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Solomon: Bad News When Madmen Lead The Blind
Commentary, February, 27 2002
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
The autumn started with a huge national jolt of shock, fear, grief and anger. Winter has begun with many worries here at home and grim satisfaction about warfare abroad. A line from "King Lear," early in Act 4, is hauntingly appropriate:
Solomon: A Communique From The Ghost Of Mark Twain
Commentary, January, 27 2002
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
I see that I'm damn near legendary now; and since I died long ago, that's safe for all concerned.
Solomon: In The Media Mix, What Happens To Music?
Commentary, January, 18 2002
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
The last pages of a calendar remind us that life is fleeting. All we have at any moment is the present, filtered with memory.
Solomon: Bloomberg's Victory And The Triumph Of Business News
Commentary, December, 25 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
After billionaire Michael Bloomberg won the race to become New York's next mayor, the French news agency AFP noted that he "was among the first to see how the information age could serve investors in unprecedented -- and lucrative -- ways." Bloomb...
Solomon: The World Series In A Time Of Crisis
Commentary, November, 02 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
The World Series provided a heck of a photo-op for George W. Bush when he threw out the first pitch one night, aiming at a large TV audience. For the most part, the game that followed was a pleasure to watch -- midway through a week that combin...
Solomon: War Needs Good Public Relations
Commentary, October, 26 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
For some people, war is terror, disaster and death. For others, it's a PR problem.
Solomon: Killing Them Softly: Starvation And Dollar Bills For Afghan Kids
Commentary, October, 13 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
The Pentagon's air drops of food parcels and President Bush's plea for American children to aid Afghan kids with dollar bills will go down in history as two of the most cynical maneuvers of media manipulation in the early 21st century.
Solomon: Media Spin Revolves Around The Word "terrorist"
Commentary, October, 06 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
During the first two days of this month, CNN's website displayed an odd little announcement. "There have been false reports that CNN has not used the word 'terrorist' to refer to those who attacked the World Trade Center and Pentagon," the noti...
Solomon: THIRTY YEARS LATER, MEMORIES OF ATTICA CRY OUT
Commentary, September, 13 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
In a recent obituary about a former state prison official, the New York Times made a passing reference to "the bloody Attica uprising in 1971, which left 43 people dead." That's the kind of newspeak that presents itself as journalism while detouri...
Solomon: DESIGNS FOR A DIFFERENT MEDIA FUTURE
Commentary, August, 26 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
What we see is what we get, or so the adage goes. But when we see the designs of mass media, what do we truly get? That's a troubling question for those who wonder what the constant barrages of media-generated images are doing to our lives.
Solomon: A GREEN PARTY CAMPAIGN FOR PRESIDENT IN 2004?
Commentary, August, 15 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
Two years from now, the national committee of the Green Party will make a big decision: Should the party run a candidate for president in 2004?
Solomon: DANCING - OR YAWNING - ON THE GRAVE OF CARLO GIULIANI
Commentary, July, 27 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
After a police officer shot Carlo Giuliani in the head, Time magazine published a requiem of sorts -- explaining that the 23-year-old Italian protester pretty much got what he deserved.
Solomon: THE PENTAGON PAPERS: MEDIA PRAISE RINGING HOLLOW
Commentary, July, 16 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
When they challenged the power of the White House by claiming the right to publish the Pentagon Papers, the nation's two most influential newspapers took a laudable stand. During the three decades since then, praise for their journalistic courage ...
Solomon: AT COMMENCEMENT, JOURNALISM HAS A HAZY FUTURE
Commentary, June, 14 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
Today, departing from an institution steeped in modernity, you say farewell to a fine journalism school. Honored to address this graduating class, I will speak with uncommon candor about the wisdom of your training and the opportunities that lie a...
Solomon: SIMULATING DEMOCRACY CAN BE A VIRTUAL BREEZE
Commentary, June, 02 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
Few media eyebrows went up when the World Bank recently canceled a global meeting set for Barcelona in late June -- and shifted it to the Internet. Thousands of street demonstrators would have been in Spain's big northeastern port city to confront...
Solomon: MEDIA AND VIETNAM: APPARITIONS OF INNOCENCE
Commentary, May, 08 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
Media commentators are split about Bob Kerrey and what happened 32 years ago in the Vietnamese village of Thanh Phong. Some journalists seem eager to exonerate the former senator. Others appear inclined to turn him into a lightning rod for nationa...
