Cliff LyonGreg and Me on KRCL Today
Greg and I were on KRCL’s Radio Active today talking about blogging and the thank you sites.
During the show, Greg mentioned yesterday’s www.Truthout.org story about Karl Rove being indicted as an example of how the Internet has become an important medium for independent news. One anonymous caller claimed the story was not true.
Turns out the story is true. Why did the mainstream media (MSM) not report it? I submit to you that many relaible inside sources have given up on the MSM. The Truth can get Out without having to compete with commercial interests. That is why 56 million people now go to the Internet for their news and Knight Ridder is selling all 35 of it’s newspapers.
I received this e-mail today from TruthOut:
How Accurate Was the ‘Rove Indicted’ Story?
On Saturday afternoon, we ran a breaking story titled, “Karl Rove Indicted on Charges of Perjury, Lying to Investigators.” We assumed that we were well ahead of the mainstream media and that we would be subsequently questioned. Right on both counts.What everyone is asking right now is how accurate is the story? Has Rove in fact been indicted? The story is accurate, and Karl Rove’s attorneys have been served with an indictment.
In short, we had two sources close to the Fitzgerald investigation who were explicit about the information that we published, and a former high-ranking state department official who reported communication with a source who had “direct knowledge” of the meeting at Patton Boggs. In both instances, substantial detail was provided and matched.
We had confirmation. We ran the story.
I would suggest to the anonymous caller that the independent media is MORE reliable AND more responsible than the MSM.
May 15th, 2006 at 5:42 pm
Unfortunately “truthout” is the exception, rather than the rule.
Most “independent” media sites do not have the training, or ethical responsibility to confirm their information. Wild speculation and rumor run rampant on the “independent” media sites. And they’re accountable to no one when it comes to what they print.
Most sites have a partisan agenda to push - that’s fine.
But to assert that the “independent” media is more reliable and responsible than the so-called MSM is pure folly.
May 15th, 2006 at 10:44 pm
I’m confused. The Right says the “Liberal Media” slants everything toward the left; Now the Left is using the term “Mainstream Media” stating the Right is in control and slanting right. I AM SO CONFUSED
But, if ROVE is indicted this week, You will have put the teeth in the bark!!!
AND I WILL BE jumping for joy. After what that dirty SOB - AND YES I AM a NAME CALLING LEFT LEANING DEMO - Rove done to this country and other Americans, so He could win. Doing a “little time” is the least he could do.
Also, now we finding out Cheney had scribbled some notes on a NY Time Article, showing his true and early involvement in the outing of Valerie Plame.
The Bush house is crumbling and the canary “Scooter Libby” will begin to sing Loudly.
Prediction:
A Democratic Majority in the House next Election and Impeachment Proceedings by Spring.
May 15th, 2006 at 11:32 pm
Watch Bush’s poll numbers drop even lower if Rove is actually indicted. I am not holding my breath though because I remember Raw Story saying that Rove was going down with Libby back during Fitzmas which never happened.
But then again, does it even really matter as far as justice goes? since they will all be pardoned anyway. Sure it scores the Democrats some political points, but I am afraid justice will not be served in the end.
May 15th, 2006 at 11:57 pm
Hope slippery Rove doesn’t find a way to weasle out of this.
Congrats on your KCPW interview, Cliff and Greg
May 15th, 2006 at 11:58 pm
oops! meant KRCL. Wish I’d been listening . . .
May 16th, 2006 at 9:23 am
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, folks. Nobody, and I mean nobody, is more excited about the prospect of Turd Blossom being haled before a federal jury for trial on charges of obstruction, perjury, etc. However, a careful read of the Truthout story itself provides a great deal of ambiguity, falling short of confirming that Rove has already been indicted.
For example, the story leads off by saying the indictment has already been served (the title itself does a pretty good job of making this assertion). The story then goes on to suggest that Rove has told the president he “will” be indicted (suggesting the indictment, while perhaps imminent, has not yet been served). Later, the story cites anonymous sources stating the indictment is imminent (again, suggesting that the indictment has not yet been served). A careful read of the story leaves me far from convinced that the indictment has been served, and to conclude otherwise requires substantial reading between the lines.
Finally, let’s not forget that the sum total of the information behind the Truthout story is unofficial hearsay from mostly anonymous sources, which is hardly a reliable source for information. Indeed, the whole Plame affair started in exactly the same manner - unofficial hearsay.
