Sunday December 31st, the 3,000 mark for US troops killed in Iraq in the illegal war was reached. You might think that would register with independent media. It didn't.
Tuesday, January 2nd, Democracy Now! noted this in their headlines (fifth and sixth items respectively):
U.S. Death Toll in Iraq Tops 3,000
In other news from Iraq -- the U.S. death toll has topped 3,000. One hundred thirteen US soldiers died in December making it the deadliest month in two years for the U.S. and the third deadliest month of the war.
Protests Held to Mark 3,000th Death
Demonstrations are being held in scores of cities around the country to mark the 3,000th death. In San Francisco, 10 peace protesters were arrested in Nancy Pelosi's home district on Monday as they attempted to walk across the Golden Gate bridge. In New York, Grandmothers Against the War gathered at Rockefeller Center to read the names of soldiers killed in the war.
That's all it amounted to for Democracy Now!, a few lines on the mark, a few more lines on some of the protests (no footage of the protests, no reports of the protests -- what is Amy Goodman and her brother David wrote about why people were shouting at marches -- because they weren't invited by the media to share their stories?).
There just wasn't time to give it more than that. There were too many important stories to cover, apparently. For instance, James Brown was still dead. From the Tuesday, January 2nd, in their headlines:
Thousands Pay Tribute to James Brown in Augusta, GA
And in Augusta Georgia, thousands gathered on Saturday to pay tribute to the Godfather of Soul James Brown who died last week at the age of 73. The Rev. Al Sharpton oversaw the proceedings.
Rev. Al Sharpton: "Today is the end of a long journey, and the beginning of a new journey. We come to thank god for James Brown."
Pop star Michael Jackson made a rare public appearance.
Michael Jackson: "James Brown is my greatest inspiration. Ever since I was a small child, no more than six-years-old, my mother would wake me no matter what time it was, when I was sleeping no matter what I was doing, to watch the television to see the master at work. And when I saw him move, I was mesmerized. I have never seen a performer perform like James Brown. And right then and there, I knew that was exactly what I wanted to do for the rest of my life because of James Brown."
8 lines of text (don't count what we've italicized, it's not read by Goodman) for the 3,000 mark and protests and 13 lines of text to tell us that, yes, James Brown is still dead.
Still dead? Well walk backwards with us to see how much coverage the death of an entertainer (who wasn't political) had already provided.
For intance, the headlines for Friday, December 29, 2006 (the last show with headlines before Tuesday, January 2nd -- Januray 1st was a canned, pre-taped show) we were informed:
Thousands Visit Apollo Theatre for James Brown Viewing
And finally, here in New York, thousands of people passed through Harlem’s Apollo Theatre Thursday for one last look at the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. Brown died Monday at the age of seventy-three. Brown’s golden casket was carried through Harlem by horse-drawn carriage and displayed for public viewing on the Apollo stage. Spectators braved five-hour waits to get a final glimpse at the man who revolutionized popular music.
Five lines of text. For those keeping track, James Brown's death had now received 18 lines of text while the 3,000 milestone was only worthy of eight. But that's not all, from Thursday, December 28, 2006's headlines:
James Brown's Body to Lie in Repose at Apollo Theatre
And finally, the body of the late Godfather of Soul James Brown will lie in repose today at Harlem’s Apollo Theatre. Fans will be able to file past Brown’s casket starting at one PM eastern time. A horse-drawn carriage will take Brown's body through Harlem this morning to begin three days of wakes, remembrances and a funeral. Brown died Christmas morning at the age of seventy-three.
That's now twenty-three lines of text to tell you that James Brown was still dead. Wait, wait! We're not done yet. From the headlines for Wednesday, December 27, 2006:
Body of James Brown to Lie "In Stage" at Apollo Theatre
And finally here in New York, a crowd of people gathered outside the B.B. King Blues Club Tuesday to pay tribute to the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. Brown passed away Monday at the age of seventy three. He had been scheduled to perform at B.B. King’s on New Year's Eve. James Brown fan Michael Cason spoke outside the club.
