Pentagon "Media Analysts" Appeared On Major Networks Or Were Quoted More Than 4,500

In April, The New York Times published a story exposing the deep ties between numerous media military analysts and the Pentagon and defense industries.

The Times noted that "the Bush administration has used its control over access and information in an effort to transform" media military analysts, many of whom have clients or work for companies with an interest in obtaining Pentagon contracts, "into a kind of media Trojan horse -- an instrument intended to shape terrorism coverage from inside the major TV and radio networks."

HuffPost's Jason Linkins noted at the time that neither the Times nor other major media outlets had worked to advance the story, or apologize for their role in potentially spreading government propaganda.

Now, Media Matters has issued a report showing that the analysts program had a far wider reach than previously believed.

A Media Matters review found that since January 1, 2002, the analysts named in the Times article -- many identified as having ties to the defense industry -- collectively appeared or were quoted as experts more than 4,500 times on ABC, ABC News Now, CBS, CBS Radio Network, NBC, CNN, CNN Headline News, Fox News, MSNBC, CNBC, and NPR.

Read the full report.

Comments

[Mauiloa]

Listen, I love HuffingtonPost.com as well as anyone here, but just look at the home page. Even we liberals enjoy the titillating pictures and gossipy stories. And I, too, am fascinated by the steamy kiss between Scarlett Johansson and Penelope Cruz, but at least we enjoy our sleaze with a healthy helping of real information. But HuffPost readers are a cut above.

Look at the West Virginia results. The attitudes expressed yesterday regarding Barack Obama make me concerned about how dirty the upcoming election will be. You know it will be an all out war and if we were disgusted with the Willie Horton ads in 1988, just wait for the appeal to our hateful attitudes in 2008.

I'm concerned that all the young people that have been energized by Obama will be disillusioned by the process as I have been since I first voted in 1972 for George McGovern; another politician who wanted to end a war.

Society still reels from the effects of that war. Now we get to watch a new generation of soldiers return to our country with mental and physical problems that will be with us for another 50 years.

Thank you George Bush, your NeoCon puppetmasters and all you wonderful Military Analysts that led us into Iraq.

Oh, but at least George W Bush sacrificed for this war. The asshole gave up golf!! Now if that doesn't define his lack of statesmanship for history, I don't know what does.

[jubo]

There is little information left; just formation.

[ajax2]

Please post the names of these cruds in future articles.

[vet64]

People have known for years the Neo Con Parasites have been pummping American Taxpayer dollars into the Neo Con owned News Media Conglomerates for propaganda purposes. Up to 10 billion a year comes out to 80 billion the Neo Con Parasites have been giving each other. Heckuva job Neo Nazis.
It's time for a revolution to rid ourselves of the Neo Cons infesting every Department of the Executive Branch.. And every Republican, Democrat or Independent that prostituted their votes to enrich themselves and their Corporate Pimps and also legally shielding themselves. Taxation without Representation.
I recall we already had a Revolutionary War against King George and his Mercenary Armies because of Taxation wiothout Representation. Who'll we string up first??

[itsme23]

This is a really good point!!! The media at large is now OWNED by People like Time Warner and GE and Murdoch...­.ie...they will report WHATEVER the OWNERS want them to report on!

[qdog112]

OK I am mad as HELL and I won't take anymore. Hey I've been outraged for 10 minutes, now I gotta go watch American Idle. Trust me those "experts" have been playing us and laughing all the way to the bank. It's just the free market working things out.

PROPAGANDA is as American as Hillary Clinton. It didn't just start and it ain't gonna end. At one time we were able to sift through the BS and figure out the truth or close to it. We had investigative media that helped us.

Now it's a blatant money grab and so called reporters put access above the "crime". Just follow the money. They are milking the cash cow and feeding the war.Those military whores would sell their mothers for a buck, so we ain't gotta chance. In the end they are all MERCENARIES.

[SnapShots]

We have allowed free speech to become free rein.

