Donald White Deserves To Be Remembered

In a just world Donald White would have gotten the same kind of media attention, if not more, than Tim Russert did.

From Donald White, 71; social activist on human rights in Central America by Mary Rourke:

A trip to Guatemala with relief workers after a 1976 earthquake led White to an ongoing involvement with Central America.

In the early 1980s, he helped organize a Los Angeles chapter of the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador, whose goal was to end U.S. involvement in the civil war there. White coordinated rallies, spoke at demonstrations, led teach-ins and lobbied Congress.

White also helped organize protest rallies calling for the closing of the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, formerly called the School of the Americas at Ft. Benning, Ga., a U.S. Army training center for Latin American soldiers. Antiwar activists contend that the school teaches torture tactics.

Read more here.

Unfortunately, the School of the Americas (now the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation) still exists.

The Sainthood Of Tim Russert

I was going to call this The Canonization of Tim Russert but someone else beat me to it.

I have already posted some of my thoughts on the media reaction to Tim Russerts departure from this earth.

Today I find more who are in agreement that Mr. Russert does not quite deserve all the uncritical glory being bestowed upon him.

From The Canonization of Tim Russert ... please by Joseph Raymond:

Here is my view of Tim Russert: he was a loyal boy scout, an alter boy publicly uncritical of the powers that be. He lacked a cynicism for government that anyone so long in Washington surely should have developed. He was promoted to a position where this character weakness caused great damage to our nation.

Tim Russert played off his failure to present opposition information on the case for war in Iraq or to ask the tough questions as if he never had an inkling that he was being used by the administration as part of a sophisticated propaganda campaign to sell the war to the American public. Why did the neocons favor use of Russert? Precisely because of the boy scout image.

There is more here.

Also worth taking a look at is How Tim Russert Helped Plant the Seeds for Iraq War by Jonathan Schwarz.

We are simply being given more propaganda from the main stream media upon the death of one its biggest propagandists, and helping to keep the circle of life of propaganda alive.

Tim Russert Accolades

All of the recent accolades heaped upon Tim Russert since his death on Friday disturb me. He may have been good at what he did, but he was not a good journalist as so many claim. He was not a good journalist because he was incredibly biased. He was a Bush enabler (Dick Cheney’s people considered Meet The Press their “best format” for catapulting the propaganda) during a time when that was the last thing that we needed. And because of the power that Mr. Russert had from Meet The Press and constantly being on television (it seems like he was on the Today Show every morning) his bias was that much more damaging.

I respectfully decline to join the large ranks of those saying how wonderful Mr. Russert was. There are a few others who share my opinion.

From Russert Failed Us by Thomas C:

But when we really needed him to be a journalist and to put his obligation to his viewers and readers ahead of his own career and his treasured access, he failed completely. And there were lives at stake, in Iraq and here at home.

I'm sorry. Flame away. But I can't help but feel betrayed. In the scheme of things perhaps it was a minor offense. It certainly doesn't place in the ranks of Bush, Cheney, Libby and the other war criminals. But Russert could have made a difference. And as a journalist he should have made a difference by telling us that Libby was lying, a disclosure that may have blown open this case in the months leading up to the 2004 election. But he didn't. He chose his career instead - the access, the fame, the fat $5 million contract. It seems like we really didn't enter into the equation for Tim.

I've noticed that others have expressed sentiments similar to those I've expressed in this post, and the reaction from many has been pretty harsh. They've insisted that this kind of criticism defames Russert, or is inappropriate at this time. All I can say in response is that if others are going to mourn Russert by falsely asserting that he was a giant of journalism, then there are at least 4100 reasons in Iraq why we should be permitted to rebut that assertion. Because Tim Russert may have been a great guy, and a good family man, but he was a poor journalist at a time when we needed good journalists so desperately.

Like George W. Bush, Russert wanted us to believe he was a “regular guy.” He frequently referred to his working class upbringing in Buffalo, New York. The fact of the matter is that he was rich and powerful and summered in Nantucket with his previous boss Jack Welch.

