Frank Rich writes, "I cannot recall when Hollywood last released a big-budget mainstream feature film as partisan as this one at the height of a presidential campaign. That it has slipped into action largely under the media's radar, as discreetly as the sleeper agents in its plot, is an achievement in itself.... The new 'Candidate,' which takes the first gulf war instead of the Korean War as its historical template, finds a striking new international villain to replace the extinct evil empires of Mao and Stalin: Manchurian Global, a 'supremely powerful, well-connected, private equity fund' that is in league with the Saudis and eager to scoop up the profits from privatizing the American Army. Think of it as the Carlyle Group or Halliburton on steroids, just as its primary fictional political beneficiary, the well-heeled 'Prentiss family dynasty,' with its three generations of Washington influence, is at most one syllable removed from the Bushes."

Toledo (OH) Blade reports, "Pop quiz: How quickly could you throw together a film festival in Toledo - a fairly ambitious one, not a Friday the 13th marathon in your rumpus room? One featuring, say, 40-plus documentaries shown in multiple locations across the area, with visiting filmmakers and everything? Don't answer yet: What if you thought the direction of your country was at stake, and that your film festival, no matter how tiny, might play a small role in deciding that fate? For activist Amjad Doumani and his year-old group, the Media Decompression Collective, the answer is surprising: Three and a half weeks. That's how long it took the group to organize the Take Back Democracy Film Festival, a three-month series of political documentaries and unabashed fiery polemics covering every hot-button topic from the war in Iraq to globalization. Yes, it leans left." Awesome! Organize your own Film Festival: http://democrats.com/film

Conservatives claim to worship the free market. But when the free market in films grosses $100 million for Fahrenheit 9/11, conservatives whine, whine, whine - and look for scapegoats as always. So who's to blame if Americans vote with their wallets to see left-wing documentaries, while ignoring right-wing documentaries? Why, it's those commie-run film festivals of course! Guys, here's a simple explanation: if you want to watch right-wing rants on a screen, you just have to park yourself in front of FOX or FOX-clones like Joe (Who Killed Lori Klausutis?) Scarborough and Paula Zahn. On the other side, the TV has banned Bill Moyers, Phil Donohue, and other serious left-wing hosts. That's why we have to go to the movies to see the truth!

Don Hazen writes, "Fox's success, indeed its very presence, would not be possible without the hundreds of millions - some estimate billions - of conservative philanthropy that went into building the right-wing juggernaut. George Soros could be a powerful antidote to Rupert Murdoch, at least in the area of U.S. news coverage, if he were willing to take the lead to seriously fund a long-term electronic and internet media making institution. The potential progressive audience has grown - start with Michael Moore's filmgoers, then add in MoveOn.org's 2.2 million members, along with the many millions who visit other progressive issue and media web sites, the growing audience for Air America (which is surviving despite being undercapitalized at the beginning) and you have the makings of a 20-30 million viewer audience. Perhaps it is far-fetched to imagine our own powerful progressive media, but there are increasing indications it could make money over time."

"Robert Kane Pappas' 'Orwell Rolls In His Grave' is the consummate critical examination of the Fourth Estate, once the bastion of American democracy. Asking whether America has entered an Orwellian world of doublespeak where outright lies can pass for the truth, Pappas explores what the media doesn't talk about: itself. Meticulously tracing the process by which media has distorted and often dismissed actual news events, Pappas presents a riveting and eloquent mix of media professionals and leading intellectual voices on the media." Opening Friday 7/23 in NYC (Angelika) and 7/30 in D.C. and L.A. Go on opening night to make sure it reaches more theaters!

"Many of Air America's investors and executives say they thought the network had raised more than $30 million, based on assurances from its owners, Guam-based entrepreneurs Evan M. Cohen and Rex Sorensen. In fact, Air America had raised only $6 million, Mr. Cohen concedes. Within six weeks of the launch, those funds had been spent and the company owed creditors more than $2 million. When the problems came to light, 'we realized that we had all been duped,' says David Goodfriend, the company's acting chief operating officer. Messrs. Cohen and Sorensen say they didn't mislead anyone about the company's finances. They say they planned to invest more over time but didn't because of cultural differences with other managers. Both resigned in early May. Five months before a presidential election, Air America should be on a roll. Instead, it's grappling with a financial crisis." Despite the naysayers, Al Franken is beating Rush Limbaugh in the ratings. You go, AAR!

Naeem Mohaiemen writes, "Among these are the John Kerry biopic Tour Of Duty; Silver City, John Sayles' fictional account of an ultra-conservative political dynasty; The Hunting of the President, which investigates the impeachment of Bill Clinton; You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train, a profile of historian and peace activist Howard Zinn; and Uncovered: The Whole Truth About the Iraq War. Uncovered, which doesn't open in theaters until August, has already sold an astonishing 100,000 copies online. Premiering at the Human Rights Film Festival is the anti-capitalist screed The Corporation and Persons Of Interest -- a hard-hitting look at the post 9/11 round-up of over 5,000 Arab, Middle Eastern and South Asian Muslim men. From the entertainment end of the spectrum comes a major studio release, The Yes Men, which follows the antics of a rabble-rousing crew of political performance artists who manage to crash WTO meetings disguised as entrepreneurs."

Jim Hightower writes, "A democratic tool that Jefferson, Madison, and the other Bill of Righters could not have imagined, but would gleefully embrace today, is the world wide web. This computerized architecture of interconnected hubs and spokes allows us to link our thoughts and actions instantly in virtual space and produce tangible political results that would have taken months before. Every progressive group (even Luddites like me) now has lively, interactive web sites through which we can share a gold mine of information, forge coalitions, hold 'meetings,' and mobilize mass actions. The growth of the net is explosive - 68 billion emails per day, for example, and 10 million daily blogs by everyone from the kid next-door to famous pundits to me! MoveOn.org, TrueMajority.org, and the Howard Dean campaign have shown the phenomenal potential of the web, not only for fund-raising and blitzing Congress with citizen opinion, but especially for organizing people for action."

