gov Ops is slated to take effect next week.

Any way you slice it, Gov Ops seems like a recipe for government overreach and abuse. If you find yourself under investigation by Gov Ops, you won’t be allowed to publicly discuss any alleged constitutional violations or misconduct by the investigators. All communications with committee personnel would be treated as “confidential.” Shockingly, you’d also be denied the right to seek legal counsel regarding your rights if Gov Ops were to search your property without a warrant, irrespective of whether it’s in a public or private space.

Nora Benavidez, a senior counsel with the nonprofit advocacy group Free Press, told The Daily Beast, “This is a question for the courts ultimately. But the powers granted to the Gov Ops appear to give them overreaching investigative authority, which invokes constitutionality questions.”

A critical aspect of Gov Ops development lies in the language within the statute itself. The key phrase, as highlighted by Republican state legislators, is the investigation of “possible instances of misfeasance.”

It’s unsettling that North Carolina’s Republican state legislators are poised to wield unchecked partisan authority, devoid of any form of accountability, to determine what qualifies as “possible instances of misfeasance.” This newfound investigative power threatens to have far-reaching repercussions on fundamental civil liberties, particularly those closely intertwined with the state legislature—such as voting rights and abortion.

Consider the 2020 election aftermath. Following the election’s conclusion, several North Carolina Republican lawmakers—mirroring Trump and other far-right figures nationwide—demanded access to voting machines, relying on dubious sources and unfounded claims of voter fraud.

Initially, North Carolina Republicans asserted that they would work with police to obtain warrants for such inspections. However, with the advent of Gov Ops, committee leaders could now allege “possible instances of misfeasance,” eliminating the need for a warrant and keeping the public in the dark.

With the 2024 election looming, Republicans in the state legislature will redraw voting maps after the new conservative majority on the state’s Supreme Court legalized partisan gerrymandering. (The Princeton Gerrymandering Project called North Carolina one of the most gerrymandered states in the country.)

The redistricting process in the state has been grueling; since 2011, six different versions of maps have been drawn. The process has been conducted mainly behind closed doors, and North Carolinians continue to express frustration over how they’ve been locked out of the process.

A provision of Gov Ops will likely permit lawmakers drawing the maps to bypass public records requests: “lawmakers responding to public records requests will have no obligation to share any drafts or materials that guided their redistricting decisions.”

Now, let’s look at abortion. During a legislative hearing, state Sen. Graig Meyer (D) asked lawmakers, in a hypothetical scenario, if Gov Ops could access personal health records (like ultrasounds) that are required by the state to receive abortion pills. Sen. Meyer found that Gov Ops, with its widespread ability to investigate with zero oversight, could release information like this “to the public in a hearing” if it wanted to.

Benavidez explained, “At the end of the day, Gov Ops actions and requests for information are all protected as confidential, adding a layer of opacity which means people in North Carolina will have largely no idea what the Gov Ops entity is really doing.”

The consolidation of power by Republicans in North Carolina through Gov Ops is not just a cause for concern; it is a stark warning sign. The ability of state legislators to wield unchecked authority—shielded from the scrutiny of the voters they are obliged to serve—strikes at the heart of democratic principles.

Transparency and accountability are not optional in a democracy; they are its lifeblood.

When the process of drawing voting maps becomes cloaked in secrecy, when mechanisms to hold our elected officials accountable are dismantled, we risk losing our most cherished rights to our legislators, who should be our staunchest defenders.

Government powers like Gov Ops can potentially erode the very foundations of our democracy—which can’t work if politicians refuse to work for the people and have any accountability.

#us politics #news #republicans #the daily beast #conservatives #alt right #secret police #Gov Ops #Joint Legislative Committee on Government Operations #Phil Berger #Tim Moore #Gov. Roy Cooper #government overreach #fourth amendment violations #fourth amendment #illegal search and seizure #warrants #Nora Benavidez #Free Press #Republican state legislators #civil liberties #voting rights #gun rights #abortions #confidentiality #gerrymandering #redistricting #Graig Meyer #YouTube #videos

[galerymod]

A country for old men.

