The Mainstream media (MSM) and its propaganda campaign

This forum covers a whole range of issues: from international politics and economy to human rights, from corporate domination and greed to environmental crises...
Conscíous
Posts: 1491
Joined: Sun Nov 29, 2009 4:41 pm

The Mainstream media (MSM) and its propaganda campaign

#1

Unread post by Conscíous » Sun Mar 06, 2016 2:58 pm

.
.
This thread is about any propaganda from the Mainstream media (MSM) that influences and manipulate public opinion from all around globe and its main aim is to divert from truth (facts)..
Last edited by Conscíous on Sun Mar 06, 2016 3:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Conscíous
Posts: 1491
Joined: Sun Nov 29, 2009 4:41 pm

Re: The Mainstream media (MSM) and its propaganda campaign

#2

Unread post by Conscíous » Sun Mar 06, 2016 3:16 pm

The Caesar Photo Fraud that Undermined Syrian Negotiations

By Rick Sterling

March 04, 2016 "Information Clearing House" - "Dissident Voice " - A 30 page investigative report on the “Caesar Torture Photos” has been released and is available online here. The following is a condensed version of the report. Readers who are especially interested are advised to get the full report which includes additional details, photographs, sources and recommendations.

Introduction

There is a pattern of sensational but untrue reports that lead to public acceptance of US and Western military intervention in countries around the world:

* In Gulf War 1, there were reports of Iraqi troops stealing incubators from Kuwait, leaving babies to die on the cold floor. Relying on the testimony of a Red Crescent doctor, Amnesty Interenational ‘verified’ the false claims.

* Ten years later, there were reports of yellow cake uranium going to Iraq for development of weapons of mass destruction.

* One decade later, there were reports of Libyan soldiers drugged on viagra and raping women as they advanced.

* In 2012, NBC broadcaster Richard Engel was supposedly kidnapped by pro-Assad Syrian militia but luckily freed by Syrian opposition fighters, the “Free Syrian Army”.

All these reports were later confirmed to be fabrications and lies. They all had the goal of manipulating public opinion and they all succeeded in one way or another. Despite the consequences, which were often disastrous, none of the perpetrators were punished or paid any price.

It has been famously said “Those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it.” This report is a critical review of the “Caesar Torture Photos” story. As will be shown, there is strong evidence the accusations are entirely or substantially false.

Overview of ‘Caesar Torture Photos’

On 20 January 2014, two days before negotiations about the Syrian conflict were scheduled to begin in Switzerland, a sensational report burst onto television and front pages around the world. The story was that a former Syrian army photographer had 55,000 photographs documenting the torture and killing of 11,000 detainees by the Syrian security establishment.

The Syrian photographer was given the code-name ‘Caesar’. The story became known as the “Caesar Torture Photos”. A team of lawyers plus digital and forensic experts were hired by the Carter-Ruck law firm, on contract to Qatar, to go to the Middle East and check the veracity of “Caesar” and his story. They concluded that “Caesar” was truthful and the photographs indicated “industrial scale killing”. CNN, London’s Guardian and LeMonde broke the story which was subsequently broadcast in news reports around the world. The Caesar photo accusations were announced as negotiations began in Switzerland. With the opposition demanding the resignation of the Syrian government, negotiations quickly broke down.

For the past two years the story has been preserved with occasional bursts of publicity and supposedly corroborating reports. Most recently, in December 2015 Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a report titled “If the Dead Could Speak” with significant focus on the Caesar accusations.

Following are 12 significant problems with the ‘Caesar torture photos’ story.

1. Almost half the photos show the opposite of the allegations.

The Carter Ruck Inquiry Team claimed there were about 55,000 photos total with about half of them taken by ‘Caesar’ and the other half by other photographers. The Carter Ruck team claimed the photos were all ‘similar’. Together they are all known as ‘Caesar’s Torture Photos’.

The photographs are in the custody of an opposition organization called the Syrian Association for Missing and Conscience Detainees (SAFMCD). In 2015, they allowed Human Rights Watch (HRW) to study all the photographs which have otherwise been secret. In December 2015, HRW released their report titled “If the Dead Could Speak”. The biggest revelation is that over 46% of the photographs (24,568) do not show people ‘tortured to death” by the Syrian government. On the contrary, they show dead Syrian soldiers and victims of car bombs and other violence (HRW pp2-3). Thus, nearly half the photos show the opposite of what was alleged. These photos, never revealed to the public, confirm that the opposition is violent and has killed large numbers of Syrian security forces and civilians.

2. The claim that other photos only show ‘tortured detainees’ is exaggerated or false.

The Carter Ruck report says ‘Caesar’ only photographed bodies brought from Syrian government detention centers. In their December 2015 report, HRW said, “The largest category of photographs, 28,707 images, are photographs Human Rights Watch understands to have died in government custody, either in one of several detention facilities or after being transferred to a military hospital.” They estimate 6,786 dead individuals in the set.

The photos and the deceased are real, but how they died and the circumstances are unclear. There is strong evidence some died in conflict. Others died in the hospital. Others died and their bodies were decomposing before they were picked up. These photographs seem to document a war time situation where many combatants and civilians are killed. It seems the military hospital was doing what it had always done: maintaining a photographic and documentary record of the deceased. Bodies were picked up by different military or intelligence branches. While some may have died in detention; the big majority probably died in the conflict zones. The accusations by ‘Caesar’, the Carter Ruck report and HRW that these are all victims of “death in detention” or “death by torture” or death in ‘government custody” are almost certainly false.

