Media
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The branding
The alleged branding of the Star of David on the face of a Palestinian man by Israeli police has left many around the world aghast at the barbaric cruelty and violence of such an act. It has been reported in numerous media outlets yet is, so far, glaringly left out of others. This kind of Continue reading »
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Big brave Western proxy warriors keep whining that Ukrainian troops are cowards
Amid continuous news that the Ukrainian counteroffensive which began in June is not going as hoped, The New York Times has published an article titled “Troop Deaths and Injuries in Ukraine War Near 500,000, U.S. Officials Say.” Continue reading »
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ABC shamelessly spruiks ‘China Threat’ stories on morning of ALP National Conference AUKUS debate
The morning of the ALP National Conference on 18 August, ABC online news led with two ‘Bad China’ stories. One about whether China is building an airstrip on a contested island, the other likely to cause great discomfort and anxiety to Australians because it showed the level of China’s spying on Australia via hundreds of Continue reading »
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Tomahawk missiles over Indonesia? No worries, they’re only passing by
In the early 1960s, the then USSR started building missile sites in Cuba, near enough to Florida for endurance swimmers. This almost led to the Cold War turning flaming hot. Now Australia is to buy more than 200 US missiles and stage them close to Indonesia. Continue reading »
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NSW Legislative Council: “Justice delayed is justice denied” for Shaoquett Moselmane
“Extensive media coverage has suggested… that Mr [Shaoquett] Moselmane was a suspect in serious criminality. This was incorrect. … The committee does not form a view on the propriety or otherwise of the conduct of the AFP or sections of the media. However, in these circumstances, the committee urges the AFP to ensure sufficient resources Continue reading »
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The edifice of the consultancy-military-industrial complex is crumbling
The consultancy-military-industrial complex continues to reveal its sinister nature as serious questions are raised over conflicts of interest in the tender process for KPMG’s $46 million REDSPICE contract with the Australian Signals Directorate. Continue reading »
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What do climate denialists say when the facts change?
John Maynard Keynes is widely believed to have said: Well, when the facts change I change my mind. What do you do? It was probably actually Paul Samuelson although Keynes did say something vaguely similar. Continue reading »
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ASPI’s call for a militia – a step to military madness
The Australian economy is increasingly becoming a war economy. The PM talks of the economic benefits of weapons manufacture, and of how the military and a growing military-industrial-complex is almost a job creation scheme. The media works diligently to build and sustain a sense of fear. But even so, the warmongers of the Australian Strategic Continue reading »
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Will the media miss another massive grassroots campaign?
A great illustration of how much of the media totally overlooks the huge grassroots campaign for Yes is the fact that the Jewish community’s far-reaching campaign has been unsighted in mainstream media coverage of the referendum. Continue reading »
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The ABC could improve political education greatly
The issue of the Voice referendum has again brought to light problems that have to do with a serious lack of understanding of governance systems in Australia and, even more seriously, where major problems exist, lacking a capacity to generate superior alternatives. Continue reading »
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Heatwaves, drought, floods, disease across region – Asian Media Report
In Asian media this week: Urban poor the worst climate victims. Plus: Pakistan goes to the polls, without Imran Khan; China blocks Philippine ships near Spratly shoal; Alliance changing Asia-Pacific peace and stability; International currency changes on BRICS agenda; Barbenheimer memes not harmless fun. Continue reading »
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Is there a place for an honest person in the mainstream media?
It is becoming increasingly unlikely. Julian Assange is in prison; the dissenting voices of Seymour Hersh, John Pilger, Glen Greenwald and Tucker Carlson have been excluded from the mainstream, moving into self-publishing; and Mick Hall has resigned from Radio New Zealand after it tightened control to safeguard the pro-American narrative. Continue reading »
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AEMO slams Murdoch media campaign that claims renewables are not low cost
The Australian Energy Market Operator has made a rare foray into the mainstream media debate around the green energy transition, saying claims that its cost assessment of renewables does not include transmission and storage are “wrong.” Continue reading »
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The illusory truth effect and the “unprovoked” invasion Of Ukraine
Arguably the single most egregious display of war propaganda in the 21st century occurred last year, when the entire western political/media class began uniformly bleating the word “unprovoked” in reference to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Continue reading »
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The problem for commentators in the so called “mainstream media”
They rely significantly on feeds of material that’s not otherwise readily available. As they’re in the news business, they need something new to keep in the hunt. Continue reading »
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Nine things Australians are not being told about the US military takeover
The astonishingly expensive tie-up between Australia and the US military deal is NOT about defence of the country, nor is it about bringing stability to Asia. The opposite is true, and Asians know it. Australians stand to lose a great deal, not just in terms of money, but in the great relationships that they have Continue reading »
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No need to despair, there’s always the NRL!
