An Open Letter to NPR On Covering Wall St. Protests

Congratulations. You finally got around to doing a story about the Wall Street protests last night on "All Things Considered," after 11 days of ignoring them. What a disgraceful decision to have avoided coverage for so long, and having your ombudsman try to mitigate that dopiness by noting that you covered the demonstrations via several AP print stories and blogs on your website. I thought you were in the radio business. I must have been mistaken.

The ombudsman quotes your executive news editor explaining all the days of non-coverage this way: "The recent protests on Wall Street did not involve large numbers of people, prominent people, a great disruption or an especially clear objective."

Every one of those points is either flat wrong or ridiculous. (1) the protests involved hundreds, I would say at their height several thousands of protesters -- based solely on the videos I watched. Sorry that wasn't a large enough number for your executive news editor. (2) no prominent people were involved: what a ridiculous gauge of importance. If ordinary people from all over the country come to protest, that's not enough? How stupid can you get. (3) No great disruption: so if a few thousand people from all over the country stage more than a week of peaceful protests, that's not good enough for your executive news editor; they have to be disruptive to merit coverage.

That sends a message to all demonstrators that to attract the attention of the media (which, of course, is the aim of all demonstrations of all stripes for all causes) they have to break things and break the law. Forget about protesting peacefully day after day. Again, how stupid can NPR get? as far as (4) is concerned, that the demonstrators lacked "an especially clear objective," how come Mayor Bloomberg, in the story you finally ran, was able to clearly discern that objective, which was to protest against the Wall Street banks, when NPR can't figure it out?

Maybe Glenn Greenwald, in Salon, can help NPR out: he writes:

Does anyone really not know what the basic message is of this protest: that Wall Street is oozing corruption and criminality and its unrestrained political power -- in the form of crony capitalism and ownership of political institutions -- is destroying financial security for everyone else?

I've hated Ralph Nader ever since he was personally responsible for George W. Bush's election in 2000, but he and others sure are right when criticizing NPR for not covering the left and these protests (his phone call no doubt helped lead to NPR's belated coverage). If the Tea Party farts, that's news. But God forbid you should cover anything too far left of center.

As Greenwald notes further:

Any entity that declares itself an adversary of prevailing institutional power is going to be viewed with hostility by establishment-serving institutions and their loyalists. That's just the nature of protests that take place outside approved channels, an inevitable by-product of disruptive dissent: those who are most vested in safeguarding and legitimizing establishment prerogatives (which, by definition, includes establishment media outlets) are going to be hostile to those challenges.

As he points out, that sure does apply to NPR, among many other news organizations.

The network has hardly distinguished itself in several recent incidents: the Juan Williams firing and the fuss that led to the resignation of the two Schillers, one of them NPR's CEO. The long-delayed protest coverage adds one more black mark to NPR's record, although I remain more than grateful to it as the only serious, authoritative, widely disseminated, long-form source of radio news in this benighted country.

 

Comments

[Skinny Dog]

02:15 AM on 10/04/2011

NPR - Nice Polite Republicans

[mairs]

09:54 PM on 10/02/2011

Fanned.

[Ceric55]

09:21 PM on 10/02/2011

Well at least NPR got around to covering it within a week or two. So that isn't too bad.

How about C-Span, especially the morning show Washington Journal - spokesman for the conservatives, platform for the Weekly Standard, National Journal and the AEI. When they finally get around to covering the protests, I can just guess who they have as guest. It will have to be a real heavy weight to frame this one just right for the public. I am sure it will be a Karl Rove or a Bill Kristol. I think this is going to be a tough one for them to spin.

[JOFB]

12:21 PM on 10/02/2011

If NPR does not tell the truth and cover the FACTS I can see the next agenda for Americans to be a America-Free-Radio that belongs to the American people. That should start to nudge things along. NPR gets public funding. That is We The People's money. We don't need stations that don't cover the TRUTH, THE FACTS and are Bought by the UBERS. That is exactly what we want to correct and why many took to the streets to protest the WallStreet UBERS who buy the radio stations, the Congress, the votes, the country and leave the scraps to the middle class. We get it. Things are going to change. Please cover the real news, the real facts. Thankyou. And please cover the PETITIONS the top 3 at the WHITEHOUSE petition site, especially 50 thou plus votes for Petition #2, Forgivestudentloandebt.com to stimulate the economy.

[mairs]

09:42 PM on 10/02/2011

I remember when the UAW owned Air America, or whatever permutation it was at the time. They actually had news about workers....groups of people with jobs....employees. It was so different, and so refreshing, and made me realize that MSM news is mainly about the wealthy and influential, disasters, and opiate/entertainment.

[Jake Beasley]

09:15 AM on 10/02/2011

Protesting wall street banks is not a clear objective. They should protest for some specific course of actions, such as ending the fed. Honestly, though, these folks seem like economic illiterates. Wall street isnt the problem; too much government interferance in the markets is.

[bushfailure]

07:29 PM on 10/02/2011

Too much government interference is the problem?. Where have you been the last few years? Weak oversight and the repeal of Glass-Stegall IS the problem. No one was punished at the corrupt rating agencies for giving AAA ratings to junk securities. Wall Street has become a giant casino that uses our life savings and pension funds to gamble. They make their money up front, and the rest of us be damned.