"DirecTV is America's largest satellite provider, servicing 11 million homes. Free Speech TV is a Public Interest Channel, and by law satellite providers like the Dish and DirecTV must give 4% of their space to these channels. FSTV has applied to DirecTV every year since they started in 1995. FSTV is carried by the Dish Network but not DirecTV. DirecTV has said that they have added channels in the past due to viewer demand. DirecTV is currently being acquired by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, owner of News Corp and the Fox channels. Whether you are now a DirecTV subscriber or not, more people should be able to see Free Speech TV. If you think that television media needs to be more independent, and report on more issues that matter to you; you can sign the petition, send feedback to DirecTV, and help spread the word."

Jillian Jonas writes, "While the radio industry -- and right-wing critics in particular -- have written extensively about the imminent collapse of AAR and its untried business plan, they may be in for a surprise. AAR's Arbitrend estimated ratings for April in the New York area have been very encouraging. 'We have proof of concept!' enthused Sinton in an interview with United Press International. For the 10 a.m.-3 p.m. time slot, among the coveted demographic of 25- to 54-year-olds, AAR received a 3.4 radio share, beating WABC's conservative talk-radio programming that includes Rush Limbaugh. WABC received a 3.1 share. Even younger listeners are tuning in: Among 18- to 34-year-olds, AAR received a 2.9 share, compared with WABC's 0.4 share during the afternoons... For Sinton, the numbers show 'the momentum is good. The ratings indicate we can look forward to good things. And the proof of concept helps to bring in money in venture capital ... and in selling ads. Hallelujah!' "

"1. The state of our 'liberal' media and how crappy our team has become. When did Alan Colmes of Fox News Hannity and Colmes become our star player anyway? 2. We will be regaling listeners with tales of conservative pundits, commentators, and hosts that are so bad they'll make you long for the days when Dan Qualye was the only conservative not making sense. 3. Iraqi prisoner torture story or as Rush Limbaugh calls it 'a simple fraternity prank'. This Thursday Night 11:00 p.m. CST 90.1 Houston, 89.5 Galveston and and for all you listeners around the world surfing the web, listen to the show at: www.kpft.org"

"DemocraticTalkRadio.com was launched to spread the message of the Democratic Party and to provide an on-line home for grassroots Democrats everywhere. Visit our Radio Program Archives to listen to some of the militantly Democratic commentary of 'Current Affairs: News Talk Program' from our archives. The program is hosted by Stephen Crockett and Al Lawrence and broadcast from WYTM 105.5 FM radio (Fayetteville, Tennessee) on Sundays from noon to 1pm Central."

"In his book, Plan of Attack, Woodward reveals that Bush decided to go to war with Iraq while telling the world that Dick Cheney hadn't made up his mind yet (but Bush prayed, he prayed dammit). The book also says that the Bushies struck a deal with the Saudis to lower oil prices before November's elections (you mean Bush and Cheney are friendly with a Saudi sheik or two...who knew?). Woodward writes that Colin Powell was frozen out of most major White House decisions (hasn't the real Colin Powell been cryonic ally frozen since 1998...I ask you?). And if all that doesn't make you immediately incontinent, Bush states in the book that he doesn't seek advice on tiny, inconsequential issues such as WAR from his father but from 'our Father' (insert Deity of your choice here and pray). This Thursday Night 11:00 p.m. CST 90.1 Houston, 89.5 Galveston and and for all you listeners around the world surfing the web, listen to the show at: www.kpft.org"

On April 20th San Francisco's largest independent record company, Fat Wreck Chords, will release their most relevant album of the year: Rock Against Bush Vol. I. The CD features 26 of the most notable bands from the mainstream and underground rock scene coming together in unison to speak out against the Bush Administration. Bands like Offspring, Ministry, NOFX, Social Distortion, and many more. The CD comes packaged with a bonus DVD that has music videos, trailers for the documentaries "Uncovered" and "Unprecedented", a piece by Grammy-nominated comedian David Cross, and other political content. America can make a very powerful anti-Bush statement if this record places high on the charts, so do your part and pick up a copy at any record store near you! Go here to order online:

"The Observer has learned [Elected President] Al Gore and business partner Joel Hyatt, an entrepreneur and Democratic fund-raiser, will close the deal to pay around $70 million to French-owned Vivendi Universal this week, making them the owners of the tiny digital-cable channel Newsworld International (NWI), moving Mr. Gore from politics to mini-media-moguldom. Mr. Gore's group plans to transform the sleepy foreign-news outlet into a youth-oriented public-affairs channel... Despite vociferous claims that the network isn't attempting to be the liberal antidote to Rupert Murdoch's Fox News, it's difficult to ignore the obvious: It may be fair, it may be balanced, but it's going to be owned by Al Gore." Ultimately, intelligent viewers will be able to recognize for themselves if this new network practices journalistic integrity. (Of course no matter how even-handed the presentation, Brent Bozell and his rightwing Media Research Center will cry that is 'liberal', 'radical', 'biased').