What are we to make of what we’re witnessing on our TV screens – the fires, the floods, the storms, the loss of life and habitat? It certainly appears deadly – and monumentally serious. July was the hottest month ever recorded. Continue reading »
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The trouble with telling history as it happens
In the Ukraine War, scholar Serhii Plokhy has his own biases, which can get in the way of his profession’s fidelity to evidence. Continue reading »
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The Power of the Israeli Lobby | A Conversation with Ambassador Chas Freeman
An important one-hour video interview with Ambassador Chas Freeman about the power of the Israeli lobby in the US and the danger of the US policy towards China leading to a nuclear war. Continue reading »
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Unlike Indonesia we are outsourcing our defence to a foreign power
Did colonialism ever die? Distant major powers are making life-and-death decisions that will impact Indonesia, ironically on the eve of the Republic’s 17 August national day celebrating Soekarno’s 1945 proclamation of independence from three centuries of Dutch rule. Continue reading »
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The United States has put Australia back in its place … again
After a rather extraordinary month of steadily escalating defence PR and conspiracy opportunities, Australia was sat on its backside over the weekend and reminded to know its subservient place. Continue reading »
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A twentieth century Terra Nullius: Crimea, Canards and Confabulations
A reading of history, including the genocide and forced exile of the indigenous Crimean Tatars, debunks apologias for the Russian annexation of Crimea based on the support of the local Russian majority. Continue reading »
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Offshore refugee processing funding allegations: How did we get here?
The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age have published serious allegations about millions of dollars of Australian government funding for Offshore Processing Centres finding their way through contractors to bank accounts controlled by South Pacific politicians. This comes on top of a history of criticism by the Auditor-General on how providers were selected and contracts Continue reading »
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Political Polarisation in the US – Part 3: Causes
One of the great claims for representative democracy and federations is that they provide a uniquely successful way of dynamically negotiating, rather than suppressing, social differences and tensions. So, when it appears to be failing to do that in one of the world’s oldest and most successful democracies it is worth asking “why has this Continue reading »
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The con jobs
Accountancies have bolted on non-accounting services in the same way pharmacists dispensers bolted on front-of-house sales of cosmetics and liquorice. Like tinkers of old they knocked on the doors of organisations: ‘Any jobs we can do for you?’ Continue reading »
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Kindergarten mentality: a higher standard required from those who govern us
Some politicians have decided to do what is better for them and their re-election and position rather than what’s good for Australia. They think the smart thing to do is trash the whole idea of the Voice. Ego, power, position and privilege have nothing to do with the Voice. It has to do with Australian Continue reading »
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Australia may ban WeChat – but for many Chinese Australians, it’s their ‘lifeline’
One morning in February 2021, I was woken by a WeChat call from my brother in China. Mum had died the previous night, he told me. I wasn’t shocked to hear about Mum’s death – she had been very ill for a couple of years. Continue reading »
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How power bleeds between politics and the big four
The Mandarin and Crikey’s ‘revolving door’ list: The PwC tax leak scandal has renewed focus on the close links between politicians, public servants and consultancy firms. Sometimes that relationship takes the form of a “revolving door” when former consultants are hired as public servants or elected to political office — or when former politicians and Continue reading »
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Racism, the ‘No’ campaign and the Americanisation of Australian politics
There may be some Coalition politicians and Murdoch employers who are motivated by genuine racism to oppose the Voice to Parliament. Some might believe First Nations Australians are unworthy. Some probably believe in “reverse racism.” That, of course, is the belief that there is a correct direction for racism to travel. Continue reading »
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An American system of “state sanctioned forced births”?
Labels have power. They shape the way we know the world. They allow people to see actions with greater clarity or distort our understanding to make things unrecognisable. Continue reading »