3. The true identity of “Caesar” is probably not as claimed.

The Carter Ruck Report says “This witness who defected from Syria and who had been working for the Syrian government was given the code-name ‘Caesar’ by the inquiry team to protect the witness and members of his family.” (CRR p.12) However, if his story is true, it would be easy for the Syrian government to determine who he really is. After all, how many military photographers took photos at Tishreen and Military 601 Hospitals during those years and then disappeared? According to the Carter Ruck report, Caesar’s family left Syria around the same time. Considering this, why is “Caesar” keeping his identity secret from the western audience? Why does “Caesar” refuse to meet even with highly sympathetic journalists or researchers?

The fact that 46% of the total photographic set is substantially the opposite of what was claimed indicates two possibilities:

* Caesar and his promoters knew the contents but lied about them expecting nobody to look.

* Caesar and his promoters did not know the contents and falsely assumed they were like the others.

The latter seems more likely which supports the theory that Caesar is not who he claims to be.

4. The Carter Ruck Inquiry was faulty, rushed and politically biased.

The credibility of the “Caesar” story has been substantially based on the Carter-Ruck Inquiry Team which “verified” the defecting photographer and his photographs. The following facts suggest the team was biased with a political motive:

* the investigation was financed by the government of Qatar which is a major supporter of the armed opposition.

* the contracted law firm, Carter Ruck and Co. has previously represented Turkey’s President Erdogan, also known for his avid support of the armed opposition.

* the American on the legal inquiry team, Prof David M. Crane, has a long history working for U.S. Dept of Defense and Defense Intelligence Agency. The U.S. Government has been deeply involved in the attempt at ‘regime change’ with demands that ‘Assad must go’ beginning in summer 2011 and continuing until recently.

* Prof Crane is personally partisan in the conflict. He has campaigned for a Syrian War Crimes Tribunal and testified before Congress in October 2013, three months before the Caesar revelations.

* by their own admission, the inquiry team was under “time constraints” (CRR, p.11).

* by their own admission, the inquiry team did not even survey most of the photographs

* the inquiry team was either ignorant of the content or intentionally lied about the 46% showing dead Syrian soldiers and attack victims.

* the inquiry team did their last interview with “Caesar” on January 18, quickly finalized a report and rushed it into the media on January 20, two days prior to the start of UN sponsored negotiations.

The self-proclaimed “rigor” of the Carter Ruck investigation is without foundation. The claims to a ‘scientific’ investigation are similarly without substance and verging on the ludicrous.

5. The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is involved.

In an interview on France24, Prof. David Crane of the inquiry team describes how ‘Caesar’ was brought to meet them by “his handler, his case officer”. The expression ‘case officer’ usually refers to the CIA. This would be a common expression for Prof. Crane who previously worked in the Defense Intelligence Agency. The involvement of the CIA additionally makes sense since there was a CIA budget of $1Billion for Syria operations in 2013.

Prof. Crane’s “Syria Accountability Project” is based at Syracuse University where the CIA actively recruits new officers despite student resistance.

Why does it matter if the CIA is connected to the ‘Caesar’ story? Because the CIA has a long history of disinformation campaigns. In 2011, false reports of viagra fueled rape by Libyan soldiers were widely broadcast in western media as the U.S. pushed for a military mandate. Decades earlier, the world was shocked to hear about Cuban troops fighting in Angola raping Angolan women. The CIA chief of station for Angola, John Stockwell, later described how they invented the false report and spread it round the world. The CIA was very proud of that disinformation achievement. Stockwell’s book, “In Search of Enemies” is still relevant.

6. The prosecutors portray simple administrative procedures as mysterious and sinister.

The Carter Ruck inquiry team falsely claimed there were about 11,000 tortured and killed detainees. They then posed the question: Why would the Syrian government photograph and document the people they just killed? The Carter Ruck Report speculates that the military hospital photographed the dead to prove that the “orders to kill” had been followed. The “orders to kill” are assumed.

A more logical explanation is that dead bodies were photographed as part of normal hospital/morgue procedure to maintain a file of the deceased who were received or treated at the hospital.

The same applies to the body labeling/numbering system. The Carter Ruck report suggest there is something mysterious and possibly sinister in the coded tagging system. But all morgues need to have a tagging and identification system.

7. The photos have been manipulated.

Many of the photos at the SAFMCD website have been manipulated. The information card and tape identity are covered over and sections of documents are obscured. It must have been very time consuming to do this for thousands of photos. The explanation that they are doing this to ‘protect identity’ is not credible since the faces of victims are visible. What are they hiding?

8. The Photo Catalog has duplicates and other errors

There are numerous errors and anomalies in the photo catalog as presented at the SAFMCD website.

For example, some deceased persons are shown twice with different case numbers and dates.

There are other errors where different individuals are given the same identity number.

Researcher Adam Larson at A Closer Look at Syria website has done detailed investigation which reveals more errors and curious error patterns in the SAFMCD photo catalog.

9. With few exceptions, Western media uncritically accepted and promoted the story.

The Carter Ruck report was labeled “Confidential” but distributed to CNN, the Guardian and LeMonde.

CNN’s Christiane Amanpour gushed the story as she interviewed three of the inquiry team under the headline “EXCLUSIVE: Gruesome Syria photos may prove torture by Assad regime”. Critical journalism was replaced by leading questions and affirmation. David Crane said “This is a smoking gun”. Desmond de Silva “likened the images to those of holocaust survivors”.