From Special report: Gregory’s world! by Bob Somerby:

Before Brady chose to spill the beans, did you even know that Russert “summers?” More specifically, did you know that he summers in consort with GE’s Jack Welch, his long-time (conservative) boss-man? (A year after Brady’s piece appeared, Chris Matthews plunked down a cool 4.4 mill to buy his own Nantucket shack.) And we’ll be honest; this whole thing seemed a bit more odd in light of the November 2000 profile by USA Today’s Peter Johnson, who said this of Russert tie to his bosses: “Colleagues say he shares a Catholic bond with NBC president Bob Wright and General Electric chairman Jack Welch.” If Brady’s report can be believed, the three men seal their bond on Nantucket.

There’s nothing wrong with any of that, of course—unless you’re concerned by the way that slightly odd Nantucket boys’ club has covered the politics of the Clinton/Bush era. In Part 4 of this report, for example, we’ll show you a remarkable journalistic flip-flop from October 2000—a flip which frankly makes us wonder if a call from Jack Welch might not have been placed to at least one of this island clique’s great cable stars.

If Tim Russert was the great journalist that so many claim he was, he would want the truth to be the most important part of his obituary. The sad fact is that Tim Russert played games with the truth and it has hurt us all.

For more on how fair and balanced Mr. Russert was:

Why Didn't They Call Me? by digby

Russert: At the Feet of the Powerful and Throat of the Weak by Fred Branfman

Meet Tim Russert by Jamison Foser

Russert and panel failed to challenge claim that "no one knew" intel on Iraq WMDs was flawed

Russert misled on Iraq intelligence, statements by Bush and Cheney on Iraq/9-11 link

It's Checks and Balances, Mr. Russert by John Conyers

Was Race a Factor in Russert's Obama Interview?

Things Are Great in Iraq!

Washington Reporters In Meltdown, Damage-Control Freak Out Mode by David Sirota

I guess there is no reason for the main stream media to stop the lies and half-truths and misleading statements and obsfucation just because Tim Russert died. I suppose it is a fitting tribute to Tim Russert to do to Russert’s memory what Russert himself did during his career.

Tim "Know-It-All" Russert Talks About Obama And Wright

The question about Jeremiah Wright should be: Why has he struck a nerve in the American psyche?” There must be some substance to what he has said. Why are we and Obama ignoring the substance of what Wright has said? Why are we just talking about the horse race again and how Wrightgate affects Obama’s campaign.



Racism is ugly and we would rather just ignore it and hope that it goes away. It will never go away unless we confront it. This is what Wright is doing. Obama refuses to do so. He is pretending it doesn’t exist.

Believe it or not, as long as I don’t have to listen to Jeremiah Wright preach about religion, I would rather listen to him than to Tim Russert. At least Wright isn’t a corporate and political shill.

Barack Obama And Jeremiah Wright And God Damn America

The Today Show this morning had a segment on the speech Barack Obama made yesterday. Who was doing all the talking? Rich white people. The absurdity of watching rich white people talk about race, Barack Obama, and Jeremiah Wright struck me immediately. How can people like Meredith Vieira and Tim Russert fully understand race from an African-American point of view? Yet, Tim Russert was the gasbag of choice, as usual, on the Today Show this morning. He obviously thinks he knows something about this topic. Well, he does. From a rich white man's perspective. That’s not exactly what’s needed here. In a discussion about race in America, if you must censor someone, censor Tim Russert, not Jeremiah Wright.

It took a little longer for me to remember that one of the video clips of Jeremiah Wright that is being shown over and over again is a condemnation of the rich white people who run America. At least on this topic it appears that the Today Show was proving Wright right. I may be one of the few Americans that wishes Barack Obama wasn’t distancing himself from Jeremiah Wright. So Wright said “God damn America.” Big deal. I’ll say it. God damn America. God damn the America that supports the “war” in Iraq! Five fucking years as of today! God damn the America responsible for Katrina! God damn the America that won’t impeach Bush and Cheney! God damn the America that supports the greedy vultures on Wall Street who destroy our economy! God damn the America that suppresses the views of a black reverend! I could probably go on forever with the God damning…

Let me repeat, five fucking years as of today! Suppression by the mass media of the many people against the invasion of Iraq, as well as the pro war bluster of the mass media helped push us into the Iraq mess. How is the suppression by the mass media of a black reverend's voice supposed to help solve our racial problems?

Whatever happened to freedom of speech?

Tim Russert's Balls

Matthew Yglesias has this to say about Tim’s balls:

Actually, the balls Russert favors may be hard, but the pitches he throws aren't curveballs, which go someplace useful. They're sillyballs, which go somewhere pointless.

You can read more of what Matthew thinks about Tim by going here.