[Jake Beasley]

09:00 PM on 10/02/2011

No, the problem is that people are required by law to put their life savings and pensions funds on Wall Street in order to preserve their value. If the government didn't keep inflating the currency, price levels would go down over time and people would not have to play the stock market before and during retirement. The rating agencies is just a peripheral problem. You're blaming the messengers, but not dealing with the root of problem: the Federal Reserve.

[hellinahandcart]

09:05 AM on 10/02/2011

Did NBC, CBS, ABC, or CNN do any better? CNN just recently put an article on the net, but I saw nothing on the evening news. Not defending NPR, but why not hold of them accountable?

[Effinbanks]

12:26 AM on 10/02/2011

Right on, Sandy! I canceled my 30-year membership with NPR yesterday over their lack of OWS coverage, and making light of what was barely mentioned: "so, there's a group of young people gathering in WS to protest corporate greed? (Kai Ryssdal yesterday)" YA THINK? On 'Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" this morning, Peter Sagal said "Medics hired by WS protestors have said the most common injury they've treated has been blisters from beating their bongo drums..." A comedienne on the panel said something like, "They say this is the most well-educated protest ever seen...", She was cut off by another smugster (guy) saying what appeared to be protestors meditating was just kids letting the salve sink in... My rose colored glasses are not only off, they're shattered. NPR is every bit as controlled as other mainstream media, just under the guise of open-mindedness - sure, if you belong to a group they insist on identifying as 'minority'. Good riddance.

[misssooshi]

07:04 PM on 10/02/2011

Fanned and Faved, Effinbanks.

[Dad of Marine]

11:01 PM on 09/30/2011

NPR = No Progressive Reporting.
We only cover tea baggers going to the bathroom because big brother will spank us, otherwise.

[jtraveler]

05:35 PM on 09/30/2011

and yet the media can find time to flash front page coverage of Demi/Ashton, Tera Reid, the latest bikini'd 'star' and the never-ending 'it's over' articles while ignoring this one. I hope the crowds continue to swell and those individuals within the NYC police who've behaved badly are held to account.

this is but one example of how the media is NOT doing its job. don't get me started on their failures in adequately and honestly covering political issues............

[MrJoyboy]

02:59 PM on 09/30/2011

Slogan of NPR (and the rest of the MSM): All the news that fits with us keeping our jobs.

[Siara]

01:45 PM on 09/30/2011

Hear, hear

[Barbi520]

01:30 PM on 09/30/2011

Al Gore won the popular vote by more than 500,000.

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2010/1212/Ten-years-after-Bush-v.-Gore-the-fight-goes-on

Ten years after Bush v. Gore, the fight goes on
Al Gore won the popular vote by more than 500,000. But it was the contentious recount in Florida – halted by the Supreme Court – that gave it to Bush. What that meant still is being argued.

[Ricky Bobby]

06:35 PM on 09/30/2011

He lost his own state TN and sealed his fate.

[xhawk2]

11:17 AM on 09/30/2011

NPR = Taxpayer funded liberal media.

[Ricky Bobby]

06:36 PM on 09/30/2011

:)

[Aitch5]

07:07 PM on 09/30/2011

Pretty obvious they are not so Liberal. if you read the article.

[Jake Beasley]

09:14 PM on 10/02/2011

Liberal. Conservative. They're the same thing; its the Republicrats. The parties are identical. They both way big government and corporate welfare. They continue to inflate the currency while transferring money to the big businesses who pay/bribe the politicians. Just look at Rick Perry, Mitt Romney, Jonathon Edwards, the Clintons, and even Obama. The policies never change, no matter who is in charge.

[StewartIIIHP]

12:40 AM on 09/30/2011

NewsBusters: Former NBC News Producer Yells at NPR For Missing Leftist Wall St. Protest
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tim-graham/2011/09/29/former-nbc-news-producer-yells-npr-missing-leftist-wall-st-protest

[JohnFromCensornati]

10:11 PM on 09/29/2011

Ralph Nader is not responsible for King George W. You have no good reason to believe that those of us who voted for him would have voted (D). We wouldn't have. Try blaming the Dems who voted for Bush or the Supreme Court or Al Gore or the Democratic Party or Bill Clinton or the vast right-wing conspiracy, but not Nader.

[HeevenSteven]

11:04 PM on 09/29/2011

You're right.

[Matt Love]

09:09 AM on 09/30/2011

Absolutely correct. I would add Dems abandoned a lackluster candidate, tainted by an administration people were tired of 10 - 1 for Bush over Nader in Florida, but the Dems have never yet ever criticized another Dem for the mess. And don't forget the electoral college - I voted for Nader in a state where Gore carried, therefore my vote disappeared into the vapors of history as if it never existed. We had no influence over the 2000 election at all, and the arrogant and craft Democratic leadership know it, otherwise they would have started acting a little liberal to try to bring some of us back. Instead they keep moving to the right, and threatening us with an even further right bogieman. People should check out the Newsbusters link. I presume they call it that because they want to eliminate news entirely? Actually, the piece isn't too bad, but read the comments, a disturbing look into the diseased minds of an unsavory subculture. Reminds me of a documentary I saw yesterday:
http://vimeo.com/29589320

[JohnFromCensornati]

11:04 AM on 09/30/2011

Good point. I forgot to include the undemocratic electoral college.