The Guardian report was titled “Syrian regime document trove shows evidence of ‘industrial scale’ killing of detainees” with subtitle “Senior war crimes prosecutors say photographs and documents provide ‘clear evidence’ of systematic killing of 11,000 detainees”

One of the very few skeptical reports was by Dan Murphy in the Christian Science Monitor. Murphy echoed standard accusations about Syria but went on to say incisively, “the report itself is nowhere near as credible as it makes out and should be viewed for what it is: A well-timed propaganda exercise funded by Qatar, a regime opponent who has funded rebels fighting Assad who have committed war crimes of their own.”

Unfortunately that was one of very few critical reports in the mainstream media.

In 2012, foreign affairs journalist Jonathan Steele wrote an article describing the overall media bias on Syria.. His article was titled “Most Syrians back Assad but you’d never know from western media”. The media campaign and propaganda has continued without stop. It was in this context that the Carter Ruck Report was delivered and widely accepted without question.

10. Politicians have used the Caesar story to push for more US/NATO aggression.

Politicians seeking direct US intervention for ‘regime change’ in Syria were quick to accept and broadcast the ‘Caesar’ story. They used it to demonize the Assad government and argue that the US must act so as to prevent “another holocaust’, ‘another Rwanda’, ‘another Cambodia’.

When Caesar’s photos were displayed at the House Foreign Affairs Committee in Congress, Chairman Ed Royce said “It is far past time that the world act…. It is far past time for the United States to say there is going to be a safe zone across this area in northern Syria.”

The top ranking Democrat in the House Foreign Affairs Committee is Eliot Engel. In November 2015 he said “We’re reminded of the photographer, known as Caesar, who sat in this room a year ago, showing us in searing, graphic detail what Assad has done to his own people.” Engel went on to advocate for a new authorization for the use of military force.

Rep Adam Kinzinger is another advocate for aggression against Syria. At an event at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in July 2015 he said, “If we want to destroy ISIS we have to destroy the incubator of ISIS, Bashar al-Assad.”

The irony and hypocrisy is doubly profound since Rep Kinzinger has met and coordinated with opposition leader Okaidiwho is a confirmed ally of ISIS. In contrast with Kinzinger’s false claims, it is widely known that ISIS ideology and initial funding came from Saudi Arabia and much of its recent wealth from oil sales via Turkey. The Syrian Army has fought huge battles against ISIS, winning some but losing others with horrific scenes of mass beheading.

11. The Human Rights Watch assessment is biased.

HRW has been very active around Syria. After the chemical attacks in greater Damascus on August 21, 2013, HRW rushed a report which concluded that, based on a vector analysis of incoming projectiles, the source of the sarin-carrying rockets must have been Syrian government territory. This analysis was later debunked as a “junk heap of bad evidence” by highly respected investigative journalist Robert Parry. HRW’s assumption about the chemical weapon rocket flight distance was faulty. Additionally it was unrealistic to think you could determine rocket trajectory with 1% accuracy from a canister on the ground. To think you could determine flight trajectory from a canister on the ground that had deflected off a building wall was preposterous.

In spite of this, HRW stuck by its analysis which blamed the Assad government. HRW Director Ken Roth publicly indicated dissatisfaction when an agreement to remove Syrian chemical weapons was reached. Mr. Roth wanted more than a ‘symbolic’ attack.

In light of the preceding, we note the December 2015 HRW report addressing the claims of Caesar.

HRW seems to be the only non-governmental organization to receive the full set of photo files from the custodian. To its credit, HRW acknowledged that nearly half the photos do not show what has been claimed for two years: they show dead Syrian soldiers and militia along with scenes from crime scenes, car bombings, etc…

But HRW’s bias is clearly shown in how they handle this huge contradiction. Amazingly, they suggest the incorrectly identified photographs support the overall claim. They say, “This report focuses on deaths in detention. However other types of photographs are also important. From an evidentiary perspective, they reinforce the credibility of the claims of Caesar about his role as a forensic photographer of the Syrian security forces or at least with someone who has access to their photographs.” (HRW, p.31) This seems like saying if someone lies to you half the time that proves they are truthful.

The files disprove the assertion that the files all show tortured and killed. The photographs show a wide range of deceased persons, from Syrian soldiers to Syrian militia members to opposition fighters to civilians trapped in conflict zones to regular deaths in the military hospital. There may be some photos of detainees who died in custody after being tortured, or who were simply executed. We know that this happened in Iraqi detention centers under U.S. occupation. Ugly and brutal things happen in war times. But the facts strongly suggest that the ‘Caesar’ account is basically untrue or a gross exaggeration.

It is striking that the HRW report has no acknowledgment of the war conditions and circumstances in Syria. There is no acknowledgment that the government and Syrian Arab Army have been under attack by tens of thousands of weaponized fighters openly funded and supported by many of the wealthiest countries in the world.

There is no hint at the huge loss of life suffered by the Syrian army and supporters defending their country. The current estimates indicate from eighty to one hundred and twenty thousand Syrian soldiers, militia and allies having died in the conflict. During the three years 2011 – 2013, including the period covered by Caesar photos, it is estimated that over 52,000 Syrian soldiers and civilian militia died versus 29,000 anti-government forces.

HRW had access to the full set of photographs including the Syrian army and civilian militia members killed in the conflict. Why did they not list the number of Syrian soldiers and security forces they identified? Why did they not show a single image of those victims?

HRW goes beyond endorsing the falsehoods in the ‘Caesar’ story; they suggest it is a partial listing. On page 5 the report says, “Therefore, the number of bodies from detention facilities that appear in the Caesar photographs represent only a part of those who died in detention in Damascus.”

On the contrary, the Caesar photographs seem to mostly show victims who died in a variety of ways in the armed conflict. The HRW assertions seem to be biased and inaccurate.

