Posted on 01/09/2005 8:29:13 AM PST by madfly
THE ISSUE | Revelations that the Bush administration used taxpayer money to promote its agenda on news shows.
OUR OPINION | These tactics are reprehensible and threaten the freedom of the press guaranteed in the Constitution.
The term "state-run media" is normally associated with nations that control and censor its media outlets such as China and North Korea.
Hopefully that term will not apply to outlets in the United States, but recent actions by the Bush administration should make all of us stand up and take notice
Last week, it was revealed that the Education Department paid commentator Armstrong Williams $240,000 to promote its education policies to black audiences. The payment was made with taxpayer money.
Williams is a former aide to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and is one of the top black conservative voices in the nation. He hosts "The Right Side" on television and on the radio and is a syndicated columnist.
According to the terms of the agreement, Williams was expected to regularly comment on No Child Left Behind, which aims to raise achievement among poor and minority children, with penalties for schools that don't make progress.
Williams originally said he agreed to the contract because the NCLB is something he believes in. That's fine, and he has every right to use his shows and columns to promote any issue he agrees with.
But he should be doing it of his own free will. The government has no right to intervene and spend public money to manipulate news coverage.
The move has prompted Tribune Media Services to cut its ties with Williams. In its statement, the news service said the agreement at least created the appearance of a conflict of interest.
"Under these circumstances, readers may well ask themselves if the views expressed in his columns are his own, or whether they have been purchased by a third party," the statement said.
We agree.
We also agree with a request by Rep. George Miller of California, the top Democrat on the House Education Committee, who is calling for an investigation to determine whether the deal was legal and ethical. That request has been supported by Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, the Republican chairman of the panel.
There's certainly grounds for such an investigation. The Bush administration has been rapped at least twice by the Government Accountability Office for producing "video news releases" designed to look like news reports to promote its Medicare prescription drug plan and segments about the effects of drug use among young people.
The GAO determined these videos were an illegal use of taxpayer money and also said federal law was violated because the government was not identified as a source of the material.
Freedom of the press is one of the basic principles of the Constitution, and the administration's arrangement with Williams is nothing more than a bribe in order to slant news coverage in favor of its policies.
At the very least, Williams should be made to repay the $240,000. We hope pressure continues to stop what's becoming a pattern of covert propaganda by the Bush administration.
And NPR/PBS.
Any comments about Dan Rather's producer coordinating their fake doc story with the Kerry campaign?
ping
yes..same offense, different party. I am registered NoParty, plenty of outrage (and praise) from both (All)parties to go around.
Yup, same difference!
I sent them a letter about their error in omitting the bit about the PR Firm hiring Williams, not the Ed Dept:
"Last week, it was revealed that the Education Department paid commentator Armstrong Williams $240,000 to promote its education policies to black audiences."
It'll never see the light of day, as it corrects their lib-dem agenda. But it felt good to say it.
As a member of the media, who do I call about getting a $240,000 bribe. I could use the money...
hey! for decades the democrats have owned abccbscnnnbcnprpbs and almost all newspapers.
so, i don't care. deal with the above issue, and then i'll get upset about this one problema.
The fact is that President Bush can count on the MSM to dissect and condemn any move he makes. It has reached the sad point where a decent person can only get fair press by paying for it. Only the John Kerrys and Bill Clintons of the world can count on a press that smiles on them and refuses to comdemn even the most reprehensible actions on their part. The press has no right to complain about a problem that they, themselves, have created. This is just an example of throwing a temper tantrum because they aren't in complete control of what the public is exposed to.
What I initially read in the reports is that the govt paid for ADVERTISING. And it was all above board as advertising.
Am I right? If so, So WHAT!?!?
The Bushies just love to spend our money. $250,000 to Armstrong Williams. $350 million in "aid" to the Tsunami Shakedown. Pretty soon you're talking about real money.
ping
In my small bank acct, that is a lot of money!
Go Steelers!
Every kleptocracy that succeeds puts the PR and Media buyres office right next to the Director's Office.
This was dishonest and abusive of fiduciary duty for that -- unless they have a stated and publicly published policy that says that $XXXXXX dolllars of their budget will be used to buy ads, "news orgs" and commentators.
The blowback in this is now the integrity of ANY conservative commentator that agrees on anything with Bush can and will be discounted as "paid for".
The federal subsidy of NPR and PBS is unAmerican. They are nothing more than propaganda for the Democrats.
Therein lies the problem. He did not mention that he was being paid for those 'commercials.
OK, then, let's have all the ONDCP money back, too. At least Williams's money came from a department that is not authorized to LIE to the American people.
Nobody talks about what 'The Heads' are getting...!
LOL...too ironic!
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