MEDIA BIAS; CRIMINAL TO ALL HUMANITY

by Mark Finley 

11/24/15 

Here we go again; another terror attack story where the main villain is not Isis, it’s the mainstream Media and its talking heads. Mainstream Media bias is extremely corrupt and political when it comes to reporting stories involving racial, political and religious overtones to continue spreading hate and the proliferation of fear mongering for greed and control.

For the last 25 years or so, the protocol and or mindset for reporting has changed drastically, thus the strategy and or protocol for breaking stories and also writing articles has also changed, at least for me personally.

To disseminate misinformation and or disinformation to be on top of a breaking story, or to sway public opinion, or to spark fear or hatred is not only irresponsible, but also criminal.

As a journalist / writer, I find it totally necessary as a servant of the community to provide the most accurate information, while dispelling any and all misinformation and jargon that is commonly spewed in the mainstream media.

If you are only getting your primary news from the biased local & national news sources like CNN, HLN, and FOX, you’re more than likely to be mislead and sometimes brainwashed to think and react the way the powers that be want you to think and react. This is called sophisticated mind control! Some also call this the proliferation of the dumbing down of society for the means of gains and control.

We are not dealing with a fair an independent press, but a corporate controlled entity that pushes their agenda through this platform. Their minions (the talking heads / republican talk show host, reporters, writers and commentators) are the personalities they use to spew out the jargon they want you to absorb and subscribe to. Recently, some have even gone as afar as stating that the Paris terror attacks are President Obama’s fault.

The basic premise of the stories reported, and the effects on these stories / atrocities may be true as in current death tolls, targets or locations, people involved, etcetera, but the causes and effects are mostly jaded to follow a certain mindset and to perpetuate a certain agendas orchestrated by either our government or the controlling powers of national and local media outlets; which includes corporate America, which influences our government.

The biasness that mainstream media displays when reporting on atrocities in the world is extremely blatant and despicable when it comes to people of color, especially black people.

The rhetoric gets worse everyday about the Paris tragedy (as in past tragedies), and this is affecting the Muslim community greatly, as when 911 occurred. The moderate Muslims here in the U.S. are speaking out against this, but nobody’s listening, in part due to corporate controlled mainstream media not giving them the platform to do so because they are purposely spreading the fear and hate climates in the U.S. 24/7.

The big problem is that the media looks at Muslims as a race, and not a religion, and they are programming you to do the same. Sadly, this form of brainwashing effects youths that don’t have a sense of belonging in foreign countries, and also the youth here in the U.S.

This is what both Isis and the media feed off of- for their ironically similar agendas. First there was homophobia, and now we have Islamophobia, and xenophobia.

Fear is a republican principle! 24 hours a day, CNN and other rightwing outlets perpetuates fear to our public, and unfortunately there are people that are brainwashed to live in fear on a day-to-day basis.

Militant fundamentalism is why we continue to live in the past, instead of living for today. These bias news outlets are reporting that they (Isis & Boko Haram) may have chemical weapons. We never heard about this revelation before the Paris Attacks, and amidst all the bloodshed, rhetoric, confusion and hate mongering, the U.S. is welcoming Syrian refugees, and will eventually set them up to prosper for a better life here, unlike the people whom built this damn country, African Americans.

If you really want to know why the U.S. is opening its doors to the Syrian refugees, despite the fact that 31 Governors said, “HELL NO! Not in my state”, it’s because these new crop of refugees (illegal immigrants) will add to the flourishing below minimum wage underground Job / Labor market, where business owners can pay them far below minimum wage.

I guarantee you; many of these Syrian refugees will be hired or placed in a business where the owners will pay them around $6.00 an hour. The others will form their own underground business or hustle to take advantage of the spending power in just about every community, especially the African American Community.  If you don’t believe me, just wait and see.

 I also guarantee you that under the new stature that Obama signed in November, 2014 to keep Illegal immigrants in the U.S. (free from deportation), many of them will stick it out for the next 5 years to take advantage of this legislate. Besides, I have no doubt that may of these Syrian refugees will sneak in the country anyway, just as Mexicans and other groups have done so in the past. They can also easily enter through a Travelers or Tourist Visa, get lost and blend in. We must also realize that the majority of the republican Governors are against welcoming Syrian refugees into their state solely because President Obama suggests that they do so.