"'It needs to be entertaining, it needs to be compelling, it needs to be laugh-out-loud funny,' said Jon Sinton, a veteran of radio who is a founder of Air America, a subsidiary of Progress Media. 'It needs to foster water-cooler conversation. You need people to go to work and say, `Did you hear what Franken said yesterday?' ' 'When people begin to say that,' he added, 'we will have arrived.'... Air America, which has raised more than $20 million, has grand plans for buying stations, or at least all of the broadcast time on stations, in more than a dozen cities by year's end. Many are in Ohio, Florida and other states considered battlegrounds in the presidential election. But since the media ownership rules were eased in the mid-1990's, much of the broadcast spectrum is owned by a handful of companies. Few stations are for sale, and few station owners will give over all of their broadcast day to untested programming."

Air America Radio is now live with Al Franken on Wednesday at 12 noon. You can hear AAR on these stations: New York -WLIB 1190 AM; Los Angeles -KBLA 1580 AM; Chicago -WNTD 950 AM; Portland, OR -KPOJ 620 AM; Inland Empire, CA -KCAA 1050 AM (San Francisco -Coming Soon). In addition, you can subscribe to XM Radio ($10/mo) and hear it all across the US on XM Satellite Radio -Channel 167

The introduction to Chomsky's new weblog: "Welcome to Turning The Tide: This blog will include brief comments on diverse topics of concern in our time. They will sometimes come from the ZNet sustainer forum system where Noam interacts through a forum of his own, sometimes from direct submissions, sometimes culled from mail and other outlets -- always from Noam Chomsky."

"This week's topics will include but are not limited to: 'President' Bush announces his support for a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman. Bush later went on to define electing a president based on a candidate's connections to the U.S. Supreme Court and his or her ability to keep uppity minorities from voting. CIA Director George Tenet testifies before Congress that Al Queda is weakened. Victims of deceased loved ones from recent Al Queda attacks in Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, and Libya beg to differ, weren't asked to testify. The hypocrisy of the Religious Wrong (Right) or as they like to justify their beliefs as 'the parts of the bible we choose to ignore'. Report says the Bush Administration wanted war with Iraq in 2002. 2002 being defined as the year the Project for a New American Century was formed (1998)." Thursday Nights, 11:00 p.m. 90.1 Houston, 89.5 Galveston and www.kpft.org on the world wide web, and in the show archives after the broadcast.

AP: "Bill Moyers, whose weekly magazine 'Now' on PBS has capped a 30-year career in TV journalism, is leaving the broadcast after the November elections. His next venture: Writing a long-proposed book about Lyndon Johnson, whom he served before and during Johnson's presidency. 'It isn't because I feel old,' Moyers, 69, told The Associated Press of his decision, which he made official Thursday. 'It's because I feel compelled to do something else now, that only I can do -- which is that book.'"

"Central Air Media (formerly AnShell) must hire Mike Malloy. His fiery and passionate voice is what we as liberals need to get out there. IE America is about to fold and it is imperative that Malloy has a radio show on the new Central Air Media network." Mike is the best! Check out Mike's show at http://www.ieamericaradio.com while IE America is still operating. Sign the petition!

MediaChannel's Danny Schecter writes, "The Digital Independence Conference in San Francisco, which I attended, brought media makers from all over the country together this weekend to discuss how to respond to a media environment that threatens to further marginalize dissenting voices and creative players who operate outside the web of media conglomerate power. The situation is grave. Organizer Neil Seiling quotes none other than Benjamin Franklin's famous dictum, 'We must all hang together or assuredly, we will all hang separately,' as part of his call to arms.'... There were many speakers to tell you about but I will start with the most urgent warnings from the super informed Jeff Chester of the Center for Digital Democracy. He says that PBS is under extreme pressure to cancel the Bill Moyers program NOW. Unless we wake up to this and rally behind the program, NOW will soon become THEN. More on this to come."

SF Chronicle reports, "MoveOn.org, the politically left-leaning Internet-based advocacy group whose Super Bowl commercial criticizing the nation's deficit was rejected by CBS, is separately attacking Bush in ads running in four states... CNN aired the 'Child's Play' ad Jan. 20, the day of Bush's State of the Union speech. It ran 13 times that day at a cost of $60,000, said Eli Pariser, campaign director of MoveOn.org. He said the group is assessing its options for buying advertising time for 'Child's Pay' on television stations in the future, perhaps even on alternate stations this Sunday during the showing of the Super Bowl, the most-watched TV event of the year, on CBS. Meantime, MoveOn.org is attacking Bush's Medicare policy in ads appearing in Florida, Ohio, West Virginia and Nevada. It's a significant advertising buy, of some $1.7 million, said Pariser."

"This week's topics will include: 1. Former Secretary of the Treasury (or as Dick Cheney calls it, the keeper of his nest egg) Paul O'Neill spills the beans on the Bush administration's Operation Iraqi Quagmire plan. And here's another shocker, O'Neill claims Bush is disengaged in just about every topic that doesn't involve baseball or squirrel hunting. 2. In a moment of unprecedented clarity and honesty, Colin Powell claims that there was no link between Iraq and Al Qaeda." Listen Thursday night (12/18) at 11 pm CT (90.1 KPFT in Houston, 89.5 in Galveston, or the webcast at www.kpft.org). If you miss the show, it will be available afterwards in the archives below for downloading.

"Progress Media planned to announce Tuesday that it has reached an agreement with Franken to host a live, three-hour daily broadcast that would form the anchor of the programming schedule, according to people familiar with the matter... Franken said he planned to use a mix of interviews, calls from listeners and scripted comedy. He said he planned to have a co-host with long experience in radio, but he said that role had not been finalized... Mark Walsh, who serves as CEO of Progress Media, also said the new network had reached its first major distribution agreement, with the Chicago AM station WNTD. He said he expects to announce at least three other distribution deals in the coming weeks... He said that about 65% of the network's programming has been decided, but he declined to elaborate beyond disclosing another new show to be co-hosted by the environmental activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called 'Champions of Justice.'"