I join with all my colleagues on this blog, and hope that the indictment is made official soon. But let’s not get too carried away in the meantime with overzealous speculation on what occurred at the office of Patton Boggs last Friday.
May 16th, 2006 at 11:18 am
Cliff -
I think you’re getting ahead of yourself with the truthout story.
Did you see the WSJ account today? They talked with a number of reporters who gave on the record denials that seemed to have escaped the writer of the truthout story. The main difference between the WSJ and the truthout story is WSJ had numerous ON THE RECORD denials, while truthout had OFF THE RECORD confirmations. In journalism - on the record trumps off the record. The bottomline of the WSJ story - they don’t believe this guy from truthout - and I am very skeptical as well.
This brings me to your comment that alternative media sources are more responsible than the so-called MSM. As the WSJ article says, blogs and “alternative” media make political innuendo and rumor easier to spread. Most “alternative” media sites don’t play by the same rules as the MSM - meaning good journalistic practices. Most “alternative” sites have a partisan agenda to push. That’s okay, but to say that “alternative” media is the gold standard now shows a troubling lack of perspective.
We are now more than 72 hours after the truthout story said the meeting took place. The truthout story says that Fitzgerald gave Rove “24 hours” to get his affairs in order. I guess you could parse it that “24 hours” means 3 workdays, so we’ll see the indictments on Thursday.
May 16th, 2006 at 7:56 pm
I guess the challenge is on. If Rove is indicted by the end of the week. Cliff and OneUtah becomes my number source of news. And Farmdog owes us an apology and lunch.
If Rove is not indicted by the end of the week, Cliff will run naked through the Republican HQ, and I will still come to OneUtah to see like-minded intelligent individuals express their views. Farmdog still owes us an apology for busting my bubble to have hope this week that Rove will get what he deserves.
May 17th, 2006 at 10:10 am
Gentile, You highlight my entire point, which is that Rove most likely has not been indicted yet, while the top-post makes the very pointed statement that he has.
Regardless, we are all on the same team. As mentioned previously, nobody wants to see, more than me, Turd Blossom haled before a federal jury and shamed to a criminal degree unexperienced to-date by any politician anywhere.
I’ll by you lunch, anyway, as soon as the Hog is indicted.
“Pigs get fat; Hogs get slaughtered!”
May 17th, 2006 at 7:58 pm
Y’all. I may have been the person who questioned the credibility of Jason Leapold since such a disclosure SHOULD cause a real splash in the other media. I questioned this story only because you can bet our Repub brothers and sisters will. In fact they are not rooting for that day to come as we are. Unfortunately, given all the shit that has been fed thru this administrations fan in the past five or so years, it only takes jumping the gun or some minor sabotage to damage ones credibility. I fear for Jason as I fear that all of the people who mistrust this administration will simply burn out if our hopes are jearked around many more times. I, for one, have my limits.
May 25th, 2006 at 4:12 pm
I was the anonymous caller and I read about the inaccuracies surrounding Leopold’s reporting on Salon.com at the Daou report. Salon is hardly what I’d consider “mainstream”. In fact its about as liberal as it gets. Turns out Rove may be indicted and we all hope he is, but the Truthout report submitted by Leopold was untrue with respect to the 24 hour prediction. Since that was inaccurate, we have to question the report in its entirety.
I still read truthout and I still read the New York Times even though sometimes the information is inaccurate.
I will say that the best propaganda is the propaganda that we want to believe.
You can listen to the KRCL interview on MP3.
May 26th, 2006 at 5:42 pm
Problem with us liberals is we still honor integrity against an all out assault against honesty and objectivity in a politically controlled corporate media targeting a largely uninformed populous. It reminds of the Tibetans refusing to take up arms to resist the Chinese invaders.
That argument of course leaves us no better than the shrill republican sponsored media voices in lock step with the most corrupt administration in modern history.
Oh, dilemma dilemma
May 26th, 2006 at 9:37 pm
So this is the end of the second week that Rove is suppose to have been indited. So is this going to happen or not?
May 27th, 2006 at 11:48 am
Will Rove be indicted? I think the answer to that is also the answer to the broader question; will this administration be brought to justice?
Here is the latest news on the Rove indictment scenario.
May 27th, 2006 at 7:34 pm
Indicted, I already see the outcome of that, Presidential Pardon. You know even if that man is indicted, he will never see the inside of a cell. Not too mention, he will become a martyr for the Republican party. Not too mention I would think of it as, he would become more powerful in the world of elections.