{"article":{"id":12760,"heading":"WHEN THE PRESS PRESSES FOR WAR (Mumia Abu-Jamal)","author":"Mumia Abu-Jamal","created":"2001-11-09 03:03:17","modified":"2005-08-15 00:42:58","last_modified":"Mon, 15 Aug 2005 07:42:58","article":"
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WHEN THE PRESS PRESSES FOR WAR<\/u><\/div>\r\n
[Col. Writ. 10\/25\/01] Copyright '01 Mumia \r\nAbu-Jamal<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
    It is often surprising what \r\ncomes to mind when one<\/div>\r\n
thinks of the press.  We often think of it as \r\na daily necessity,<\/div>\r\n
as our window to the world, as an impersonal, \r\nsometimes<\/div>\r\n
faceless acquaintance, whom we deal with \r\ndaily.<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
    We rarely think of the press as \r\na multi-million dollar<\/div>\r\n
industry, which, by its very power, wealth and \r\nburgeoning<\/div>\r\n
influence, has become a virtual branch of \r\ngovernment.  Or,<\/div>\r\n
perhaps worse, as a subsidiary to a \r\nmultibillion-dollar<\/div>\r\n
multinational corporation.<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
    Lastly, we may, rarer still, \r\nnever come to see the press<\/div>\r\n
as the private possession of one person, or a small \r\ngroup<\/div>\r\n
of persons, for such a thought shocks us.  For \r\nmost of us<\/div>\r\n
have come of age hearing, seeing, or reading of the \r\npress<\/div>\r\n
as \"a public service.\"<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
    Seen this way, most of the \r\nnation's commercial media<\/div>\r\n
begins to resemble a tool, an institution, indeed \r\nan agency<\/div>\r\n
of the wealthy classes.  This is a dangerous \r\nthought, for<\/div>\r\n
it shatters any illusion that the press is an \r\ninstrument of<\/div>\r\n
democracy (Ask any reporter if he ever told his \r\nboss, the<\/div>\r\n
editor, what *he*<\/u> wanted to cover, as \r\nopposed to what<\/div>\r\n
his editor wanted done, and you'll learn that no \r\nnewsroom<\/div>\r\n
is a democracy!).<\/div>\r\n
    <\/div>\r\n
    You see the true nature of the \r\npress clearest in times of<\/div>\r\n
war, when any notion of dissent is snuffed into \r\nsilence.  In a<\/div>\r\n
case that is as shocking as it is silly, a number \r\nof newspapers<\/div>\r\n
around the nation have withdrawn the hilariously \r\nbrilliant<\/div>\r\n
\"Boondocks\" comic strip, done by a young man \r\nnamed<\/div>\r\n
Aaron McGruder.  As was the case of its \r\npredecessor strip,<\/div>\r\n
\"Doonesbury,\" the \"Boondocks\" strip takes on \r\npolitical,<\/div>\r\n
cultural, and social issues of the day.  In \r\none banned strip,<\/div>\r\n
the central character, a pint-sized, perpetually \r\npetulant<\/div>\r\n
radical boy named Huey Freeman (who bears a \r\nrather<\/div>\r\n
striking resemblance to the late Black Panther \r\nfounder,<\/div>\r\n
Huey P. Newton) calls up the FBI's Anti-terrorism \r\nhotline,<\/div>\r\n
and asks, \"Is this the FBI's Anonymous \r\nAnti-terrorism<\/div>\r\n
hotline?\"  A voice on the line promptly \r\nreplies, \"Yes, Mr.<\/div>\r\n
Freeman, this is the FBI's Anonymous \r\nAnti-Terrorism<\/div>\r\n
hotline.  Whatcha got?\"  Huey is stunned \r\nfor a second,<\/div>\r\n
then yells into the phone, \"ANONYMOUS?!\" The \r\nFBI<\/div>\r\n
guy responds, \"C'mon, Huey! You know we've been \r\n<\/div>\r\n
buggin' your phone for years! Whatcha \r\ngot?\"<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
    This is funny stuff.  But \r\napparently, thousands, perhaps<\/div>\r\n
tens of thousands (or more!) won't see it to \r\nknow.<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
    Many years ago, when the Zulus \r\nand the Lakota Sioux<\/div>\r\n
were fighting against encroaching white imperialism \r\nin<\/div>\r\n
their homelands, both indigenous empires \r\nscored<\/div>\r\n
impressive military victories over imperialist \r\ninvaders.<\/div>\r\n
They are known to history as the battles of \r\nIsandhlwana<\/div>\r\n
and Little Bighorn.  The press described \r\nSitting Bull as<\/div>\r\n
a \"savage\" and Zulu King Cetshwayo as a \r\n\"bloodthirsty<\/div>\r\n
barbarian.\"  (When Custer slaughtered hundreds \r\nof<\/div>\r\n
Cheyenne men, women and children at the \r\nBlack<\/div>\r\n
Kettle Village on Washita River, killing even \r\nponies, <\/div>\r\n
I doubt any newspaper in America called him \r\neither<\/div>\r\n
a \"savage\" or a \"bloodthirsty barbarian\").  \r\nThe daily<\/div>\r\n
press criticized the British and American \r\nmilitaries<\/div>\r\n
for daring their \"inferiors\" to beat them, and \r\nwhipped <\/div>\r\n
them on to more brutal, violent, and punitive \r\nattacks<\/div>\r\n
on Lakota and Zulu peoples and lands.<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
    This imperialist training of the \r\npress in the 1800s<\/div>\r\n
can be seen today in the way the media \r\nwhitewashes<\/div>\r\n
massacres, ignores or distorts history, and \r\ndemonizes<\/div>\r\n
any opponents of the empire.<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
    As the old saying goes, \r\nit's a 'free press' -- only<\/div>\r\n
if you own one.<\/div>\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
Copyright '01 MAJ<\/div>\r\n
==================================<\/div>\r\n
\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
\r\n
 <\/div>\r\n
\r\n
THEY ARE PLANNING TO MURDER \r\nMUMIA!!<\/strong><\/div><\/strong><\/div>\r\n
<\/strong> <\/div>\r\n
SAVE THE DATE - DECEMBER 8TH FOR \r\nMUMIA!  <\/u><\/strong><\/div>\r\n
PLEASE PASS THE \r\nWORD!<\/strong><\/div>\r\n