I’m all for helping people to be free of a tyrannical, or combatant, or oppressive situation. After all, no other race has experienced scenarios as Syria and other countries as much as Black people all over the world, but, the one thing that concerns me is how deeply we vet and monitor the flood of Syrians coming into the country, and the effects of them migrating well into all corners of the U.S., which is also a main concern for many African Americans.

There’s also a concern in our community on how many of these refugees / immigrants will fall into the same trick bag that other ethnic groups are in as to their treatment or views of African Americans or the lack of respect for African Americans as our lives don’t matter, as they may fall into a line of behavior based on the examples set and as directed by white America. Will some of them open a store in our community over the next few years and disrespect us like many Arab storeowners have done? Will they only hire their own, as many Arabs do, except for the one black that stands in the corner by the front door to keep a watchful eye to keep you from stealing, and pay them pennies to do so?

The fact of the matter is, the new flock of Syrian illegal immigrants and or refugees will also be chosen over African Americans for the low paying job markets, just as Mexicans and other ethnic groups, to keep the African American economic base as low as possible by continuing the destabilization of the African American community, so it’s no surprise that many African Americans are reluctant in allowing fleeing Syrians to enter this country based on the history of this nation; aiding immigrants to become productive citizens in this society, while African Americans continue to suffer due to racism.

Terrorism is not black folk’s main concern, we have enough of that going on everyday in our communities that dwarfs all other terrorists’ attacks around the world.

The United States takes in 70,000 refugees every year, some from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, and not a single one was involved in a terrorist incident, so in reality, you’re more likely to get killed by a crazed neighbor over a parking space, or that irresponsible wannabe gang-banger shooting willy-nilly at a rival gang member, or even dieing in a car or plane crash, than getting killed by any of these terrorists groups. But mainstream media and the powers that be want you to believe otherwise. 

Let’s be hypothetical and say that even if a few of them are working with Isis and strap explosives to their bodies to detonate in high traffic areas or areas where we gather in multitudes, this is considered COLLATERAL DAMAGE to the powers that be, and these catastrophes would only justify the fear mongering tactics that they want us to live by, and may I mention, in the long run turning the entire U.S. into a police state as predicted by many scholars including William Cooper, Jordan Maxwell, and even myself as I have written on this many years ago, not to mention homegrown terrorists that sides with Isis, and the copycats that may surface.

However, it’s not the terrorist that will cause the police state, it’s our home grown individuals like haters, fear mongers, mentally challenged, copy cats, race riots, and the continued killings of innocent children that will launch the police state.

Since the terror attacks in France, Americans, particularly white Americans, have flooded into gun stores to stock up on arsenal. They want to defend themselves against Isis or any other terror attack, not to mention the underground rumor of an impending race war. When they found that huge cash of arsenal and combat gear stored by officer Gliniewicz in Red-necked- Dukes of Hazzard-County-Hick Town- Fox Lake (just as they are finding in many parts of rural white America), that wasn’t for the training of the youth he mentored, it was to prepare to engage in the mass killing of black folks, or a race war.

Mostly media driven, any tragedy that effects Europeans or European like people locally and abroad gets the ole sympathetic / patriotic call to order, while any tragedy involving Black people is pushed aside, and for the most part ignored, not only by the Media, but our government as well.

The bigotry aided by the slanted views of many right wing / conservative Americans are the result of listening to infamous talking heads like Shawn Hannity, Mark Levin, Bill O’Riley, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and other right wing reporters, talk show hosts & personalities, politicians, and clergymen. Thus, many individuals on this side of the media, especially those who hold jobs in the outlets or industries where these slants are spewed, are pressured into the same point of view.

By the republicans turning back Syrians whom were about to come to the U.S that’s been waiting for 3 – 4 years, then turned away due to the recent Syrian refugee crisis shows the Republican Party’s true bigotry.

When Black faces are killed in this matter, or even far worse, the white world & media ignores this, yet when whites or Caucasians in other countries are massacred, then we all have to pray, have a moment of silence at major sports and other events, post memorials on social media…etc.

When was the last time mainstream media mentioned anything about the 300 Black women (students) abducted in Africa?

