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News :: Miscellaneous |
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GIVING CORPORATE MEDIA A RUN FOR ITS MONEY: Indymedia Does Its Job Well |
Current rating: 0 |
by Aaron Schlosser
Email: aschlosser (nospam) proctornet.com (unverified!) |
26 Oct 2001
Modified: 27 Oct 2001 |
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It seems as if the Cable News Network (CNN), the self-proclaimed "world leader of information delivery," takes careful measures to protect its interests from the likes of nasty, decentralized, non-profit organizations like the Independent Media Center that are composed of regular, working people. |
 It seems as if the Cable News Network (CNN), the self-proclaimed "world leader of information delivery," takes careful measures to protect its interests from the likes of nasty, decentralized, non-profit organizations like the Independent Media Center that are composed of regular, working people. |
It seems as if the Cable News Network (CNN), the self-proclaimed "world leader of information delivery," takes careful measures to protect its interests from the likes of nasty, decentralized, non-profit organizations like the Independent Media Center that are composed of regular, working people. In an almost laughably pathetic maneuver, CNN has banned the word "indymedia," "indy media," "1ndym3d14," and so forth, from all discussion on its servers. Any use of the term – even when asking server operators questions about policy – will result in immediate exile.
After all, in the market of information, such an open and democratic forum like the Indymedia should be expected to be a threat to the media monopolies of the United States. And what better place to start than CNN, the American news agency most famous for censorship (the term "CNNsorship didn’t come out of nowhere, you know)? The Indymedia is a threat of monumental proportion, and a threat that could destroy the illusion of "fair and unbiased" corporate news coverage with one simple fact: it refuses to participate in the illusion.
While money-driven corporations like CNN, MSNBC, ABC News, and Fox News filter their information, the Independent Media lets it run freely. While the corporations sell their news, the Independent Media gives it away for free. While the corporations kneel beneath their advertisers, the Independent Media refuses to advertise. While the corporations herald "truth" and "hard-hitting facts," the Independent Media treats the human mind with respect, effectively saying, "decide for yourself."
Considering all that, it should be no surprise that CNN should feel threatened by the "competition" from Indymedia, despite the fact that a multibillion-dollar, all-powerful media conglomerate should fear competition from a non-profit, non-hierarchal, democratic, anti-capitalist organization is decidedly pathetic. Or, perhaps it just shows the weakness of marketing everything, and reducing basic communication to a commodity to be sold. By refusing to be marketed, Indymedia breaks through the illusion, and for that reason, I say again: it’s no wonder that they are scared.
Along with this article should be two images: each one shows a conversation I personally had with a server operator (if they upload correctly). In the first instance, I used the nick "indymedia," which, surprisingly, was allowed. In the second instance, I used the nick "bobby." As one can clearly see, I was polite, reasonable, and patient.
When the server operator felt that they could not justify their actions, however, they took the cowardly route: they banned me. For what? For asking a simple question, politely and respectfully.
If you ask me, this only further asserts that the Indymedia is doing exactly what it should be doing: giving the corporate interests a run for there money.
No pun intended.
I suggest each of you who read this to try it for yourself. |
See also:
http://www.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=79356&group=webcast
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maybe you threw them on "I'm looking to be a jerk" |
by Flougg(g)
crucial_ (nospam) ziplip.com (unverified) |
Current rating: 0
27 Oct 2001
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That was a tiny typo that blocked your challenge in a way many of us probably wished you had gotten straight...argh...
Btw, *when* are "regular, working people"?
Why do "we" have to have a dichotomy, or even a hierarchy of who is "regular" or even "working"? (Am i missing something?) And how about explaining when exactly "we" are working? i see myself as "working" whenever i'm getting involved in something i need to do (as opposed to *enjoy*, tho both are inter-connected at times), like being involved in the anti-war movement in a meaningful way.
Seems to me that this notion you're promoting ("regular working" people) is an obsolete manipulation which we ought to discard because it appears to ultimately work to exclude and hierarchize people away from understanding each other and getting along more constructively. How can such a construct be helpful to goals of peace and justice for individuals, is really the onus of my question.
Don't get me wrong, i see your challenge to cnn and other corporate media to be valid, and along with that i see that when we attack individuals along the way, we're only confining ourselves to a form of trench warfare that ultimately perpetuates the problems we claim to want to solve! |
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Are IMCs CNN's 1st Or 2nd Biggest "Rival"? |
by marco
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
27 Oct 2001
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Apparently it's either FOX or Indymedia. (CNN's biggest rival) You may type the words CBS, NBC or ABC at Greta VanSustern's chats (and all the other ones at Chicken Noodle News Central) but you may NOT type the words "fox" or "indymedia." And derivations of them, like foxx and 1ndym3dia or indy media or independent media are fast disappearing as the censors catch them. Yes. As we speak.
I'm not making any of this up! I couldn't craft such fascinating fiction if I tried!
Many of us have replicated this two nights in a row now. Some of us have even chatted privately with some of the censors directly. (censor is not their only role. They are channel operators and their hands are pretty tied as to what they can and cannot allow people to say and do in there.) The funniest thing I found while discussing all this with one of the channel operators was he tried to type the word "fox" to show me what word I had most recently been censored from. And it wouldn't even allow him to type the word. Indymedia and fox are not allowed whereas cnn abc nbc and cbs are.
It went like so: (I've taken his name and my name out for personal security, since I hadn't asked him if he minded me printing this here)
[01:47] no, i've no idea what word it is, or why it's blocked
[01:47] i don't control the filter ok. do you know some of the words that it filters at least? does anyone ever change them or something? is it maybe the word censor?
[01:48] no, all i know is words are added and removed by others. they don't consult with me about it :) Or don't tell me they won't let any of us say "fox," I mean c'mon. I hate shephard "I beat women for a hobby" smith as much as the next guy, but I should be allowed to say desert fox, or winona ryder's a fox, if not "I saw alanis on fox," shouldn't I?
[01:50] again, i don't set policy, or control what's in the filter
[01:51] yes, i think it is
[01:51] foxx because of the other network maybe? I think someone said abc tonite or something. yikes. weird.
[01:53] it's the 3 letter word starting with the letter between E & G you mean even you're not allowed to say it?
[01:53] apparently not aye yay yay
[01:54] life in irc
[01:56] :)
[01:56] i have problems with the filter too
[01:58] <.> I noticed when you tried to type something about a furry animal with short legs and a long tale :)
[02:00] i did that to check my status window to see if i got the word not permitted message, i did
Please discuss this here, and please also discuss this at a message board my friend Dave started last April about other kinds of censorships CNN has been putting youall through.
cnnsorship message board:
http://flag.blackened.net/wwwthreads/wwwthreads.php?Cat= |
See also:
http://www.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=79501&group=webcast
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