Michael Cason: "What you've got to realize about James Brown coming back up during the sixties, during a lot of racial tension, James Brown, say it loud, I'm black and I'm proud, gave a lot of African-American Negroes, back during that time, a lot of pride."
On Thursday, James Brown's body will lie in state -- or rather, lie in stage -- at Harlem's legendary Apollo Theatre. The Apollo is credited as the theatre that gave Brown his show business start. Fans will be able to file past Brown’s casket on the Appolo stage for one last look at the man who revolutionized popular music. The Reverend Al Sharpton will be officiating Brown's funeral. Rev. Sharpton said: "His greatest thrill was always the lines around the Apollo Theater. I felt that James Brown in all the years we talked would have wanted one last opportunity to let the people say goodbye to him and he to the people."
That's 20 lines of text taken up by headlines for one death. For those keeping track, the tally is now James Brown's death worth 43 lines of headline text and the 3,000 mark worth only 8.
Sadly, we're still not done. This is one person's death and we've got another headline for you. From Tuesday, December 26, 2006:
James Brown Dead at 73
James Brown -- the Godfather of Soul -- has died at the age of 73. He died early on Christmas morning as a result of congestive heart failure caused by pneumonia. Over the past 50 years James Brown revolutionized popular music.
Three more lines of text for headlines bringint he total to 51. James Brown's passing is worth 51 lines of text noting it in headlines but the death of 3,000 US troops is worth only 8. That's over five times more than the attention the milestone received.
As if all the above wasn't enough entertainment coverage, Democracy Now! also felt the need to air a segment devoted to James Brown, a lengthy one, on Friday, December 26, 2006 entitled
"James Brown In His Own Words: Democracy Now! Airs A Never-Before-Broadcast Interview with the Godfather of Soul from 1980 on Race & The Music Industry."
That was so embarrassing, the taped interview. A week later, Democracy Now! would giggle over William Rehnquist's claims that the CIA were after him, but Friday, December 26th, they were all about the-world-out-to-get-James-Brown in 1981. We had a lengthy thing disproving the comments (noting Aretha Franklin's own career lows that she was only recently emerging from in 1981 as well as many other examples) but we realized that, like Democracy Now!, we were putting more weight on James Brown than on the 3,000 mark by responding. So we've deleted all of that and we'll just note that when Papa Tries To Sell The Same Bag from 1956 forward, most either already own it or aren't that interested to begin with.
At one point, when Ted Koppel helmed the anchor desk at Nightline, the show was praised for noting 721 deaths of US troops (ABC, April 30, 2004). We reach the 3,000 mark and Democracy Now! not only doesn't think the rallies and demonstrations are worth exploring in a segment, or the meanings of the count, but within their headlines they're more interested in providing 51 text lines on James Brown than they are in the 3,000 milestone?
Cedric's "The comics: Nouri al-Maliki, Amy Goodman, Deb Riechmann" and Wally's "THIS JUST IN! GET YOUR 2007 YA-YAS!" joint-post last Tuesday attempted to "explain" the emphasis on show biz:
TODAY ON DEMOCRACY NOW, THE ISSUE OF THE 3,000 MARK FOR U.S. TROOPS WHO HAVE DIED IN IRAQ WAS REDUCED TO A HEADLINE AND NOT JUDGED WORTHY OF A DISCUSSION. NOT ONLY THAT, BUT IN THE HEADLINES MORE TIME WAS GIVEN TO "COVERING" THE FUNERAL OF JAMES BROWN THAN TO NOTING THE 3,000 MARK.
WHEN ASKED OF THAT, AMY GOODMAN, HOST OF DEMOCRACY NOW, EXPLAINED THE PROBLEM WAS WITH A NEW CAMERA OPERATOR. SAID GOODMAN, "HE WAS SUPPOSED TO ZOOM IN ON MY LEGS RIGHT AFTER WE PLAYED MICHAEL JACKSON's LONG QUOTE. I'M GOING FOR THE MARY HART ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT AUDIENCE THESE DAYS!"
Cedric and Wally take a humorous look in their joint-posts and while we laughed at their take on take on it, none of us (including them) think it was appropriate that an entertainer received non-stop attention from the program that bills itself as "the war and peace report" while the 3,000 milestone was something to be quickly noted and moved on from.