12. The legal accusations are biased and ignore the supreme crime of aggression.

The Christian Science Monitor journalist Dan Murphy gave an apt warning in his article on the Carter Ruck report about ‘Caesar’. While many journalists treated the prosecutors with uncritical deference, he said:

Association with war crime prosecutions is no guarantor of credibility – far from it. Just consider Luis Moreno Ocampo’s absurd claims about Viagra and mass rape in Muammar Qaddafi’s Libya in 2011. War crimes prosecutors have, unsurprisingly, a bias towards wanting to bolster cases against people they consider war criminals (like Assad or Qadaffi) and so should be treated with caution. They also frequently favor, as a class, humanitarian interventions.

The Carter Ruck legal team demonstrated how accurate those cautions were. They were eager to accuse the Syrian government of “crimes against humanity” but the evidence of “industrial killing”, “mass killing”, “torturing to kill” is dubious and much of the hard evidence shows something else.

In contrast, there is clear and solid evidence that a “Crime against Peace” is being committed against Syria. It is public knowledge that the “armed opposition” in Syria has been funded, supplied and supported in myriad ways by various outside governments. Most of the fighters, both Syrian and foreign, receive salaries from one or another outside power. Their supplies, weapons and necessary equipment are all supplied to them. Like the “Contras” in Nicaragua in the 1980s, the use of such proxy armies is a violation of customary international law.

It is also a violation of the UN Charter which says:

All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other matter inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations.

The government of Qatar has been a major supporter of the mercenaries and fanatics attacking the sovereign state of Syria. Given that fact, isn’t it hugely ironic to hear the legal contractors for Qatar accusing the Syrian government of “crimes against humanity”?

Isn’t it time for the United Nations to make reforms so that it can start living up to its purposes? That will require demanding and enforcing compliance with the UN Charter and International Law.

Rick Sterling is a retired engineer and co-founder of Syria Solidarity Movement. He can be emailed at: rsterling1@gmail.com.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.inf ... e44369.htm

Conscíous
Posts: 1491
Joined: Sun Nov 29, 2009 4:41 pm

How to Interpret the News

#3

Unread post by Conscíous » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:23 pm

How to Interpret the News

Those who propagate the news have an agenda, whether you choose to believe it or not. That’s why we have a systematic approach to the news we want to share with you.

Question everything.

Don’t believe anything you hear unless you personally research and analyze it, then figure out which way is up.

1. Israel and the Middle East.

When it comes to the Middle East and so-called Islamic Terrorism and Wars, you can close your eyes and bet Israel is behind them because only Israel benefits from terrorist acts and Middle East wars – not Muslims and not the West.

Israel, using AIPAC, wags the US which in turn wags all the other countries and terrorist groups in the Middle East so that every event (read: war and terrorism) benefits Israel. See Israel is the Problem – The Demonization of Arabs and Muslims – Warmongering vs Economic Progress – How the Ashkenazi Jews conquered the West – The US-Israeli Relationship – Israel: the Scourge of Empires.

2. Mass Murders, Murders, and Accidents.

When lone gunmen commit their supposed massacres, keep in mind that unless it’s a Hollywood movie, almost no one kills another being for pleasure and no one gunman can kill dozens of people unless he’s Rambo. Cops involved in a shooting have a hit ratio of roughly 30%, sometimes even less, way less – even less than 2%. So how come crazy or fanatical gunmen are better shooters than professional cops? Further, any law enforcement officer will corroborate that 96% of all murders are committed by people who knew their victims, and that before they’re arrested, the police has to provide not only proof – which takes a long time to gather unlike the 10 o’clock news that immediately hand you a suspect – but a motive as well, which itself is “how a suspect benefits from an alleged crime”. So the first question to ask in these mass murder circumstances is Who benefits? More often than not, the Government is the one behind these crimes (actual or fake)since it uses them to pass laws that will either benefit itself or those who bribe State Officials in order to implement a hidden agenda.

When someone in government or media or politics suddenly dies, there’s a 90% chance of foul play. For example, Justice Antonin Scalia of the US Supreme Court was found dead in his room, a pillow over his head. But the cause of death was ruled a heart attack. Seriously? Was a message being sent to the other Justices to fall in line or else? And what about Princess Diana? Does anyone actually think that the Crown would have let the mother of the future King of England marry a Muslim, especially since she was pregnant? No way would they have allowed the future King to have a brother or sister who’s Muslim, not then not ever.

Further, when an airplane crashes, you can bet there’s also a 90% chance of foul play because airplane travel is the safest mode of transportation in the world with an average rate of crashes of 2.1 per one million flights. Case in point, the last Supersonic Concorde that crashed is rumored to have been brought down by the CIA. Why? Well, Concorde was built by Aerospatiale in France and British Aircraft Corporation in England, both military aircraft and missile manufacturers. Every one of their clients or potential clients was flown free on the Concorde in order to woe them away from American weapons manufacturers. The Concorde was the piece de resistance of flight technology, something the Americans did not have. And just like the Russian Supersonic Tupolev Tu-144 was brought down at the 1973 Paris Air Show, the Concorde was also brought down in a fiery crash in July 2000 in Paris. Subsequently, all Supersonic Concordes were grounded to prevent further mass murders. After all, the Americans don’t have Supersonic planes, why should other nations? It’s also interesting to note that every so often European Airbus planes, American Boeing’s competitor, seem to strangely fall out of the sky? That can’t be good for business, right?