\"We are fighting the last battle to Free Mumia, and need \r\nsupport now <\/div>\r\n
more than ever.  We need donations of money, calling \r\ncards, copy cards, <\/div>\r\n
etc. and we really need manpower.  We need people to be \r\nin the streets <\/div>\r\n
every day putting out information, demonstrating, raising \r\nmoney, and doing <\/div>\r\n
whatever you can to help.\"

\"Tell judge pamela dembe to \r\nhold an evidentiary hearing and a new
post-conviction relief appeal, to hear \r\nthe confession of Arnold Beverly
and to let Mumia be at the hearings in his \r\n\"trial\".  Tell mayor john
street to keep his promise and do what he can \r\nto help Mumia receive a <\/div>\r\n
fair trial and to hold an independent \r\ninvestigation into the case.  (you <\/div>\r\n
can get a sample of both of these letters \r\nat http:\/\/www.freemumia.com)

pamela dembe: \r\n1417 criminal justice center 1301 Filbert St. philadelphia
pa, 19107 Phone \r\n215 683-7148 Fax 215 683-7150

john street: room 215 city hall \r\nphiladelphia pa 19107
Phone 215 686-3000 Fax 215 \r\n686-2170\"

PLEASE CONTACT:
International Concerned Family & \r\nFriends of MAJ
 P.O. Box 19709, Philadelphia, PA 19143
 Phone - \r\n215-476-8812\/ Fax - 215-476-6180\/
 E-mail - icffmaj@aol.com \/www.mumia.org
AND OFFER \r\nYOUR SERVICES!

Send our brotha some LOVE and LIGHT \r\nat:
    Mumia Abu-Jamal
    AM \r\n8335
    SCI-Greene
    175 Progress \r\nDrive
    Waynesburg, PA  15370

  !! \r\nPEOPLE GET READY !!
<\/strong><\/div>\r\n
 <\/div><\/div>\r\n
 <\/div><\/div>
******************************************************
This \r\ncolumn may be reprinted and\/or distributed by
electronic means, but only for \r\nnon-commercial use, and
only with the inclusion of the following copyright \r\n
information:

Text (c) copyright 2001 by Mumia Abu-Jamal. All rights \r\n
reserved. Reprinted by permission of the \r\nauthor.
******************************************************

Mumia \r\nAbu-Jamal is the author of three books: 'Live
from Death Row', 'Death \r\nBlossoms', and 'All Things
Censored'.

Write to Mumia directly \r\nat:
Mumia Abu-Jamal AM 8335
SCI-Greene
175 Progress \r\nDrive
Waynesburg, PA 15370<\/div>\r\n\n","contact":"","link":"","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/html","summary":"It is often surprising what comes to mind when one\r\nthinks of the press.","numcomment":0,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/2001\/11\/mumiazgzazz.htm","filesize":"10.9 kibibytes","article_url":"\/news\/2001\/11\/12760.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[]}