Tom Engelhardt writes, "We've been in that very American wilderness vacated by the right-wing for some time and we were slow off the mark. But I believe, we're now making up for lost time and in the process of taking back the Word. A simple look at bestseller lists indicates as much: Ehrenreich, Chomsky, Franken, Moore et. al. It's a genuine, if still smallish-scale, change of mood. The locus of the take-back-the-Word movement is, of course, the Internet where news and buzz and projects and prospects and newsletters and policy statements and chat groups and political advocacy groups and critiques and websites, large and small, focused and riotous, and just about everything else under the sun has sprouted in the ether. News, ideas, thoughts, complaints seem to pass from e-hand to e-hand in surprising ways and by routes that would have left Daedalus, famed creator of the labyrinth, befuddled and the Minotaur lost in space. It's a wonderful thing - and a wonderful thing to be part of."

"Some of the topics this week will include: 1. The capture of Saddam Hussein or as the Dick Cheney calls him the guy who I did business with in the late 1990's. 2. Look on Fox News, it's a bird, it's a plane, no it's just another reason for Operation Iraqi Quagmire coming out of the Bush Administration and its sycophants in the 'liberal' media. 3. UN quits Afghanistan reconstruction (I didn't know anyone ever started reconstructing Afghanistan other than the oil pipelines). Remember, the callers are the co-hosts so we'll be taking as many phone calls as possible. Rant, rave, vent, and inspire! So tune in, get on your soapbox and call!" Listen Thursday night (12/18) at 11 pm CT (90.1 KPFT in Houston, 89.5 in Galveston, or hear the webcast at www.kpft.org ). If you miss the show, it will be available afterwards in the archives (at the below link) for downloading.

"The Center for Media and Democracy is offering teachers and students free classroom copies of our acclaimed best-selling book, Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush's War on Iraq. This book is perfect for journalism, current events, political science and communications classes. We're able to make this free offer thanks to the generosity and commitment of an anonymous donor who feels it imperative that this book reach America's young people. If you are a high school or college instructor who would like free classroom copies to use with your students, please email us the following information: Your name, title, and daytime phone number; your school's name and class title; the number of books you need, where to ship them, and the date you need them. These books are available on a first come, first serve basis, so contact us now." Students and educators - spread the word!

"I. E. America Radio, the United Auto Workers-owned national radio network that was a multimillion-dollar attempt to offer liberal talk in a broadcast world dominated by conservatives, is going out of business early next year. The Free Press learned Tuesday that the Detroit-based network notified show hosts, other personnel and affiliates that operations would cease Feb. 27 -- or sooner. Up to 20 full- and part-time workers will lose jobs. Several experts who were familiar with operations but asked for anonymity because they had business relations with I. E. said the operation's operating losses were believed to be at least $75,000 a month. New, better-funded efforts to launch liberal talk radio are on the horizon, further imperiling its existence." What a shame -- this network features excellent liberal talk show hosts, including Mike Malloy and Thom Hartmann.

Rob Kall writes: "Great idea, moveon.org starting an online Fox Watch Group to track Fox news' s media bias. But Fox is only one tentacle of the right-wing policy and position promotion monster... I suggest that in addition to the Fox Watch, a 'Right-Wing- echo-chamber-Watch' be started. People could list, for each of the different talk shows, specific, current echo chamber themes. The themes that are covered on the most elements in the 'echo chamber' would rise to the top, so the right's attack issues and advocacy issues could be identified and strategies developed to counteract them quickly and robustly. The other side of this is to organize and further build and make more effective use of think tanks that help create 'instant responses' to right wing echo chamber spin 'tornados.' Then, those responses would be amplified, blasted, and echoed to the masses using the progressive equivalent to the right's echo chamber."

"Part scathing critique, part call to action, 'Independent Media In A Time Of War' is a hard-hitting new documentary by the Hudson Mohawk Independent Media Center (www.hm.indymedia.org). This film is composed of a speech given by Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now! illustrated by clips of mainstream media juxtaposed with rare footage from independent reporters in Iraq. The documentary argues that dialogue is vital to a healthy democracy. 'Independent media has a crucial responsibility to go to where the silence is,' says Amy Goodman, 'to represent the diverse voices of people engaged in dissent.' She makes a compelling argument that the commercial news media have failed to represent the 'true face of war.'"

"The executives said the stations they were acquiring reached all radios in 5 of the 10 largest media markets: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Boston. They said they would buy stations in other markets in the near future. 'We're steady as she goes to have a broadcast debut in early 2004, which gives us time to be part of the election year,' said Mark Walsh, the company's chief executive and an Internet entrepreneur formerly with VerticalNet and America Online. The group is planning to present a daily schedule filled with liberal personalities as hosts of a range of programs, including news analysis segments, talk shows and entertainment programs in the spirit of 'The Daily Show,' the spoof news program on cable television's Comedy Central that skewers Washington."

On Thanksgiving evening, gather around the family even the kooky conservative you call your uncle for another all progressive, all liberal, and all conservative bashing hour of The Other Side, Thursday 11:00 p.m. Central Time. Set your radio dial to 90.1 KPFT in Houston, 89.5 in Galveston and www.kpft.org on the world wide web. Some of the topics this week will include, but are not limited to: Topic 1: What you have to believe in order to be a conservative. Topic 2: Voter's guide to GOP politics. Topic 3: No Child Left Behind Act...No Teacher Left Standing result. Topic 4: Medicare reform or as the HMO and Pharmaceutical Lobby calls it--a very happy, happy Xmas (special shout out to Tom "Jellyfish" Daschle)

Rob Kall writes: "The most powerful weapon the right wing has is their policy and position promotion (PPP) think tanks (TTs). As the progressives on the left begin to find their power, their funding and the insight to build their own policy and position promotion think tanks it will be necessary to do a kind dissection or reverse engineering of the right wing's PPPTTs . This article explores some of the specific functions and elements such a project entails. This article is purposely not talking about issues or policies. You don't need to define all the things you use a nail to put together to describe how to make a nail."

