He's quite open in his criticism of the US Empire, the lies
and deception flowing from the Pentagon and White House and the nature of the
Security State and its trampling of the Constitution in the realm of
surveillance, torture and much else.
I'm not sure why he was invited because he was obviously an
object of ridicule and scorn. It actually grew somewhat amusing. The panel was
mixed and yet for the most part was somewhat sympathetic with Obama or at the
very least no one but Scahill was actually questioning the mainstream
narratives about US power and diplomacy. One panelist in a moment of agitation
admitted he had no problem with 'Empire', he was just glad that Obama's hand
was running it and not Bush. If anything the main problem they seemed to have
with Obama was that he's been too weak and too deliberative. It's as if Scahill
was coming from another planet and there was almost no way to integrate him
into the discussion. I found the whole episode to be actually quite revealing.
I'll provide the link, but the BBC podcast site will probably
purge it in a few weeks. Not all of their podcasts are available indefinitely.
Some are, but typically the news programmes are not.
Scahill represents the Left-wing challenge to the
Establishment and its media. While I often disagree with him and think he can
be guilty of sensationalism, I appreciate where he and his colleagues are
coming from. They are rightly outraged by the great lie that is the United
States and its allies. It would be one thing if the US admitted what it is and
what it does. Perhaps even then some people might say, despite its evils, its
theft and murder it's still a country better than many others. But what
outrages many about the United States (me included) is the great hypocrisy, the
claim to moral superiority and Exceptionalism. It's a country that cannot be
honest about what it is and what it does. Its people are brainwashed, selfish
and calloused when it comes to the evils their government commits in their
name. In fact they celebrate the deeds and all but turn them into a religious
exercise, a type of messianic doxology. It's the Sacralist trap all empires
fall into.
Listening to the podcast it's clear just how far out of
bounds the Left is with the Mainstream Media. I most definitely include the BBC
in this mainstream category. That said, it's often better than the Mainstream 'American'
Media and I certainly give the producers of the show a tip of the hat for
inviting someone like Scahill to appear. I've been listening to the BBC for
many years and such a move is not common. They are pretty conventional and
Establishment oriented in their reporting. The only reason they're better than
American outlets is, their coverage is more in depth, thoughtful, cosmopolitan
and being outside the United States you are able to dispense with some of the
cultural norms and expectations. In this case the snobbish attitude (if there
is any) is helpful. They still largely resonate with the United States and our
cultures are more similar than different and yet the little bit of distance
helps in seeing the forest through the trees.
I must say that I rejected the whole Leftist Media line a
long time ago. Even FOX is more mainstream than anything else, but with a
definite, deliberate and overtly Right-wing emphasis. Actually FOX strikes me
as more entertainment oriented than anything else. There's almost something
deviant or kinky going on with their utilization of bimbo less-than-dressed
women being loud, snide and confrontational, or in other instances doing all they
can to spread fear. It appeals to the same type of guys that watched Xena and
like posters of bikini-clad women holding machine guns.
I've noticed the bias in the American media for many years
and maybe it's just me, but it seems like in just the past few years it's been
worse than ever before. And while I appreciate BBC, AFP, RFI, DW and France 24,
their pro-Western biases have also become more apparent. And in light of the 13
November attacks in Paris we should probably expect things to continue to move
in that direction. Generally the French are better than the BBC and certainly
outlets like SkyNews, but I'm starting to appreciate programmes, websites and
periodicals that focus more on analysis. The whole news outlet,
up-to-the-minute reporting, 24 hour news channel/cycle type of organizations
are just increasingly shallow and rote in the contextualizing... if any is
provided at all. They're good for recent video clips and little else.