The same logic can also be used to explain the sabotage of the British Titanic and the German Hindenburg. Both passenger liners were decimated (respectively in 1912 and 1937) during their transatlantic voyages right before reaching their destinations in the US. The Titanic was steam-powered whereas the Hindenburg was hydrogen-powered. Only oil as an energy source was allowed to have a foothold in the mass transportation marketplace – it was true then, it is true now. Oil was controlled at the time monopoly-style by the American John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Corporation and its sister companies. The destruction of these two mammoth liners sent an unequivocally loud message: use oil or else.

3. Scandals.

They are used to destroy opponents. Remember the Monica Lewinsky scandal? Well, Bill Clinton was trying to get an Israeli/Palestinian peace going, which the Jews did not want. So, the Zionists got their Jewish mole Monica Lewinsky – an intern at the White House – to sexually compromise Bill. She in turn spilled the beans :-) to her Jewish bosses who then revealed it to their Jewish peon Matt Drudge (incidentally drudge means peon – you really can’t make this stuff up) of DrudgeReport.com who “broke the news”. Consequently, the peace process was dead and Bill Clinton disgraced. The Palestinian Peace Process was all but forgotten by all subsequent Presidents who learned not to mess with the Jews, thus leaving Israel alone to destroy the Middle East at its leisure. However, that scandal catapulted Matt Drudge in the blogosphere as the premier news site aggregator where “headline news” are controlled and massaged to fit the agenda of Matt’s co-religionists.

4. Money and the Economy.

Induced Market fluctuations and the Federal Reserve’s shenanigans are driving our financial world to catastrophe. It’s all manipulated and controlled. See How the Ashkenazi Jews Conquered the West – The Corrupt Federal Reserve is NOT Federal – When Money is the Problem.

5. Religion and the Jewish-dominated Media.

Why have they turned the name of our Lord Jesus Christ into a curse word? How come only Jesus is always being insulted in the media, but not Buddha, Krishna, nor any other contrived god? Why is it that we are always being presented with pedophile priests, but never with pedophile rabbis? Why aren’t we ever told about the Jews behind the campaign to remove Christ from Christmas and the public square? Why are Christians always portrayed in movies as dumb, deranged, or off-kilter while Jews are always cool, smart, and almost never the bad guys? See The War on Christianity. And why are we never told that Zionist Jews are the ones who started terrorism in the Middle East?

6. Wars and the Military Industrial & Financial Complex.

Wars only benefit a segment of the elite, not the soldiers who die for nothing, not their families, and not the economy. See All Wars are Evil. Period – Warmongering vs Economic Progress – When Money is the Problem.

7. Science and the Media.

The media love to paint scientists, their unproven theories, and their “discoveries” in the best possible light, especially as it pertains to Big Pharma. A big chunk of their advertising revenue comes from these drug pushers who peddle their snake oils to an unwitting public that cannot see through the propaganda nor comprehend the damaging side effects of these drugs. See Puzzled Scientists – X-Men and the Theory of Evolution – Beware of Pharmacology – The Miracle of Healing.

8. Read the Posts below.

Once you do, you will have a good track of understanding to latch onto for all future news items; after all, there’s nothing new under the sun. We started this section – to constantly and continuously analyze the news – with the hope of carrying it thus for a long time. Unfortunately, because of circumstances beyond our control, we won’t be able to do as purposed – though we plan to periodically pop up for impactful events (follow us on Twitter). Still, it is better that you are equipped to sift through the garbage they call news in order to discover the truth for yourself, as opposed to us constantly spoon feeding it.

Happy Hunting!

https://biblicisminstitute.wordpress.com/views-of-news/

Conscíous
Posts: 1491
Joined: Sun Nov 29, 2009 4:41 pm

BBC News Caught Staging FAKE Chemical Attack In Syria!

#4

Unread post by Conscíous » Mon Mar 21, 2016 6:48 am

BBC News Caught Staging FAKE Chemical Attack In Syria!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p54hHhlLjRk

Conscíous
Posts: 1491
Joined: Sun Nov 29, 2009 4:41 pm

The Ultimate "Fake News" List

#5

Unread post by Conscíous » Thu Dec 08, 2016 12:36 pm

The Ultimate "Fake News" List

Authored by Paul Joseph Watson and Alex Jones, originally posted at InfoWars.com,



Isn’t it ironic how the mainstream media has the nerve to lecture everyone else about “fake news” when they are the primary source of fake news on a consistent basis stretching back years?

Fake news stories and fake narratives put out by the mainstream media have resulted in deaths, destruction and people’s lives being ruined.

The most harmful fake news is routinely published by the mainstream media. They are the main progenitors of fake news.

– The fake news that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction and that Iraq was involved in 9/11, dutifully regurgitated without question by the mainstream media, resulted in hundreds of thousands of dead Iraqis, thousands of dead and injured U.S. troops, and the destabilization of an entire continent.



– The fake news that the rebels in Syria were “moderates” who did not have jihadist sympathies and should be supported led to the destruction of Syria, Libya and the rise of ISIS.

– The fake news narrative that the media was balanced in its coverage of the presidential election was completely obliterated when Wikileaks emails revealed that countless mainstream media reporters were in bed with the Clinton campaign, feeding them debate questions beforehand and conspiring with Hillary’s staff to portray her in a positive light.

– The fake news that George Zimmerman was obsessed with Trayvon Martin’s race before the altercation that led to Martin’s death was accomplished by means of NBC deceptively editing an audio tape. This incident stoked racial tensions across the country and laid the groundwork for the violent ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement that was to follow.

– The fake news that produced the “hands up, don’t shoot” narrative, which was proven to be completely fraudulent, led to riots, violent attacks and looting in Ferguson, Missouri, as well as numerous other U.S. cities. Even after the rioting began, the mainstream media continued to legitimize the unrest. Fake news outlets continued to parrot the “hands up, don’t shoot” narrative even after it was proven false.