Who would have thought that you would call a coup after a regular election and not be imprisoned or even shot! No, instead you get to reach for power again and stand for election.

Just imagine if the film hero had instigated a coup d'état based on his ability to lie constantly, sexism was his daily business and deception and fraud his modus operandi coupled with homophobia and racist insinuations. Think the film would be a flop..... but wow in reality no problem.

What is wrong in a country when the poor and religious people believe that the devil's right hand is the saviour?

mod

This type of leader appears everywhere in history and is always extremely destructive",

Do not sin when you become angry! The sun must not set on your anger! Give the devil no place in you!

Ephesians 4:26-27

Because, of course, Satan does not arrive "in person". He has his servants - and they can use wise words - mixed with a little bit of poison. And already their whole message is poisoned! Again, it was the apparent wisdom of the Corinthians that made them impervious to these attacks from the devil. They honoured people as apostles who were in reality false workers, false apostles, servants of the devil. If they had exchanged the wisdom of this world for the wisdom of God, they would have remained "simple-minded towards Christ". And that alone would have preserved them, because they would have recognised that Satan looked like an angel of light on the outside, but that the voice of the good shepherd did not speak from him. In truth, this light is darkness - and corrupts our attitude, our thoughts and our way of life.

I find it fascinating that the basic attitude towards alternative lifestyles of religious people in American society drives them right into the hands of the servants.

#save our democracy #please vote #vote democrat #freedom of expression #free will #freedom of speech #free press #reality #horror #satire #or not #donald trump #coup d'état #bible verse #wikipedia #youtube #ex Twitter

[julyposts]

Esta es la ultima foto tomada al Periodista creador de WikiLeaks, Julian Assange en una cárcel de máxima seguridad 😔_

¿Cómo se puede ser tan cruel contra quien buscó y logró contribuir en exponer hechos no difundidos por los medios, un mensajero cuyo único delito fue informar sobre crímenes de lesa humanidad?._

#julian assange #press #free press

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Pat Bagley, The Salt Lake Tribune

* * * *

Trump’s Thanksgiving rant was not normal.

As most of the nation was blissfully preparing for Thanksgiving, Donald Trump posted a Thanksgiving “greeting” at 2:00 AM on Thursday that is a sign of a disordered mind filled with hate and rage. We shouldn’t dwell on what Trump says, but this post is important, as explained below. I have removed a racial slur and omitted some rambling passages, but here is the gist:

Happy Thanksgiving to ALL, including the Racist & Incompetent Attorney General of New York State, Letitia James, who has let Murder & Violent Crime FLOURISH, & Businesses FLEE; the Radical Left Trump Hating Judge, a “Psycho,” Arthur Engoron, [and] Crooked Joe Biden, who has WEAPONIZED his Department of Injustice against his Political Opponent, & allowed our Country to go to HELL; & all of the other Radical Left Lunatics, Communists, Fascists, Marxists, Democrats, & RINOS, who are seriously looking to DESTROY OUR COUNTRY.

          Trump was not content to allow our nation to have a moment of peace. Instead, he tried to stir up feelings of resentment and hatred against imaginary enemies on Thanksgiving. Heather Cox Richardson highlighted another dictator who employed similar tactics in her book, Democracy Awakening.

          Reader Jay M. sent me the following passage from HCR’s book with a prefatory note. Jay M. explains that HCR cites a report written after World War II for the OSS (precursor of today’s CIA) that was finally declassified in 1999. Professor Richardson writes:

The U.S. Office of Strategic Services had picked up on Hitler’s manipulation of his followers when it described Hitler’s psychological profile. It said, “His primary rules were: never allow the public to cool off; never admit a fault or wrong; never concede that there may be some good in your enemy; never leave room for alternatives; never accept blame; concentrate on one enemy at a time and blame him for everything that goes wrong; people will believe a big lie sooner than a little one; and if you repeat it frequently enough people will sooner or later believe it.”