"Are you longing for a truly progressive talk radio show presented in an aggressive and satirical manner? A talk show that exposes the hypocritical, immoral, know-nothing right wing of American politics otherwise known as the GOP. Then set your radio dial to 90.1 KPFT in Houston, 89.5 in Galveston and www.kpft.org on the world wide web for: The Other Side, hosted by Glenn Urbach, every Thursday night @ 11:00 p.m. (Central Standard Time). Some of the topics this week will include: George W. Bush claims God to have chosen him as President. If by God he means the United States Supreme Court...then Praise Scalia and Glory Be to Clarence Thomas! Rumsfeld spins WIDELY about Iraq while Mr. 'No Spin' Bill O'Reilly continues his ongoing investigation into Bill Clinton's 3rd grade report cards! Bush's education miracle here in Texas turned out to be blessed by Jerry Falwell and created by the Arthur Anderson Accounting Firm. Plus: Another update on Operation Iraqi Quagmire."

WSJ reports, "MoveOn.org, the liberal online-activist organization that has had surprising success raising money from small donors, has landed two big ones -- billionaires George Soros and Peter Lewis. Mr. Soros, the head of Soros Fund Management LLC, and Mr. Lewis, the chairman of Progressive Corp., a major auto insurer, together have pledged as much as $5 million to MoveOn's 'voter fund,' which is launching a series of television ads... The voter-fund drive is MoveOn's biggest so far. The campaign's first two e-mails to the group's 1.7 million members brought in about $1.2 million each. A third pitch offered copies of a new documentary about prewar intelligence on Iraq; organizers expected to sell a few thousand, but quickly received orders for 22,000. In the end, the group's $50,000 investment in the film's production netted proceeds of more than $860,000. So far, the voter-fund campaign has raised $3.65 million, not including $500,000 already received from Mr. Soros."

"ProgressivePunch is a non-partisan searchable database of Congressional voting records from a Progressive perspective. But we're convinced it's extremely useful irrespective of anyone's political positions. We show the performance of members within 125 different issue categories, and detailed vote descriptions, thereby empowering you to zero in on what matters to you. To see how progressively your member has voted or explore a policy issue that interests you, select from a search option below." Sounds like the perfect site for us aggressive progressives!

Rob Kall writes: "The left's first 'battle' think tank debuted yesterday with an impressive conference on security and peace, featuring a stellar line-up of mostly democratic, liberal and progressive speakers... For more than a decade, the right wing has had a lock on the use of think tanks as policy promotion 'political weapons.' Unlike conventional think, research and publish think tanks, these 'battle' think tanks invest a much higher percentage of their resources in promoting the policies they espouse-- through pundit and right wing media echo chambers... Earlier this year, John Podesta announced he was forming a left wing counterpart to these right wing think tanks-- the American Majority Institute. That original name has been morphed into the Center for American Progress (CAP)."

From the FTAA Indymedia Collective: "Just passing on the word that the new FTAA Indymedia website is now up and running! The site is here: http://www.ftaaimc.org It is a work in progress, so please bear with us as we get fully up to speed. But feel free to utilize it in your organizing efforts: post your announcements and stories, get the word out!"

Michael Moore from Democracy Now!: "We hear about these conservative books all the time, how Ann Coulter is doing so well, Bill O'Reilly is doing so well. You know, why don't they tell the truth? Actually, those books, they come and go, they didn't sell - those books combined didn't sell what my book sold. You have all these books, from Jim Hightower to Molly Ivins, there's a whole bunch of books on the list right now that come from the left side of the fence. That's because I think that's where the majority of the American people are. I think there's been a shift in public opinion... We actually live in a very liberal country, and it's never reported that way in the news. But the truth is that the majority of Americans are pro-choice, want stronger environmental laws, are pro-labor... So, I'm very optimistic about our fellow Americans. The problem is they just don't have anybody to vote for. They're liberal on the issues, but where are the liberal leaders."

"The Center for Cooperative Research has developed an online tool that allows its visitors to submit bibliographies and article links for posting on the home page. This new project represents another step in our efforts to empower the public with the means of documenting the current historical record at the grassroots level. Please participate! It only takes seconds to contribute articles to us. Please note that if you have a website, participation in this project will increase traffic to your own website! This effort to harness the labor and minds of thousands of thinking people has the potential to make this project an excellent source for news, as it will be updated continuously throughout the day and each news article will have a link to a bibliography consisting of related news reports, documents, and opinion pieces."

"Ahhnuld's in and another election has been stolen by Republicans. What does it mean for California, the Energy Barons, the 2004 Presidential race, American Democracy? Tune in to 'Another Side of the News' with Jeff Thomas aka. Paul Berenson, Saturdays 7am-9am PDT on KCSB-FM 91.9 or listen on our webcast. you're tired of the Limbaugh's, Fox News, Corporate Media, etc. and want to hear a Democrat with attitude, this is for you!"

Activists/writers/web-gurus Brian Dominick and Jessica Azulay have founded a new, nonprofit, independent, online newspaper called The NewStandard. They want to determine people's interest in their project and are hard at work building a network of freelance journalists, artists, and photographers. The NewStandard will provide current events coverage ('hard news') from a progressive perspective, as well as many diverse innovative features. It is an ambitious project - check out their site and respond to their online queries even as it's being built. (They even have a fancy Flash Interactive Preview for you to view.)

