So now we learn that some of the photos you see in newspapers and magazines are doctored. Some of the photos you see in tv news are faked. Perhaps many of them have been.
Bloggers spotted the fakes among recent war photos carried by Reuters. Also among photos carried by Associated Press. Someone doctored the photos to make battle scenes look worse.
In the AP faked photos we see one Lebanese woman mourning the loss of her home. Two weeks later, same woman. Same mourning. Different house. Really unlucky, that woman. I hope she got a model’s fee.
Reuters ran photos of rockets fired by Hezbollah. Then it ran photos of rockets fired by Israel. Same photos.
There were big stories about a building Israel brought down on the heads of its residents. Ah, but Israel gave us evidence the building collapsed 8 hours after the bombing. So what were the people doing there? Many of the bodies looked - in the videos - as if they had been brought in for the filming.
Reuters ran two shots of a guy holding a picture of Hezbollah’s leader. He was saluting it with glee. The saluting guy was the same in each photo. Only the background changed substantially. Obviously faked.
If you want to see how Hezbollah hoodwinks the world, go to the website eureferendum.blogspot.com. There you will see how they move bodies in ways to get the best camera and video angles. They thoughtfully rehearse and parade their grief for newspeople. And the newspeople eat it up.
So does any of this surprise you?
It does not surprise me. Because big media has been distorting news for years. When not distorting, it has been creating news. Whenever I heard Tom Brokaw say “NBC Nightly News. We make a difference.” I shouted back at the television “You’re not supposed to make a difference, Tom. You’re supposed to report the news.”
Clearly, that was expecting too much.
Dan Rather used to tighten his face muscles and spit out “Courage.” Reporting simply what happened, what someone said, does not take courage. Creating news and hoping no one finds out takes courage. Dan certainly had that sort of courage. He needed it.
Long ago, propagandists learned how to manipulate news. Dictators own the presses and radio and tv. They dictate what is news and what is not.
Our own managers of big-time news do the same. They decide what will be covered. And what will not. They decide what will be shown. And what will not. They decide what excerpts of a speech will make it over the airwaves. And which ones will not.
Bill Cosby is a recent victim. He continues to exhort black parents to be more responsible toward their kids’ behavior. Most media ignore him and his message. They don’t fit the party line that poverty and injustice create black teen violence. Not irresponsibility.
Ignoring news? In an earlier era major media could plead shortage of space. Or lack of time. This rings hollow today. Newspapers and TV networks can easily run transcripts of speeches on their websites – for those of us who might like to read what the President or candidate said, instead of reading only what the network or paper included.
Wouldn’t that be nice? You read or hear/see the usual tidbit they offer. Followed by “To see (or read) the entire address, go to our website...”
Networks and newspapers could run videos of the speeches or press conferences. Or run complete audios. They have room on their websites. It would take about 60 seconds of labor to add these to the websites.
Don’t hold your breath for this to happen. Because it is all too clear big media do not want you to read what certain public figures say. Lately they have not wanted you to see accurate photos from the war.
It is all too clear that big media manipulate the news.
From Tom ... as in Morgan.
For more columns and for Tom’s radio shows (and to write to Tom): tomasinmorgan.com.