– The fake news that saw innumerable people accused of rape at college campuses across America, claims that were proven wrong, ruined people’s lives and perpetuated the myth (fake news) that one in five women are raped on college campuses.

– The fake news that George W. Bush served dishonorably during his time in the Air National Guard was broadcast by CBS News with the aid of fake documents. In circulating this fake news, CBS tried to influence the 2004 presidential election but only ended up crucifying their own credibility, leading to Dan Rather’s resignation six months later.

– The fake news that NBC anchor Brian Williams faced enemy fire while helicoptering into Iraq in 2003 was exposed when soldiers who were aboard the helicopter blew the whistle on his lies. Despite admittedly putting out fake news, Williams still has a career in broadcast journalism.

– The fake news narrative that Donald Trump somehow represents the next coming of Hitler has provoked a hysterical anti-Trump hate crime wave across America, with people and property being attacked on a routine basis. The same hysterical fake news narrative was also responsible for violence and riots at Trump events throughout the campaign cycle, as well as assassination attempts on Trump’s life.

– The fake news that Donald Trump had no chance whatsoever of winning the presidential election was proudly pushed by countless mainstream media outlets, with the Huffington Post even predicting that Hillary Clinton had a 98% chance of winning the presidency. When this fake news narrative was completely demolished on November 8, it swept away trust in political polling and the mainstream media to an even greater degree, prompting the backlash that you now see with the corporate press calling everyone else “fake news” when they are the real fake news.



FULL LIST OF FAKE NEWS OUTLETS

– The New York Times
– The Washington Post
– CNN
– NBC News
– MSNBC
– CBS News
– ABC News
– Salon.com
– The Huffington Post
– Rolling Stone
– BBC News
– Sky News
– Financial Times
– Politico
– New York Daily News
– L.A. Times
– USA Today
– US News & World Report
– CBC
– Gawker
– Newsweek
– Time
– Business Insider
– Daily Beast
– VICE
– Yahoo News
– Daily Kos
– Young Turks
– Slate
– NPR
– PBS
– Raw Story
– New Yorker
– Buzzfeed
– MoveOn
– Think Progress
– Media Matters
– Wonkette
– Center for American Progress
– Little Green Footballs
– The Economist

Below is a list of fake news reporters who colluded with the Clinton campaign to promote fake news.
071216fake.jpg
This list is by no means exhaustive, and there are many reporters within these organizations who do not peddle fake news and have spoken out against the mainstream media’s effort to brand dissenting opinion as “fake news”.

For example, Matt Taibbi (no fan of Infowars), has called the Washington Post’s fake news blacklist “disgusting” and “shameful”.

Glenn Greenwald, who has worked with several of the organizations on this list in the past, also completely eviscerated the credibility of the “fake news list” being used by the Washington Post.

The entire “fake news” narrative being pushed by the mainstream media has nothing whatsoever to do with concerns over people being misled.

If that were the case, the mainstream media itself would stop habitually lying to the American people and it’s trustworthiness wouldn’t be in the toilet.

The whole “fake news” narrative is clearly part of a dirty tricks campaign to pressure governments, Google, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other tech giants to censor information that is inconvenient to the establishment, for which the mainstream media serves as a mouthpiece.

We are competing with the mainstream media and they’re not happy about dissident voices challenging their monopoly on reality. That’s why they’re forced to resort to underhanded and deceptive means through which to silence their ideological opposition.

By circulating this article and this fake news list, we are not calling for these outlets to be censored, we are simply drawing attention to the fact that the very same entities who cry “fake news” are the primary sources for the most damaging, harmful and woefully inaccurate fake news stories in the history of modern journalism.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-12-0 ... -news-list

The Truth About Fake News
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyS3Ghevf2I
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

Conscíous
Posts: 1491
Joined: Sun Nov 29, 2009 4:41 pm

Aleppo Victory... US And Its Crime Partners Suffer "Meltdown Of Sanity"

#6

Unread post by Conscíous » Fri Dec 16, 2016 9:10 pm

Aleppo Victory... US And Its Crime Partners Suffer "Meltdown Of Sanity"

Submitted by Finian Cunningham via Strategic-Culture.org,

The US and its terrorist-sponsoring partners are seeing their criminal regime-change project in ruins, as the Syrian army and its allies win a spectacular victory to retake the strategically important city of Aleppo.

Western governments and their flunkies at the UN are cynically, perversely decrying a «meltdown of humanity».

Closer to the truth is their own «meltdown of sanity». This is because the official Western narrative about the Syrian war is finally being exposed on a glaring scale.

The exposure for the whole world to see is one of a systematic, fake propaganda cover that concealed a criminal enterprise – an enterprise involving terrorist proxies, or fake moderate rebels, whom the Western governments have sponsored for the past six years in a conspiracy to overthrow the government of Syria. The gravity of this systematic crime committed by Washington and its various partners is now unfolding.

Unable to cope with their own cognitive dissonance over the criminality, the Western governments and their complicit corporate news media are resorting to outright denial and to compounding lies with even more lies.

Instead of dealing with the reality that Syrian state forces have recaptured Aleppo from brutal, illegally armed groups, which the West and its regional clients have bankrolled and armed, the West distorts the dramatic victory as the «fall of Aleppo». One report on American channel CNN even referred to the victorious Syrian army and its allies as «persecutors».