"Welcome to our website! On July 7, 2003 Doctor Mike Newcomb launched Arizona's first progressive radio talk show, OnSecondThought. The show will feature both local and national leaders who will address the most significant social, economic and political issues of our times. If you are tired of the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Michael Savage and the increasingly harsh rhetoric and rancor of the ultra conservatives then fret no longer. Simply tune in to KFNX which is 1100 on the AM dial. OnSecondThought will run Monday-Friday from 8-9AM." Or listen on the Internet -- live or an archived show!

Walter Williams writes: "Next month, progressive Democrats will open a new think tank, the American Majority Institute, that has an expected yearly operating budget of at least $10 million. This level of support means the institute can challenge the conservative Republican policy shops that in recent years... have clobbered their Democratic counterparts in selling ideas to the public... The American Majority Institute must avoid the temptation to spin its arguments [or] engaging in trickery to justify a claim... Efforts by Republican politicians and public policy shops to purposely dupe citizens on major policy issues have undermined the foundation of the nation envisioned by the founding fathers... When sound numbers support a strong case, the American Majority Institute should go for the jugular. The attack on Republican politicians and think tanks must be unrelenting in exposing deceptive information and dishonest analysis. Be partisan and be honest - it is not an oxymoron."

From NYMetro.com: "Still, when, during a coffee break, Alan Rusbridger, the Guardian's editor, said to me, in a most offhanded way, 'We're coming to America,' I assumed he was talking about a personal visit. 'Well, let's definitely get together,' I politely said. 'No,' he said. 'We're bringing the Guardian to America. We're going to publish an American version'... Then, during the next break in the conference, Rusbridger took me across the street to his office and showed me the prototype for the new American Guardian. Its tentative form is as a weekly magazine, quite unlike any other weekly magazine that has been started in the U.S. in the past generation. Not only is it about politics (Rusbridger is looking to launch in the winter to cover the presidential-primary season), but the magazine -- meant to be 60 percent derived from the Guardian itself, with the rest to come from American contributors -- has a great deal of text unbroken by design elements."

Peter Werbe is one of the BEST Democratic talk show hosts. But "immediately after Peter finished his show on Friday, June 20, the management of the [union-financed] i.e.America radio network told him that he was terminated due to 'budgetary considerations.' Was it this or is it political censorship? If you want to comment to the network, go to its web site at www.ieamericaradio.com and click on 'contact us' at the left. Also, please send a copy of your message to the network to calltalkyes@yahoo.com" - and listen to Werbe at 11pm, Sundays on Detroit's WRIF 101.1 streaming at www.wrif.com

"Thom Hartmann is the man who uncovers corporate lies, deception by mega-media, and rampant confusion in the offices of our politicians. Listen at www.ieamericaradio.com, or on a radio station nearby or on Sirius Satellite channel 145. 'Live' Weekdays Noon-2PM ET." Also, check out Peter Werbe's show from 2-5 PM ET, and Mike Malloy's show from 9-12 PM ET, also on the IeAmerica Radio Network.

"It's been a long time in the making, but the Meria Heller Show has expanded to accommodate the listenership and quality of the broadcast. For three years this July Meria has been bringing the best news, interviews and views to the planet and picking up a few nominations for awards along the way. Meria doesn't do what she does for awards, she does it for true freedom in America, to counter the lies the 'mass media' tells us on a daily basis. After much hard work and steady growth of listeners, the audio capacity and quality has been expanded to accommodate the listeners who 'melt the servers' to listen to the voice of reason and the 'Mouth That Roars'. Relaunch happens: Monday, June 2, 2003... The biggest news is that the Daily Show is coming back 24 hours a day without fee. Listeners will have the option of listening to the show anytime during the day or night until the next day's live show is complete."

Samuel G. Freedman writes for Salon.com: "For nearly 20 years, Mike Malloy has been making talk radio like this: caustic, abrasive, inventive, confrontational and resolutely left of center. It has won him admirers and awards, and it has cost him jobs. At a time when the very genre of talk radio is widely seen as synonymous with strident conservatism, his career both ratifies and belies that premise."

Thom Hartman writes: "A political explosion happened this weekend in New York, and it may be the big one that gives Karl Rove nightmares. It could mean the end of George W. Bush's seemingly unending ability to tell overt lies to the American people and not get called on them by the American media. At a Saturday talk radio industry event put on by Talkers Magazine, Gabe Hobbs, Clear Channel Radio's vice president... , announced that in the near future this corporate owner of over 1200 radio stations is considering programming some of their talk stations... with all-day back-to-back all-liberal talk show hosts... Last week, Michael Powell announced that he was refusing to postpone the FCC vote on deregulation, and that he was personally in favor of loosening the ownership rules, making the outcome a slam-dunk... Powell also unwittingly began the process of cutting off Republicans from an exclusive lock on hundreds of millions of dollars a year in free political advertising."

Bush and Blair and their corporate cronies can spin all they want and conduct all the phony polls they want - the world has seen through it all. Since the start of the war, cold hard numbers (not opinion polls) reveal that network news viewing has plummeted since the war began, while visits to Internet news sites have broken all records. Number one among all British sites? The so-called "liberal" Guardian. Hits to the Guardian, with its honest war coverage have outstripped hits to BBC, the Times, and CNN. The top day so far? Monday - the same day CNN released its phony poll about how much Americans support the war!

