Some news about a free country

White House press secretary Ari Fleischer recently announced at a press conference that Americans, including journalists and commentators, must "watch what they say, watch what they do."

A radio host, David Cook, was fired by California radio station KMEL one week after he aired an interview with Congresswoman Barbara Lee (Barbara Lee is one of the only members of Congress opposing the attacks on Afghanistan, and she has been called a traitor and is receiving death threats). Cook had worked for KMEL for 10 years.

KMEL is owned by Clear Channel, a very powerful company that is the largest radio owner in the US. The week of the WTC attacks, Clear Channel sent its stations a list of 150 songs it suggested they not play anymore. The list included many peace songs, like "Imagine," by John Lennon.

Two journalists at small newspapers were fired for criticizing George Bush: Dan Guthrie, a columnist at the Daily Courier, a paper in Oregon, and Tom Gutting, city editor for the Texas City Sun.

One TV station in Baltimore, Maryland ordered news anchors to read statements in support of President Bush. Some complained, but the station management warned journalists that if they discuss the matter with other reporters, they could be fired.

CBS News anchor Dan Rather, one of the most famous journalists in the US,has been very open about his support for Bush and the bombing. He even said,"If he needs me in uniform, tell me when and where — I'm there."

The five major news networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox) have agreed to the White House's request that they not show unedited videotapes of bin Laden or any Al Qaeda spokesperson. They say they'll still report what bin Laden says, but will not broadcast the full tapes because they might contain "coded messages." This is a bit ridiculous, since 1) a translator is always talking over, drowning out the Arabic anyway, and 2) do they think everyone in the world watches only English-language media? What about Al Jazeera, the BBC, etc?

It's outrageous for the media and the government to co-operate in filtering what information Americans can hear— to me (says one enlightened American), opening the door to that kind of censorship is much more dangerous to America than hearing bin Laden's words. A US media watch group, released a statement on this issue recently.

In general, the intellectual climate in the press here is chilling, this American citizen reports. There is a lot of hostility toward academics and activists who criticize the bombing of Afghanistan. "We're getting called "un-American" and unpatriotic.

Even asking basic, simple questions about the root causes of terrorism (U.S.policy in the Middle East, the history of oppression, etc), or suggesting that the bombing may hurt civilians, is often denounced.''

"It's very worrying, very frightening here (though not as frightening as it must be in Afghanistan).'' (!!) ( Exclamations mine.) Congress is considering "anti-terrorism" laws that would define "terrorism" as anything that "is calculated to influence or affect the conduct of the government by intimidation or coercion; or to retaliate against government conduct." That definition is so broad that any political demonstration could be called "terrorist"! There's a real danger that the law will pass.

So, this is America. Obviously, there is a chilling effect on the media due to recent events, but it's not the press one expects in a free country — the most free country – according to claims of contemporary American lawmakers. On the other hand it shows a war psychosis, that's being built up without any qualms. America certainly doesn't have any problems about suspending various "freedoms'' for the cause of war – makes us wonder how may other countries can afford that luxury? 

Some of those attitudes are outrageous, such as firing the Congresswoman, and such things will not happen in a country like this under almost any circumstances. Should America be paranoid? Maybe we cannot be the judge of that. But, countries and collective psyches do get paranoid, and America, it seems , was always critical of that.

On the one hand you need to empathize with the American attitude. But, on the other, it leaves us flabbergasted. Supposed to be the most free country? And this. Perhaps it never was free. It was a country that hitherto had the luxury of not having major problems to deal with.