By Mark L. Taylor
The Commoner Call (1/1/18)
In the eyes of many – especially on the left – National Public Radio has a shiny halo. Unfortunately, the truth falls short of cozy liberal assumptions. Redacted Tonight host Lee Camp gives a rollicking good rundown on NPR’s ties to corporate power and how those corporations bask in the “good guy” glow of being associated with NPR.
The network has softened and developed a sizeable dose of jello in its spine over the past ten years. While there will be the occasional tough interview and every once in a great, great while a follow-up question to nail down a shape-shifting politician, for the most part tough follow-up questions are rare as programming is becoming more and more gooey.
More and more programming is focused on yuppy features about artisan foods, fancy wines, custom beers and blended coffee concoctions which has about as much relevance to most working people struggling along without health insurance and decent child care as NPR business reports, speaking of which, labor news rarely makes the NPR schedule.
If you haven’t listened to the BBC World Service radio in a while, check it out to hear some damn good, empathetic reporting on the numerous ongoing refugee crises, and truly courageous reporting on women’s issues in Third World nations and war zones. And it is pure joy to hear a BBC interviewer pinning down a weaseling politician or some smarmy corporate sociopath. I’ve heard interviewers repeat the same question four times, with more and more intensity when one of these corporate bootlickers keeps trying to slip away. One will rarely hear anything close to any of that on NPR.
All news organization have their problems and weak spots and so too with Redacted Tonight, which is carried on the Russia-bankrolled Russia Today – RT – network. In the face of the growing body of evidence, it’s a tad embarrassing to hear Camp and other RT hosts and quests so quickly dismiss concerns about Russian interference in the 2016 election. That said, it is worth giving Camp’s take down of NPR a listen. It gets a little wild but he is making lots of good points.
- Most Censored Stories Of 2017, Honduras vs. Venezuela, Local Level Corruption – Lee Camp covers some of the most censored stories of 2017, according to the media watchdog site “Project Censored.” He then discusses accused pedophile Roy Moore, who failed in his bid for the Senate in Alabama. Then, correspondent Naomi Karavani joins Lee at the desk to discuss just how corrupt local politicians are. Correspondent John F. O’Donnell reports on the hypocrisy of US treatment of Honduras and Venezuela. This and more on Redacted Tonight. 28-Minute Video