Geov Parrish writes, "American network TV's emetic fare doesn't just resemble government propaganda; it is propaganda, taking current events and burying them under a fact-free blizzard of emotionalism, jingoism, and generous use of the first person plural ('Which sites did we bomb today, General?')... However, technology doesn't just help the Pentagon build bigger bombs and enable TV 'news' programs to glorify the notion of pain-free, cost-free, rationale-free military invasions. It also enables more inquisitive folks to escape the funhouse. Via the Internet, Americans (and anyone else) can sample media coverage virtually anywhere of fast moving events -- from Iraqi deserts to the streets and conference rooms of the world's capitals -- in a way never before possible during wartime... Here's a short and necessarily incomplete list of sources I've found helpful for coverage of this invasion."

Stephen Crockett writes, "For Democrats to gain listeners and win elections, we need to back our experienced grassroots talk radio programs. We need to hear working class and middle class voices speaking out for our interests. We need to reconnect with our working class and middle class roots. We need to return to the collective action approaches of the labor unions and the civil rights movement that helped so much in making the Democratic Party great. As long as the leaders of the Democratic Party fail to realize that we are a Party and not just a vehicle to elect a few chosen candidates to a few offices, we will be a Party that is both lost and losers... If the leadership of my Party will not support grassroots Democratic Talk Radio, I might as well sell www.DemocraticTalkRadio.com to Corporate American interests like the Republican Party or Rush Limbaugh. We cannot change the political landscape without the help of the Democratic Party leadership but could turn a quick buck."

After a brief 6-month trial, MSNBC announced it will pull the plug on Donahue on Friday. Zap2It reports, "The firing of Donahue represents a recent shift to the right politically for MSNBC. Perhaps concerned with the failure of liberal pundits in the political talk show format, MSNBC has hired ultra-conservative radio host and author Michael Savage to bring his 'The Savage Nation' to the small screen. On Monday, MSNBC also announced that former House Majority Leader Dick Armey, a Texas Republican, will join the cable network as a regular contributor to provide on-air commentary and analysis." They also recently hired Joe Scarborough - yes, the right-wing former Florida Congressman whose whose 28-year-old aide Lori Klausutis was found dead in his office in July 2001, at the height of the wall-to-wall Condit coverage. Boycott MSNBC and its advertisers!

Mike Rectenwald and Lori Price of Citizens for Legitimate Government write: "So, we asked Greg some questions -- about the upcoming war, the coup attempt in Venezuela, the face of globalization under Bush, the perception of Bush & Co. in the UK and the EU in general, and more. As usual, Greg's answers cut to the quick with wit, humor and a lacerating accuracy that has had some of the 'subjects' of his investigations writhing in pain and back-lashing in scorn (but without rebuttal)."

Greg Palast writes, "Beginning this Sunday (2-23-03), I'll be talking about my latest investigations and the new edition of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy - out this week in the USA. We'll be raising funds for co-sponsors of the tour-Pacifica Radio Network stations, Free Speech Radio (with Amy Goodman's Democracy Now), IndyMedia and many others who struggle financially to keep the truth alive. Here are the appearances scheduled so far. Check my website calendar (click on "Appearances" up top) for details on these upcoming events in cities near you. Venues and times for some appearances are yet to be announced. Check the site frequently for updates."

NY Times reports, "A group of wealthy Democratic donors is planning to start a liberal radio network to counterbalance the conservative tenor of radio programs like 'The Rush Limbaugh Show.' The group, led by Sheldon and Anita Drobny, venture capitalists from Chicago who have been major campaign donors for Bill Clinton and Al Gore, is in talks with Al Franken, the comedian and author of 'Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot.' It hopes to enlist other well-known entertainers with a liberal point of view for a 14-hour, daily slate of commercial programs that would heavily rely on comedy and political satire. The plan faces several business and content challenges, from finding a network of radio stations to buy the program to overcoming the poor track record of liberal radio shows. But it is the most ambitious undertaking yet to come from liberal Democrats who believe they are overshadowed in the political propaganda wars by conservative radio and television personalities."

MediaWhoresOnline.com writes, "The gnarly mass of media whores is too unwieldy for general media sites like this one to handle, and some patriotic Americans have responded to our suggestion for additional 'watch' Websites, whereon you report on the transgressions of a single media whore. Some of those to soon be afforded this special attention are Snitch Hitchens, Kathleen Parker, George Will, Sean Hannity, Mona Charen. Every one of the suggested sites is most definitely, desperately needed. There is also a need for media watch sites devoted to covering smaller, local media in each state - I.e., Georgia Whores Online. Please contact MWO (mwo@mediawhoresonline.com) with linking info once you've launched your sites, or on already existing state media watch sites."

Globalvision is creating a powerful alternative media. The Crisis Capsule delivers up-to-the-minute world reports on the 'War on Terrorism' via an indigenous network of news organizations. Stories breaking today at Globalvision News Network appear days later on 'internationalized' news outlets such as the AP, Reuters, CNN and the NY Times. The Daily World delivers news events and insights from around the world, covering business, politics, social issues, health, environment, international affairs, oil and energy, technology, education, media, and entertainment. The Global Op-Ed never fails to deliver provocative insights from editors around the world. Their unique perspectives enliven critical debate, challenge culturally or ideologically entrenched mindsets and help our readers think outside their geographic or political box. Any single newsmail is $25/year. Take all three for our introductory special of $40/year. Register now at www.gvnews.net for a free, no obligation 30 day trial.

