5th anniversary of the day the press failed

[flowomo]

5 Years Ago Tonight: That Fateful Press Conference
By Greg Mitchell
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003720934

(snip)
NEW YORK -- Five years ago tonight, on March 6, 2003, President Bush conducted a televised press conference – less than two weeks before he would order the U.S. invasion of Iraq -- stating in his intro, “We will not wait to see what terrorists or terrorist states could do with weapons of mass destruction.”

....It was the mood of the affair that was most noteworthy. Bush smiled and made his usual quips, and many of the reporters played the game and did not press him hard. This was how these press gatherings had gone throughout the run-up to war. But this meeting was heavily scripted with Bush looking at a slip of paper and calling on reporters in a pre-arranged order. No one challenged him on this.

(snip)

more at the link.

[Selatius]

1. They don't care. It's about profits in the corporate news outlets.

The opening of a major war would be an absolute ratings getter, which translates into boosted profit margins for the quarter. At the end of the year, dividends declared would be bigger for the shareholders due to the windfall profits.

[ReformedChris]

2. War= High Ratings for Corporate Networks and Media Outlets

The failure of the press came from two things: Corporate Media Giants and a fear of backlash for being "anti-american" before a war. It is absolutely sickening that noone could ask the hard questions. I hope the media finds its courage in the future, we are going to need it.

[jojo54]

3. The trickle down effect worked very well, didn't it?

The money & favors went from the W.H. to the big corporate assholes to the corporate run media. And everybody in line drank the Kool-aid without question.