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Over the years, the Dalai Lama has transformed the Buddhist concept of emptiness into an enormously successful P.R. strategy. Constant attacks from China don’t hurt his image either. On the heels of his latest U.S. tour, we look at the Dalai Lama’s enduring rock-star status in the American media.
What once seemed impossible took the form of public ceremony this week, as the bitter enemies of Northern Irish politics forged a new cooperative government. Journalist Niall O'Dowd, who helped set the stage for compromise, talks about moving from the bullet to the ballot.
Since 2001, independent media outlets have flourished in Afghanistan. But now the Afghan parliament is considering legislation that could severely curb press freedom. Saad Mohseni, founder of Afghanistan's most popular TV network, says Afghan media outlets will not fold under government pressure.
Marines involved in the alleged massacre at Haditha, Iraq, went on trial this week. The New York Times’ Paul von Zielbauer talks about a knowingly false press-release put forth by the military, and says that without media attention, there may not have been any military investigation at all.
The Washington Post has become the latest major paper to close its Toronto bureau. That means no U.S. paper will have a full time correspondent based in Canada. Journalism professor Edward Wasserman talks about why ignoring Canada reflects badly on American media outlets.
For decades, a certain story line has cropped up again and again in the media: women are opting-out of the workforce to raise their children, and working moms resent it. But when researcher E.J. Graff looked at the “mommy-wars” stats, she found scant evidence of a real battle.
In July, thousands of small magazines will see 20% hikes in their mailing costs. Increases for larger magazines will be much lower, and critics say that’s because Time Warner created the new rate scheme. U.S. Postal Regulatory Commissioner Ruth Goldway insists it’s a fair plan, but Free Press President Bob McChesney says it undercuts a basic tenet of American democracy.
Highlights from Past Shows
15 years ago, riots raged across Los Angeles and TV screens worldwide. Much of the media portrayed the riots as a response to the beating of Rodney King. But historian Mike Davis says that simple narrative did L.A. another injustice: it ignored the reality on the ground.
When former Russian president Boris Yeltsin died this week, a near-universal chorus of obituarists declared his legacy mixed. He may have ushered in democracy and a free press, but he failed to build the institutions to sustain them.
On the Media is funded by The Bydale Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Overbrook Foundation.
