By: UCR Candidate Sharon Adams
UCR’s opponents were in control of the Board of Directors when John Proffitt was hired — a man who spent 25 years as general manager at an NPR station prior to coming to Pacifica. Because UCR’s opponents have a majority on the Pacifica Foundation board that hired Proffitt, one can assume that our opponents support the NPR model of public radio.
Today, I listened to Morning Edition on NPR, and once again realized how very lame the news and analysis is on NPR.
The issue was Syria, with a shown entitled: “Did Russia’s Entry Into Syria’s Conflict Take the West By Surprise?” Well, Russia’s entry into Syria didn’t take me by surprise, since Russia publicly announced its intentions prior to going into Syria. Nevertheless, the NPR story delves deeply into spying, technology, and the remnants of the Cold War in an attempt to figure out if the West and/or Obama knew about Russia’s plans. Not once, did the so-called “expert” mention that Russia had made numerous public statements about it plans.
For example, on September 18, Russia stated that it will provide troops to Syria, if asked.
On September 27, Russia publicly released information about an intelligence sharing agreement between Russia, Iraq, Syria and Iran.
On September 28, at the UN General Assembly, Putin announced Russia’s intention to provide military assistance to Syria and Iraq:
“Today, we provide military and technical assistance both to Iraq and Syria and many other countries of the region who are fighting terrorist groups.”
The facts show that Russia’s plans were not secret. Thus, the entire premise of the NPR story was false. The NPR story is simply misdirection — talking about something completely irrelevant to the story (spying? the Cold War???), while ignoring the real issues.
We at UCR demand real news and analysis, and that’s part of what we intend to support and promote at KPFA.
Vote for UCR — LET’S LIBERATE MEDIA TOGETHER!