All over America, a moment of silence for Paris at local events was observed and reported, but the media didn’t mention that 3,000 people got killed in Africa that same week!

Memorials are built across the country to recognize the innocent white children killed in schools, and days of observance are held to remember these atrocities on the anniversaries, yet there is absolutely no recognition to the thousands of innocent children in our community that are killed each and every day for the past 30 years. This is also a form of terrorism as many call them urban terrorists.

As of the week, November 18, 2015, there was a terror attack in Nigeria where at least 32 people have been killed, and over 80 critically injured. Isis has also attacked and killed Africans in Kenya. 200 college students were killed in Nairobi, and other incidents, yet no media coverage and no national outrage.

These incidents have been going on for decades, yet you never hear mainstream media reporting on them.

Rebels have killed over 20,000 black people, compared to the 130 people killed in France, but again, we never here about this on mainstream media, and no outrage what-so ever! They reported on Tanzania, because most of the tourist there were Europeans.

Mainstream Media uses the illegal immigrant issue as a division tool to pit Mexicans against African Americans. They focus on reporting on Mexican illegal immigrants crossing the borders, and the efforts to stop them. However, you never hear or see reports on other ethnic immigrants, or illegal immigrants that have flooded this country over the last 40 years, in which they outnumber Illegal or legal Mexicans in the job place by far. They also suggest the Mexicans take low paying jobs that African Americans will not take which is mostly false.

And how about our African brothers and sista’s? Immigrants from Haiti and other African countries are the most deported immigrants in the U.S., and are the next hardest group (going go through the red tape process) next to Syrians to get visas or legal migration papers to enter the U.S. Currently, India, China and Mexico are the Top 3 immigration countries. 

As a journalist, my job is to be objective. Many journalist attempt to follow this mindset, but they are directed by their superiors to be bias. The majority of them, mostly the cookie cutter reporters, don’t understand the serious undertones of bias reporting, and those who do don’t give a damn as long as they are employed.

When I write an article or report on any current event, I for one, and other responsible journalists, writers, and progressive media rep’s obtain and base my information from reliable sources like AlJaeazera, Iran News, Free Speech TV, Radio Station’s, NPR (National Public Radio), WVON, WCPT or other Progressive Talk Radio Stations, NAN, (National Action Network) HT, and a couple of inside sources. These sources report many facts not revealed in the mainstream / corporate controlled media, and they also report atrocities and issues that you don’t hear on mainstream corporate controlled media.

Yes, many of us fall victim to the media news due to lack of information, and also on where to find these progressive media outlets, but one must be honest and ask yourself, how many of the reliable media sources I mentioned do you even bother to listen to, even if you know of them and where to find them?

Medias biasness is also prominent on local stores in this country, particularly when it comes to black folks, I.E.

When Sandra Bland was murdered, four other women died in police custody that same month, and I bet the majority of you didn’t know that.

Recently, at a Donald trump rally, a black protester / activist shouted out “BLACK LIVES MATTER”. Trump responded by yelling… “GET HIM THE HELL OUT OF HERE!” Trump supporters immediately surrounded the man, and began kicking and punching him while shouting racial slurs. Trump responded by saying… “HE PROBABLY DESERVED IT”. CBS News slanted this story as they reported that a fight broke out at a trump rally.

And how about the five black protesters being shot at a BLACK LIVES MATTER rally in Minneapolis? The little coverage by mainstream media withheld the fact that the police were looking for three white suspects.

When the story of Tyshawn Lee (the 9 old executed in a gang retaliation) broke, mainstream media didn’t report on where his mother was when he was executed, but my sources revealed that the mother was on the west side involved in a gang fight, and that pictures confirming this was circulating (perhaps on social media) and other outlets.

When I saw his mother on the local news broadcast, I immediately noticed signs that indicated that she was involved in nefarious activities, which included gangs.

Local news stations in Chicago mostly focus on shootings on Chicago’s South Side, especially in the communities of Englewood, Bronzeville and Gresham, but not about the killings in either the White or Hispanic communities in Chicago that occurs on a daily basis.