With typical unhinged emotion, US ambassador to the UN Samantha Power cited unverified reports of civilians being executed in Aleppo, and slammed Syria and its allies Russia and Iran for having «no shame». It is Power and her Western partners-in-crime, including top UN officials, who should be hanging their heads in shame.

Among the hysterical soundbites about alleged atrocities and slaughter being lobbed around this week was this from UN «humanitarian» official Jens Laerke who said Aleppo was seeing a «meltdown of humanity». Catchy words, but divorced from reality.

Western news media outlets were screaming headlines alleging summary executions of women and children by the Syrian army and its Russian, Iranian and Lebanese allies as they moved in to finally retake the whole of the northern city.

Outgoing UN chief Ban Ki-Moon talked in disparaging tones about an «uncompromising military victory», while his underlings Rupert Colville and Jan Egeland decried «hellish» conditions and «war crimes» committed by Syria and Russia.

The problem is that all these sensational, reckless assertions are based on unverified claims by anonymous «activists» or persons involved with militants – militants who are integrated with terror groups like Jaysh al Fatah, Jabhat al Nusra, Ahrar al Sham and Nour al din al Zenki. All of them affiliated with the internationally proscribed Al Qaeda terrorist network – which the Western governments claim to be at war with.

It truly is a grotesque revelation when Western governments and UN officials publicly spout propaganda on behalf of terrorist groups.

Samantha Power and her British counterpart at the UN Matthew Rycroft cited UN «reports» of 82 civilians being executed, including 11 women and 13 children, by the pro-government Syrian forces during the final hours of recapturing Aleppo. But the same UN «reports» were themselves based on unverified sources supposedly embedded among the terrorists. This is not reportage. It is simply recycling rumors aimed at saving the necks of terrorist groups.

The simple fact of the information coming from unverified sources did not stop the UN, Power, Rycroft and the raft of Western media outlets, including the Washington Post, CNN, Guardian, Independent, France 24 etc, presenting the claims as if they were fact.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Western governments and their dutiful, unquestioning news media of spreading «fake news» about the dramatic events in Syria this week. Lavrov pointed out that none of the alleged atrocities were acknowledged by independent humanitarian groups.

Syria’s ambassador to the UN Bashar al Jaafari also refuted the claims of atrocities that Western counterparts appeared to be so perplexed by.

Western governments and media outlets persisted in their gory fantasies despite abundant video footage that even they themselves were broadcasting which showed thousands of civilians calmly walking away from militant-held pockets of Aleppo towards the Syrian state forces. Is that the behavior of people who are being massacred, summarily executed, slaughtered?

One of the most absurd distortions was this from France 24. The state-owned broadcaster of one of the countries that has supplied weapons and propaganda cover to terrorists in Syria over the past six years described this week how «people in government-held areas of Aleppo were celebrating». Given that the Syrian government holds virtually all of Aleppo that means that the vast majority of Syrians were celebrating. Yet France 24 roils its words to contrive a false division between pro and anti-government populations.

The more logical and truthful depiction is that Syrian civilians are at last able to flee from terror gangs that have held them under siege. But in reporting that the whole false Western narrative about what has been going on in Aleppo and Syria for the past six years would implode like a house of cards.

Why aren’t the Western news media interviewing the tens of thousands of civilians who have now managed to flee from the defeated terrorist groups? Why don’t the Western media ask questions about the nature of their captivity? Such as, why could they not escape from militant-held eastern Aleppo until now? What do these civilians think of the Syrian army and its allies who have crushed the militants?

The curious, gaping absence of any testimonies carried by the Western media from the thousands of liberated civilians in Aleppo is mirrored by the same curious, gaping absence of testimonies from thousands of civilians liberated elsewhere in Syria by the army over the past year.

That’s because those civilians are telling media outlets which are willing to report, such as the Syrian state broadcaster SANA, as well as RT, Press TV and Al Manar, that their nightmare siege imposed by the Western-backed terrorists is over. If Western media outlets were to actually bother to conduct real journalism they would go into liberated areas of Aleppo and other towns and villages across Syria and report that life is returning to happy normalcy for these families and communities.

The truth is Aleppo was invaded by Western-backed mercenaries in July 2012, who turned the eastern side of the city into a den ruled under a reign of terror. A twisted, demented caliphate run by head-chopping Wahhabi jihadists was imposed. Like Syria as a whole, these mercenaries were sanitized in the West as «moderate, pro-democracy rebels» – albeit somehow supposedly «intermingled» with jihadi extremists.

If that were the case, then where are these supposed «moderates» now that the last den of the «rebels» in Aleppo has been routed?

The stark absence of «moderate», «pro-democracy», «Western-value-supporting rebels» emerging from the ruins of Aleppo is as stark as the absence of petrified civilians denouncing Syrian army «atrocities» or Russian «war crimes».

In one resounding moment this week, the Western narrative about Aleppo, and the Syrian war more generally, has collapsed in a pile of dust. No amount of denials and further distortions can hide the exposure of Western lies and propaganda fabrications.

So ironically, Western media outlets have recently whipped up the phenomenon of «fake news» in the context of trying to discredit Russia over alleged electoral interference in the US and Europe.

What Syria has demonstrated is that the real culprits of peddling false news, and more gravely false narratives, are the Western governments and their conceited, self-important news media.

Unable to deal with the unbearable truth of criminal complicity, the official West is displaying a meltdown of sanity.