[researcher]

hey americans want to be a superpower this goes along with it. we blame the military and bush but they are only doing what an imperialist country does. control the information flow.

the american bully is about to get whipped like it did in vietnam this time by a very small muslim country with a weapon called an IED.

americans book your tickets now for the theme park being built in baghdad. the streets are open and safe ask mc cain.

americans dont have the stomach to trade that much blood and money for oil. the repubs have the stomach for it as long as they can play chickenhawk. ie hannity and bill o and rush cheney bush jr etc.

and many americans are dumb enough to go and die for these war mongers for profits. of course some just like killing people. call the enemy goons or charlie or terrorists and it makes it easier.

now vote mc cain so we can bomb iran this iraq war is getting boring. and my oil stocks need a boost.$$$$­$$$$$$$$$$­$

god bless america soon to own the most oil reserves in the world. darn saying that feels good. hope iran likes shock and awe as much as iraq did.

[amanda85]

V for Vendetta..­.

[SnapShots]

The FCC needs a complete overhaul and corporate media needs reform.

You and I own the airwaves and we have no say in how broadcast licenses are managed and market ownership is regulated?

'News' headlines are often meaningless stories from media about media, allowing media to shape our perception of the world around us. Media answers to nobody but Wall Street while cramming consumerism down our throats.

Wall Street has all but extinguished public trust. Corporate broadcast media has failed in its role as watchdog and educator. It is lazy. Embedded journalists? What a pile of crap. Our perceptions and knowledge have been reduced to the lowest common denominator in the industrialized world.

Jay Harris, former publisher of the San Jose Mercury News, walked away from his position in 2001 to protest deep staffing cuts that were being forced upon him due to increased demands for profit ( http://www.gradethenews.org/dreamhost%20files/pagesfolder/Excess%20profits1.htm ). Harris, an African American, was one of few minority publishers of a major daily American newspaper.

When Harris told his wife and children that he was going to quit, he said, "Sometimes you have to sit at the front of the bus."

We can all sit at the front of the bus. If 50 million Americans cancelled their newspaper and TV subscriptions tomorrow, we'd see reform very quickly.

As the Internet has emerged as the great equalizer, corporate media wants to do away with net neutrality. Over my dead body.

[MajorKong]

Reminds me of Pravda and Isvestia back in the Soviet days.

Pravda meant "truth" and Isvestia meant "news". The Russians used to joke "There's no news in Isvestia and no truth in Pravda".

[castlerider]

Thank you

Thank You

Thank you Huffpo, the ONLY news source that is giving us this incredibly important news story. By keeping it alive, it will eventually find its way to the focus of the center that it needs to be. AND THE OUTRAGE WILL FIND ITS WAY HOME!!!!!

As you have so correctly stated Arianna, the center is NOT WHERE THE MSM tells us it is, but rather where the majority of Americans feel it is, and if the majority could "feel" this whole story, hear it and understand all it really means, the outrage will spill out everywhere, like it should.
Don't let it die, Huffpo...
Keep this story alive, until MSM picks it up, because if it sits on the center long enough, they will have to.

[RJC]

I don't understand why there is no outrage about this. The comparisons to Nazi Germany are right on, the corporate media threat, the jingoism, the misuse of power. Using the government as a partisan "Spoils" system. In this particular case the Pentagon or DOD has absolutely no business in supporting or opposing policy, or helping shape policy. This administration has politicized, or seeded it's deciples throughout all government depts for partisan and idealogical reasons. The DOD, as other government depts should be completely apolitical, while realizing this is a unattainable ideal, this administration has performed an unprecedented purge of the government of any dissent. The sad part is they feel justified in doing so. Disgusting, and very dangerous!

[photog606]

Geez, my PROTOCOLS comment got censored -- I was only pointing out how far off base they were. I thought we'd all have a good laugh....

[NewAmericanCenturySucks]

They deceived; you believed. Which was worse?

Canadians saw the Iraq invasion for what it was from the beginning. Propaganda was piped through our idiot boxes at comparable magnitude and intensity. Alternative (albeit less sexed-up) media sources were available to both publics.

Yet Americans fell for it. This must have been due to higher levels of 1) gullibility, 2) greed (the promise of cheap oil caused you to look the other way...?), 3) attraction to media glitz, or 4) blind patriotism.

My assessment is that it was a combination of the four. To the extent any of these shortcomings persist, please rectify; the butchery and theft of Iran looms.

[Johnagain]

You're forgetting number 5. A sizeable majority of Americans are ignorant, superstitious and myopic bumpkins. They've brought willful ignorance to an art form. Many of us are actually proud of our ability to ignore the world at large, in favor of our cocoon of entertainm­ent/distra­ction.

[Mauiloa]

...and America listened to them all with rapt attention. It's just too fucking hard to think for ourselves!