          The similarity between the OSS assessment of Hitler’s psychological warfare tactic of keeping his followers in a constant state of anger and Trump’s rage-filled Thanksgiving “greeting” is stunning.

          Trump’s Thanksgiving greeting deserved front-page treatment. His post is a sign of mental illness and fascist intent—a dangerous combination. But most media outlets did not bother to report on Trump’s post. Instead, on Thanksgiving Day, Frank Bruni penned a very respectful, very supportive op-ed to the Biden family suggesting that they stage a loving intervention with Joe at the Thanksgiving table:

Does he have a plan for the pace of the next 11-plus months? When he’s brutally honest in his self-assessment, does he feel the same vim that he did in the past? If he doesn’t, there’s no shame in that — in fact, there’s honor in the acceptance of it.

          A very soft touch, but the message is unmistakable: Biden is too old to run. Would that Bruni devote his talent to describing the danger bristling in Trump’s Thanksgiving greeting. Or at least give it equal time. Maybe Bruni will get around to it after the Thanksgiving weekend. We can only hope.

Concluding Thoughts.

Ugh. That was a rough newsletter, especially as a re-entry into the news after a long Thanksgiving weekend (for some). I wish it were otherwise, but there were tough topics that needed to be addressed.

          I am going to take this opportunity to make a direct plea to journalists, producers, and editors in the news media who read this newsletter. I know you are out there because I hear from you when you feel that I unfairly bash the news media. I occasionally receive mistaken “reply-to-all” or forwarded emails to your colleagues that inadvertently include me. (Don’t worry; I delete them immediately.) (Hint: Do a Google search for “How to remove a name from autofill in an email address field.”)

          Let me start with an olive branch. There are exceptional journalists doing great work every day. I cite them every day. They can’t please everyone all the time. They deserve our support and thanks—and forbearance for the occasional mistake. So here it is: Thank you to every journalist who is doing a tough job well in a news environment that is the equivalent of a war zone of disinformation.

          Ignore my whining and carping; dismiss me as a crank if you want. But please ask yourselves whether the news reporting and editorial stances at your outlet are rising to this perilous moment in American history. Everyone—including you—knows in their bones that Trump is a unique threat to democracy. He is consciously emulating the worst dictators of the last century. His aides are leaking their plans to undermine democracy. That existential threat must be in every story you write. If you must, report on polls or horse races or political infighting but do so while acknowledging that one candidate seeks to destroy democracy while the other candidate seeks to operate within its confines.

          I believe that Americans will prevail against the threat of MAGA extremism with or without the support of a free press rising to the challenge of this moment. But it would be easier—and victory would be more assured—if major media outlets did not treat Trump as just another candidate after his failed coup and incitement to insurrection.

          Imagine if Hitler had survived WWII and then ran for re-election as Chancellor of Germany from a prison cell. Would any story be written that merely reported on polls discussing the level of voter support for Hitler versus his opponent? Or would every story include discussion of his fascist takeover of Germany, his war on Europe, and his attempt to exterminate the Jewish people? Why does Trump get a free pass in hundreds of articles a day that treat him as the legitimate political opponent of Joe Biden? How can any story be written that asks, “Is Biden too old,” without asking the more urgent question, “Will Trump end democracy in America.”

          I have slipped back into offense when I meant to invite you to reflect on the balance and editorial position of your news organization. Tens of millions of Americans are hoping that you will get it right. You don’t have to defend Democrats or Joe Biden. But defending the Constitution and democracy is not partisan. The future of our democracy is partly in your hands. It should be a part of every story you write.

[Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter]

#Pat Bagley #The Salt Lake Tribune #political cartoons #MAGA #extremism #democracy #MAGA extremism #free press #Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter

[maa-pix2]

Free the Press City Lights Bookstore, San Francisco August 2023

#bookstores #free press #city lights books #original phography #photographers on tumblr