Consortiumnews.com writes, "In deciding not to fight for the office that many Americans feel was stolen from him two years ago, Al Gore may have been surrendering to the inevitable - that the national news media and the Republican attack machine would never let him win the White House. While understandable on a human level - who would want to go through what Gore did in 2000 - [Gore]'s decision carries both short- and long-term dangers. For one, the national news media now can safely tuck away its responsibility for grossly mis-reporting that pivotal campaign. If not for the media's fabrication of quotes and distortion of Gore's personal history, George W. Bush never would have gotten close enough to win by having five Republican Supreme Court justices stop the counting of votes in Florida. Another danger from Gore's decision is that liberals will now conclude that there is no need to do the hard work to challenge the deepening conservative bias in the national news media."

NY Times reports, "Worried that their party has been outgunned in the political propaganda wars by conservative radio and television personalities, influential Democrats are scouring the nation for a liberal answer to Rush Limbaugh and the many others on the deep bench of Republican friends... "Across the board, we need to muscle up," said John Podesta, the former White House chief of staff for Bill Clinton and now a law professor at Georgetown University. "That means from the Congressional operations to the party committees to the think-tank world to, most significantly, beefing up our capacity to communicate with the public in all forms of media, not just through obscure Internet Web sites but on television and radio." Hey John -TV and radio are great, but don't ignore "obscure" Web sites like Democrats.com!

"In the spirit of Frederick Douglass, two New Jersey advocates recently launched www.thenorthstarnetwork.com, a public affairs, business and financial news portal serving the Black community... focusing on news and issues affecting Blacks in the US and abroad... A pool of talented contributors, representing a range of professions and interests, has been enlisted to cover a broad array of subjects that are often ignored or misinterpreted by 'mainstream' news outlets. Through www.thenorthstarnetwork.com, the Black community will have a vehicle to engage in a substantive discourse on critical issues of the day and reflect on the significance of historical events in relation to contemporary society. The Website is the first phase of a media deployment that includes plans for a regional cable and satellite television news network serving the Black community in the northeastern corridor [that] will be modeled after C-SPAN and CNBC, and focused on the 25-49 year-old demographic."

Looking for progressive writings on contemporary political topics categorized from Ashcroft to W-ar? Bernard Weiner and Ernest Partridge's recently launched website is a "repository of the best progressive writing on the web." The Editors write: "The Bush Administration's moves toward imperialism abroad and incipient proto-fascism at home, is washing over our land of liberty, and is eroding the political and moral ideals that make our country great....This assault on our civic covenant -- which is ostensibly taking place because 'we are at war!' -- is in fact being carried out by an ideological faction of a political party that figures it can get away with these abuses under the guise of 'national security' and 'homeland defense.' Indeed, a good share of this faction's greed-and-power program is being enacted with little interference from those who ordinarily oppose 'big government.'"

"Somewhere, Adam Smith -- father of modern capitalism -- is smiling. Thanks to aggressive free-market tactics, the Nation magazine -- weekly proclaimer of the intellectual left for 137 years -- is in position to break even this year. As well as serving up an alternative voice in America's political discussion, it appears the Nation is doing its best to reinvigorate irony. Just six years ago, the Nation ended the year with an operating deficit of more than $1.25 million, its biggest loss ever. This year, owing to a surge in post-9/11 subscriptions and the clever application of capitalist tools, such as selling cruises to its subscribers and peddling its archives to universities, the Nation says it is poised to end the year out of the red for the first time." You go, guys!

Chris Mooney has been doing great work at The American Prospect Magazine's new feature, TAPPED. It's updated 24/7, and he's been at it for, um -- a whole week now. Grrreat work, Chris -- keep it up! Here is a current blurb: "Anti-IslamoFascist Left Watch. Tapped has been doling out credit to those on the left, like Christopher Hitchens and Michael Walzer, who have proudly waved their secularist credentials in the face of violent Islamic fundamentalism. We'd like to welcome Michael Berube to the club. We'd also like to point readers toward the latest story from the Post on the new Talibanic anti-vice police in Indonesia, who have been confiscating alcohol and shaving the heads of prostitutes while crying 'God is great!'" You Rock, Chris!

In the Seattle Times, Paul Andrews writes, "In three months, 'Stupid White Men and Other Sorry Excuses for the State of the Nation' has gone from a potential date with the shredder to 15 printings and the top of The NY Times' bestseller listings. What makes 'Stupid's' ascension remarkable is that it was accomplished almost entirely outside the publicity mill of mainstream media. [Michael] Moore's book may be the first Internet-enabled No. 1 bestseller... Moore may have capitalized on a new modus: Word of Web. Since the mid-1990s, the Web's force as a marketing tool has been touted by public-relations types and celebrated in books like 'The Cluetrain Manifesto.' Still, the Web always has been assumed second fiddle... Moore's campaign may be the most dramatic evidence so far that the Web in and of itself can spawn a No. 1 bestseller" - thanks to Democrats.com and the ever-growing progressive web!

Dissident and majority members of the Pacifica National Board of Directors agreed Sunday on a formula that would turn control of the network over to an interim board that would in turn set up a structure for democratization of Pacifica. Dissidents and majority factions would each appoint five members to the new board, and five would be appointed by heads of the five Pacifica Local Advisory Boards. (LAB chairs would not be able to appoint themselves.) Democracy Now!, which has been broadcast only over KPFA for many weeks, would return to its broadcast slot over the entire network, pending resolution of complaints filed against Pacifica by Democracy Now! staff.

Carville is as tired as the rest of us with the low and outside pitches Chris Matthews throws on his show that somehow get called as strikes. Matthews wants to know when we're going to shut up about Florida already and let Bush govern the country as if he had won the election. Never, says Carville, who points out the obvious -- Gore won Florida and Bush has no mandate to occupy the White House, let alone govern the country. Read the transcript.

Where have you been our Rajun' Cajun! We don't care, we're just glad to see you back and gnawing on Chris Matthews' legs like a junkyard dog! Chomp away!