When I listen to my scanner to monitor the police frequencies, I hear just as many calls in the districts of Humboldt Park, Hanover Park, the Gold Coast, Lakeview, Lincoln Park and Rogers Park, as compared to Chicago’s south and west sides. In fact if you do the math, and add in all the other communities I mentioned, the number of crimes quadruples, but you never hear of these statistics in the media, not to mention the “WHITE COLLAR CRIMES” in corporate America that’s ignored by local or national media, except for the ones chosen for their enormous & or high profile magnitude.

Crime, especially shootings plagues Rogers Park almost as frequent as Englewood or the west side. In fact, soon as I relocated to Rogers Park in 2005, there was a shooting on the corner of Paullina and Jonquil ave, just 3 blocks away from my residence on Marshfield ave. I didn’t hear of this in the news, I found out by walking by the crime scene as it was marked with the traditional shrine materials of flowers, Teddy bears, candles… Etc.

As I currently serve as the Vice President of The Rogers Park Chamber of Commerce, recently, we agreed to install a security system consisting of 8 cameras shortly after a brick was hurled through our office headquarters window as a result of local hater attacks on social media. Channel 7 news was the only local news media that reported the story.

I’ve heard just as many gunshots, stories of shootings, muggings, break-ins, and killings in Rogers Park as I heard or seen when I lived on 47^th St. on Chicago’s South Side, much of which does not make any local news broadcast.

This harsh reality hit closest to home in Rogers Park when my neighbor whom lived two doors down in my apartment building was brutally murdered as he was beheaded on his living room couch.

Yes, I do realize that the news cant report on every shooting and other criminal activity during the nightly broadcast, for then they would have to extend the broadcasts to run for a couple of hours or more, but I do know that they must provide fair and equal coverage of these incidents throughout our cities to dispel the suggestion that our community is so treacherous, dangerous and full of crime.

I refuse to write a piece on any atrocity immediately, solely to get the story out on my platforms first. Depending on the complexity of the story, I generally wait at least 3 days or more after the story breaks because of…

1.      The jaded information and misinformation that permeates the mainstream / corporate controlled media,

2.      To let the story completely play out, and

3.      To also get the essential factual information from my reliable sources.

I also do the research on the topics surrounding the stories in question, which many of these cookie cutter journalists / media outlets fail to do for the sake of reporting the story as fast as possible.

Yes, as a journalist & writer, I have to listen to the inferior media sources to get their slanted, jaded take on stories. This is called responsible journalism, as was once practiced by some media outlets & journalists. It is wise to know how the enemy thinks and acts.

The Chicago police officer- Jason Vandyke that killed LaQuan McDonald by firing 16 shots into him as he lay on the ground has now been charged with first-degree murder. This is the first time in 35 years that a police officer has been charged for murder in the city of Chicago. That is a big step in the quest for justice in our community!

In the past, I’ve written about the importance of utilizing the Freedom of Information Act Request (which anyone can utilize) to obtain articles from incidents that has been withheld from the public. This process is what brought a court order for the video of this incident to be released.

If we are holding our police officers accountable for their senseless behavior, we must also hold the media accountable for providing fair and balanced reporting, and we should also hold talking heads like Hannity, Trump, Limbaugh and others responsible for spewing the rhetoric that spawns hatred and violence. Do we boycott these bias mainstream media outlets? Perhaps. Viewership means ratings, and ratings means revenue, which affects their pockets. How about the black community filing a class action lawsuit against FOX, CNN, HLN, and even local news outlets for disseminating false information and withholding information to sway public opinion, incite fear, hate, violence, and demonizing our youth as criminals & thugs in our community.

How about continuing movements like “SILENT DOLLARS” where we do not patronize non-black owned business & companies while not working for these inferior entities on the two strategic days in June that marks and celebrates Black Independence Day? I say we should pursue all three options simultaneously, because this is a criminal act that we as a people are feeling the impact every day. This is a people’s movement!

Don’t be a victim of this strategic form of brainwashing / mind control, and we must not allow our children to become victims as well. Know all the facts and listen to your local / national progressive media outlets, many that I mentioned earlier to get the full perspective on the stories that mainstream media cover. The current brainwashing climate they perpetuate that fuels racism, violence, fear and hate, not only affects black folks by the psychological devaluing of black life, but the entire world.