Tuesday, January 2nd, Democracy Now! noted this in their headlines (fifth and sixth items respectively):
U.S. Death Toll in Iraq Tops 3,000
In other news from Iraq -- the U.S. death toll has topped 3,000. One hundred thirteen US soldiers died in December making it the deadliest month in two years for the U.S. and the third deadliest month of the war.
Protests Held to Mark 3,000th Death
Demonstrations are being held in scores of cities around the country to mark the 3,000th death. In San Francisco, 10 peace protesters were arrested in Nancy Pelosi's home district on Monday as they attempted to walk across the Golden Gate bridge. In New York, Grandmothers Against the War gathered at Rockefeller Center to read the names of soldiers killed in the war.
That's all it amounted to for Democracy Now!, a few lines on the mark, a few more lines on some of the protests (no footage of the protests, no reports of the protests -- what is Amy Goodman and her brother David wrote about why people were shouting at marches -- because they weren't invited by the media to share their stories?).
There just wasn't time to give it more than that. There were too many important stories to cover, apparently. For instance, James Brown was still dead. From the Tuesday, January 2nd, in their headlines:
Thousands Pay Tribute to James Brown in Augusta, GA
And in Augusta Georgia, thousands gathered on Saturday to pay tribute to the Godfather of Soul James Brown who died last week at the age of 73. The Rev. Al Sharpton oversaw the proceedings.
Rev. Al Sharpton: "Today is the end of a long journey, and the beginning of a new journey. We come to thank god for James Brown."
Pop star Michael Jackson made a rare public appearance.
Michael Jackson: "James Brown is my greatest inspiration. Ever since I was a small child, no more than six-years-old, my mother would wake me no matter what time it was, when I was sleeping no matter what I was doing, to watch the television to see the master at work. And when I saw him move, I was mesmerized. I have never seen a performer perform like James Brown. And right then and there, I knew that was exactly what I wanted to do for the rest of my life because of James Brown."
8 lines of text (don't count what we've italicized, it's not read by Goodman) for the 3,000 mark and protests and 13 lines of text to tell us that, yes, James Brown is still dead.
Still dead? Well walk backwards with us to see how much coverage the death of an entertainer (who wasn't political) had already provided.
For intance, the headlines for Friday, December 29, 2006 (the last show with headlines before Tuesday, January 2nd -- Januray 1st was a canned, pre-taped show) we were informed:
Thousands Visit Apollo Theatre for James Brown Viewing
And finally, here in New York, thousands of people passed through Harlem’s Apollo Theatre Thursday for one last look at the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. Brown died Monday at the age of seventy-three. Brown’s golden casket was carried through Harlem by horse-drawn carriage and displayed for public viewing on the Apollo stage. Spectators braved five-hour waits to get a final glimpse at the man who revolutionized popular music.
Five lines of text. For those keeping track, James Brown's death had now received 18 lines of text while the 3,000 milestone was only worthy of eight. But that's not all, from Thursday, December 28, 2006's headlines:
James Brown's Body to Lie in Repose at Apollo Theatre
And finally, the body of the late Godfather of Soul James Brown will lie in repose today at Harlem’s Apollo Theatre. Fans will be able to file past Brown’s casket starting at one PM eastern time. A horse-drawn carriage will take Brown's body through Harlem this morning to begin three days of wakes, remembrances and a funeral. Brown died Christmas morning at the age of seventy-three.
That's now twenty-three lines of text to tell you that James Brown was still dead. Wait, wait! We're not done yet. From the headlines for Wednesday, December 27, 2006:
Body of James Brown to Lie "In Stage" at Apollo Theatre
And finally here in New York, a crowd of people gathered outside the B.B. King Blues Club Tuesday to pay tribute to the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. Brown passed away Monday at the age of seventy three. He had been scheduled to perform at B.B. King’s on New Year's Eve. James Brown fan Michael Cason spoke outside the club.
Michael Cason: "What you've got to realize about James Brown coming back up during the sixties, during a lot of racial tension, James Brown, say it loud, I'm black and I'm proud, gave a lot of African-American Negroes, back during that time, a lot of pride."