Aleppo and Syria will one day emerge again from the present ruins. No such recovery from ruins will be made by the ignominious Western governments and their lying, criminally complicit media.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-12-1 ... own-sanity

qutub_mamajiwala
Posts: 1056
Joined: Tue Jul 23, 2013 4:17 am

Re: The Mainstream media (MSM) and its propaganda campaign

#7

Unread post by qutub_mamajiwala » Wed May 02, 2018 5:11 am

“It would be very difficult for people like us to get acclaimed in mainstream media because more than the religious right, the regressive left hates us. We puncture their inflated balloon of self-victimization and identity politics. They would hate for us to be on the mainstream scene, the left wants Muslim names to be crying about fascism rather than be pragmatic, confident, productive individuals.” – Omer Ghazi

India right now is like a mother with two kids. One of the kids is weaker, smaller and sick. Of course, the weaker kid deserves a little more care and nurturing and hence a little more attention is showered on the weaker kid. As for the stronger, bigger kid., the mother would perhaps say, “Well he can manage.”

Understandable, but one should not harbour this mentality to such an extent, that the bigger kid gets completely neglected. Owing to that neglect, he would grow up resentful, frustrated and angry. He would start harbouring feelings of toxic jealousy and hate towards the smaller kid. This monster of hate might actually grow to the extent that the bigger kid would end up physically harming and maybe even killing the smaller kid. Is this inconceivable?

You understand how this “too much of a good thing” approach is actually endangering the smaller kid? That’s exactly what is happening in India between the majority and minority. Politicians need to stop appeasement and identity politics because it’s not going to end well for anyone. How about equal treatment? The British are gone, but “divide-and-rule” is very much alive and active.

The actions of liberal media lately are really disturbing. One has to realize – it is possible for the majority to be oppressed. There is an anti-Hindu bias in the media – and this is not good if you want to maintain peace and ‘secularism’. Why are nationalism and Hinduism being dragged into everything? Stories of crime are ALWAYS given a communal angle, can we please not do that?

People ask me – “Why are you sucking up to these ‘Sanghis’?”

My reply – “And what is your brilliant plan to keep minorities safe? Doing everything possible to piss off the majority and radicalizing even peaceful Hindus? You think that’s going to keep me safe? Why don’t you save some time and just shoot me right now?”

I am not sucking up to anyone, I don’t have “Stockholm syndrome.” I’m just trying to be respectful towards all religions and maintain the fragile peace that we have. Isn’t that what secularism is about?

Some of you might say that I’m speaking from a position of privilege. No, I am not denying the fact that there is a lot of wrong happening in this country, I’m not some chest-thumping hyper-patriot yelling “India is the best!” I am just trying to point out that some anti-social elements exploit the news of terrible crimes and tragedies to manipulate the emotions of a gullible public to push their own agenda. Don’t fall into their trap, don’t play into their hands, they want to keep us divided, they want to keep us fighting. A good example is the recent Kathua case.

“I am ashamed to be Indian! I am ashamed to be Hindu!” – read the placards. Why? I fail to understand… I mean, you can feel angry, you can feel outraged, you can feel frustrated, but why feel ashamed to be Indian? Does Indian culture condone rape? Does Indian constitution condone rape? And why feel ashamed to be Hindu? Does the Bhagavad Gita instruct you to go rape!?

“Hindu rapes Muslim girl.”

No. What happened is – “A sick pervert brutally violated a defenceless little girl!”

There has been a very obvious and deliberate attempt by media here to give this a communal twist and it’s scary just how much of a stranglehold the media has over the minds of people. The power of fear.

The semen-filled balloon story, now busted, was another example of fake news meant to cause a communal divide.

I like India, I like living here. Because you see, my family and I have actually lived in a Muslim country and we know what it’s like. This was in the 80s and early 90s, when India was still socialist, not as developed, and hence Indians had to move to foreign countries to earn well.

We have lived in Saudi Arabia for more than a decade. My mom, like any other woman in the country always had to be in a black burqa. My dad was arrested 3 times on trumped up charges, and the police released him after a hefty bribe. There were always stern-faced mutawwas– Saudi religious police – patrolling the streets. It was like a prison! We were treated like second-class citizens. All the time, my family said, “We can’t wait to get back to India!” We made our money and got out as soon as we can.

We experienced true equality and dignity and freedom only after we came back to our own country. Staying in Saudi Arabia made us realize the value of the little freedoms others have so taken for granted here. Muslim women here need not wear the burqa, nobody cares. There is no fear of mutawwas. India gives us the freedom to practice our religion, but more importantly… India also gives us the freedom to NOT practice our religion if we so choose. India is far from perfect, but it is a million times better than most other countries out there. And those who scream day and night on Twitter about how “India is an evil, fascist, Brahmanical, oppressive dictatorship,” to them I’d like to say – “If this really was a Fascist country, you would be rotting in a Gulag by now.”

I love living in India. Despite what you read in the media, I do not feel oppressed and do not live in perennial fear. If there is anything I fear, it is the liberal media who seem hell-bent on dividing us and starting a civil war. Otherwise, I live proud and free, knowing that the Indian constitution grants me the same rights as it does to a person of any other religion. If we really felt India was an evil fascist oppressive state, trust me, we would not have returned. Our life is here, this is our country – we will obey the law of the land and play by the rules, even though it may not be 100 percent compatible with our religious beliefs. But that’s a sacrifice one has to make.

I think of living in a society as standing at a traffic signal. Yes, you are being made to wait, time is being stolen from your life, you are being violated, but what you have to understand is – the people on the other side are also making that sacrifice, they are also waiting, and that is the only way things can move. If no one is willing to compromise, it will be utter chaos! To live in society, you have to give up a part of your self, no one can be 100% happy, that’s just the price you have to pay. The other option is – go live in a cave all by yourself.


http://www.opindia.com/2018/04/ahmed-sh ... ssion=true