John Nichols of The Nation discusses the state of the media

Two nights ago, I attended a fund-raising event to support what is very much a grass roots organizing group, Grass Roots Organizing (GRO). John Nichols, Washington Correspondent for The Nation, was the keynote speaker. After the scheduled program (I'll be posting on that too), Nichols agreed to sit down with me in the empty ballroom to discuss the state of the media in the United States (see the video below). The bottom line is that these waters are fraught with danger, and media reform advocates too often find themselves playing defense, even with Democrat control of the Presidency and Congress. Nichols is in a good position to know about media issues, given that he co-founded Free Press with Robert McChesney. BTW, Free Press will be holding its 2011 National Conference for Media Reform in Boston from April 8-11. In a second video clip (see further below), Nichols discussed the travesty and the danger of the United States Supreme Court case of Citizens United v. SEC.

Continue ReadingJohn Nichols of The Nation discusses the state of the media

What’s up with media reform?

What's up with media reform? Free Press is active on many fronts. Click on this video to hear Josh Silver's two-minute message regarding many of the most pressing issues. I've found Free Press to be a terrific organization providing numerous ways for thousands of journalists, citizens and citizen-journalists to exchange ideas for improvement of our news-gathering and publishing. I've attended the past three Free Press national conferences, each of which drew several thousand people. I highly recommend that you visit the Free Press website and get involved.

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The American media is horribly dysfunctional but you have the power to change it.

This was the third year I attended the National Conference for Media Reform sponsored by Free Press. This year's conference was held in Minneapolis. As in previous media reform conferences, I was reminded about many of the hurdles faced by those American citizens who are attempting to get serious and coherent coverage of the news. By "news," I mean the type of information that is critically important in order to prepare us to make good decisions as citizens (i.e., voting). One of the most distressing things one learns from attending the conference is that very little news is available to those watch local TV "news" and read their local "news"papers. One of the fundamental principles of Free Press is that there cannot be a healthy democracy without a vigorous news media. The problem is that our news media is sickly, poisoned by rampant commercialism. The modern corporate media is over-consolidated to such an extent that it reflexively kowtows to political power and repeatedly refuses to challenge abuses of that power.

McChesney/Nichols - Part I

Topics covered in Part I:
  • Is the media reform movement paying too much attention to Bill O'Reilly and FOX?
  • The basic aims of the media reform movement.
  • More on Free Press and the reason for the media reform movement.
  • The problem with over-consolidation of the media.
Free Press stands for the proposition that there is no stark divide between journalists and citizens.

Continue ReadingThe American media is horribly dysfunctional but you have the power to change it.

Citizens act like dysfunctional children when kept ignorant of “natural consequences.”

In 1964, Rudolph Dreikurs wrote a child psychology book that is still considered a classic by child psychologist: Children: the Challenge. Dreikurs argued that using punishments to change behavior is inefficient.

No amount of punishment will bring about lasting submission. Confused and bewildered parents mistakenly hope that punishment will eventually bring results, without realizing that they are actually getting nowhere with their methods or, at best, they gain only temporary results from punishment. When the same punishment has to be repeated again and again, it should be obvious that it does not work. The use of punishment only helps the child to develop greater power of resistance in defiance.

Dreikurs argued that the authoritative idea of using punishment needs to be replaced with a sense of mutual respect and cooperation. Children need real leadership. “A good leader inspires and stimulates his followers into action that suits the situation.” It is important to arrange the learning situation such that a child learns “without a show of power, for power insights rebellion and defeats the purpose of child-raising.”

children the challenge book lo res

Dreikurs also cautions parents about using rewards:

The system of rewarding children for good behavior is as detrimental to their outlook as a system of punishment. The same lack of respect is shown. We “reward” our inferiors for favors or for good deeds. In a system of mutual respect among equals, a job is done because it needs doing, and the satisfaction, for the harmony of two people doing a job together…. satisfaction comes …

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FCC Commissioner Michael Copps rallies the troops on media reform

Salon's Michael Grieve reports on Michael Copp's address to the YearlyKos Convention. Copps, an FCC commissioner, addressed the YearlyKos Convention in Chicago: a three-day gathering of about 1,500 bloggers and liberal activists. But his address was less a lecture than a call to action. "The country needs you, it needs…

Continue ReadingFCC Commissioner Michael Copps rallies the troops on media reform