On Thursday, James Brown's body will lie in state -- or rather, lie in stage -- at Harlem's legendary Apollo Theatre. The Apollo is credited as the theatre that gave Brown his show business start. Fans will be able to file past Brown’s casket on the Appolo stage for one last look at the man who revolutionized popular music. The Reverend Al Sharpton will be officiating Brown's funeral. Rev. Sharpton said: "His greatest thrill was always the lines around the Apollo Theater. I felt that James Brown in all the years we talked would have wanted one last opportunity to let the people say goodbye to him and he to the people."
That's 20 lines of text taken up by headlines for one death. For those keeping track, the tally is now James Brown's death worth 43 lines of headline text and the 3,000 mark worth only 8.
Sadly, we're still not done. This is one person's death and we've got another headline for you. From Tuesday, December 26, 2006:
James Brown Dead at 73
James Brown -- the Godfather of Soul -- has died at the age of 73. He died early on Christmas morning as a result of congestive heart failure caused by pneumonia. Over the past 50 years James Brown revolutionized popular music.
Three more lines of text for headlines bringint he total to 51. James Brown's passing is worth 51 lines of text noting it in headlines but the death of 3,000 US troops is worth only 8. That's over five times more than the attention the milestone received.
As if all the above wasn't enough entertainment coverage, Democracy Now! also felt the need to air a segment devoted to James Brown, a lengthy one, on Friday, December 26, 2006 entitled
"James Brown In His Own Words: Democracy Now! Airs A Never-Before-Broadcast Interview with the Godfather of Soul from 1980 on Race & The Music Industry."
That was so embarrassing, the taped interview. A week later, Democracy Now! would giggle over William Rehnquist's claims that the CIA were after him, but Friday, December 26th, they were all about the-world-out-to-get-James-Brown in 1981. We had a lengthy thing disproving the comments (noting Aretha Franklin's own career lows that she was only recently emerging from in 1981 as well as many other examples) but we realized that, like Democracy Now!, we were putting more weight on James Brown than on the 3,000 mark by responding. So we've deleted all of that and we'll just note that when Papa Tries To Sell The Same Bag from 1956 forward, most either already own it or aren't that interested to begin with.
At one point, when Ted Koppel helmed the anchor desk at Nightline, the show was praised for noting 721 deaths of US troops (ABC, April 30, 2004). We reach the 3,000 mark and Democracy Now! not only doesn't think the rallies and demonstrations are worth exploring in a segment, or the meanings of the count, but within their headlines they're more interested in providing 51 text lines on James Brown than they are in the 3,000 milestone?
Cedric's "The comics: Nouri al-Maliki, Amy Goodman, Deb Riechmann" and Wally's "THIS JUST IN! GET YOUR 2007 YA-YAS!" joint-post last Tuesday attempted to "explain" the emphasis on show biz:
TODAY ON DEMOCRACY NOW, THE ISSUE OF THE 3,000 MARK FOR U.S. TROOPS WHO HAVE DIED IN IRAQ WAS REDUCED TO A HEADLINE AND NOT JUDGED WORTHY OF A DISCUSSION. NOT ONLY THAT, BUT IN THE HEADLINES MORE TIME WAS GIVEN TO "COVERING" THE FUNERAL OF JAMES BROWN THAN TO NOTING THE 3,000 MARK.
WHEN ASKED OF THAT, AMY GOODMAN, HOST OF DEMOCRACY NOW, EXPLAINED THE PROBLEM WAS WITH A NEW CAMERA OPERATOR. SAID GOODMAN, "HE WAS SUPPOSED TO ZOOM IN ON MY LEGS RIGHT AFTER WE PLAYED MICHAEL JACKSON's LONG QUOTE. I'M GOING FOR THE MARY HART ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT AUDIENCE THESE DAYS!"
Cedric and Wally take a humorous look in their joint-posts and while we laughed at their take on take on it, none of us (including them) think it was appropriate that an entertainer received non-stop attention from the program that bills itself as "the war and peace report" while the 3,000 milestone was something to be quickly noted and moved on from.