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September has been dubbed National Preparedness Month, and features a slate of events intended to raise public awareness about what to do in the case of a terrorist attack. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge will inaugurate the month will an official announcement on…September 9th? Blogger Bob Harris tells Brooke that the timing of Ridge's kick-off makes it obvious that National Preparedness Week is really all about election season shenanigans.
If homeland security officials were to stop doing their jobs until after the election, so as not to be perceived as being politically-motivated, would we really be better off? That's how DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Susan Neely responds to accusations that her agency is shilling for the GOP. She joins Brooke to explain that preparedness activities have been taking place for many months now, and that National Preparedness Month is simply an opportunity to spread the message wider.
Most of us still remember the old weekly test of the Emergency Broadcast System. Its ungodly tone and stern warning that "this is only a test" was a nice way to say “no, the ICBMs are not on the way." In the post-Cold War era the possibility of nuclear war has been replaced by terrorist attacks and other localized emergencies. Bill McConnell of Broadcasting & Cable magazine tells Bob that the FCC's first major overhaul of the Emergency Alert System in decades will rely on cutting edge technology.
Listeners weigh in on medical journal conflicts of interest, and we give an update on the continuing series of mea culpas by news organizations looking back at the run-up to war.
Since it was published a year ago, the book "Forbidden Love" (or "Honor Lost" as it is titled in the US) has sold hundreds of thousands of copies worldwide. Norma Khouri's memoir shed light on the prevalence of "honor-killing" in Jordan, a practice that according to Khouri takes the lives of thousands of women each year. But it gradually emerged that this, and many other claims in the book, were not true. Brooke talks to Sydney Morning Herald literary editor Malcolm Knox about the resulting scandal.
A few months ago, some pranksters in San Francisco set out to test the virility of video "evidence" in the era of terrorism. They filmed some grainy footage of what appeared to be a hostage beheading, and posted it on some file-sharing websites. The video languished until last week, when it appeared on an Arabic site that has posted videos of real beheadings. The story was immediately picked up by AP and then Reuters, who only later realized it was a hoax. Brooke gets a play by play from AP deputy managing editor Tom Kent.
Over the past year and a half, some 20 foreign journalists have been detained and deported by immigration authorities upon arrival in the U.S. Their crime was that they came without what's known as an Information Visa. The rule requiring journalists to procure "I-Visas" has been on the books for decades, but was rarely enforced until the Department of Homeland Security took over border security last year. American Society of Newspaper Editors' legal counsel Kevin Goldberg tells Bob why his group is challenging what they see as a Cold War relic.
For the first time ever, Supreme Court judges in three different states have allowed a camera crew inside the jury room of a capital murder case to tape the often heart-wrenching deliberations therein. The result is the seven-part series "In the Jury Room," which started airing on ABC this week. Bob talks to producer Michael Bicks about his unprecedented document of the judicial system at work.
Highlights from Past ShowsThe security situation in Iraq has deteriorated to such an extent that many European news bureaus are packing up and heading home. American news outlets have yet to follow their lead, but reporters mostly stay holed up in hotels, relying on freelancers. What's the effect of bunker journalism on the story that's getting out? It turns out that the time devoted to Iraq on the network nightly news is shrinking as the attacks become more frequent. Newsday correspondent Matt McAllester gives Brooke the view from Baghdad.
The number one media outlet in Iraq right now is the independent talk radio station, Radio Dijla. The winning formula is a combination of free-wheeling conversation, news they can use, and attention to the real priorities of the real people. The station's founder and director, Ahmad al-Rikaby, joins Brooke and describes how free expression sounds on Iraqi airwaves and how community is formed, even when it is too dangerous to leave the house.
On the Media is funded by The Bydale Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Overbrook Foundation.