Solomon: U.S.-CHINA DISPUTE: FROM OTHER SIDE OF MEDIA WINDOW
Commentary, April, 06 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
It's not easy to look at ourselves as others might see us. For a Êcountry, the need is especially acute in times of international crisis -- Êbut that's when nationalism and other reflexive biases are most likely to Êbecome pivotal. One of the way...
Solomon: Bad News Bears Change Tone of Media Script
Commentary, March, 28 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
When the Ameritrade company launched a $200 million marketingÊ drive to explain the joys of online trading in autumn 1999, a barrage of TVÊ commercials invited viewers to join in the fun. The news was bullish, and Êthe firm's motto -- "Believe in ...
Solomon: OBSTINATE MEMORY AND PURSUIT OF THE PRESENT
Commentary, March, 15 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
Henry Kissinger usually has an easy time defending the indefensible on national television. But he faced some pointed questions during a recent interview with the PBS "NewsHour" about the U.S. role in bringing a military dictatorship to Chile. ...
Solomon: REPORTING ON THE FIGHT AGAINST AIDS IN POOR NATIONS
Commentary, February, 16 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
In Africa, 17 million people have already died of AIDS. In Êdeveloping countries around the world, twice that many are now HIV Êpositive. Such statistics are largely unfathomable. And news accounts Êrarely explore basic options for halting the dea...
Solomon: LETTER FROM PORTO ALEGRE TO ZNET
Commentary, January, 29 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
The World Social Forum here in southern Brazil is being reported around the planet as an oppositional counterpoint to the annual bash in Davos, where corporate leaders have been gathering for three decades at their World Economic Forum retreat. In...
Solomon: ASHCROFT AND RACISM: BREAKING THE CODE
Commentary, January, 19 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
A surreal mix-up disrupted CNN programming for a few moments on Jan. 17 when the network switched to live coverage of Colin Powell. While the retired general appeared on the screen, the audio was the voice of Sen. Edward Kennedy at another Senate ...
Solomon: ASHCROFT: NOT JUST WHISTLING DIXIE
Commentary, January, 09 2001
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
More than 13 decades after Robert E. Lee surrendered at ÊAppomattox, the U.S. Senate is getting ready to confirm as attorney general Êsomeone who has voiced fervent admiration for the Confederacy. It's an Êalmost unbelievable situation. Yet many n...
Solomon: FINALLY, A HUGE MEDIA SPECTACLE THAT REALLY MATTERS?
Commentary, November, 28 2000
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
By Norman Solomon After a decade filled with round-the-clock media sensations, we finally ended up with one that's truly portentous. The post-election battle for the White House has stood in sharp contrast to countless ersatz stories that gain...
Solomon: NEW DEMOCRATS: MAYBE THE JIG IS UPBy
Commentary, November, 07 2000
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
The New Democrats may have outsmarted themselves. A couple of months ago, the current Democratic Party leadership seemed to be firmly in control. The succession was orderly. The party's new ticket of "moderates" -- Al Gore and Joseph Lieberman --...
Solomon: MEDIA SPIN REMAINS IN SYNC WITH ISRAELI OCCUPATION
Commentary, October, 14 2000
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
The formula for American media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is simple: Report on the latest developments in the fragile "peace process." Depict U.S. officials as honest brokers in the negotiations. Emphasize the need for restraint ...
Solomon: HOLY SMOKE AND MIRRORS: THE RISE OF CENTRIST THEOCRATS
Commentary, August, 12 2000
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
It's always dangerous when politicians claim to be doing God's will. So, as the novelty fades from Al Gore's selection of Joseph Lieberman, journalists should ask some probing questions about the ticket's conspicuous piety.
Solomon: THE CASE FOR CORPORATE-GIVEN NAMES
Commentary, July, 11 2000
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
A public-interest group is urging sportswriters to resist a free-enterprise wave of the future. "Corporations are seizing the names of our beloved parks and stadiums, and replacing these with their own," Commercial Alert complains in a letter that...
Solomon: VIRTUAL COMMANDMENTS OF THE DOT-COM FAITH
Commentary, June, 19 2000
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
Inside the temples of true believers, ardent faith has a way of prevailing. And so, in the Dot-Com year of 2000, vast numbers of followers seem eager to fulfill a sacred digital future.
Solomon: AD INDUSTRY: GIVING WOMEN SPECIAL TREATMENT
Commentary, June, 09 2000
Norman Solomon
Solomon's ZSpace page
Last fall, when Jean Kilbourne's new book "Deadly Persuasion" was arriving on shelves, Publishers Weekly praised it as "a wake-up call about the damaging effects of advertising in our media-saturated culture." But six months later, the mass media'...
