Stories by Tamara Straus

Tamara Straus served as senior editor of AlterNet from 1999-2002.subscribe to Tamara Straus's rss feed

Women Lead the Progressive Charge

Posted on Jun 24, 2005, Source: AlterNet

Emily's List has some advice for Democrats looking for future electoral successes: embrace the fact that family is at the center of women's values.

Michael Moore Bowls a Strike at Telluride

Posted on Sep 3, 2002, Source: AlterNet

Moore's funny, angry new documentary, "Bowling for Columbine," was one of many indie hits at Colorado's Telluride Film Festival.

Justice After the Schizoid War

Posted on Feb 6, 2002, Source: AlterNet

A new documentary film, "Justice and the Generals," looks at the future of international human rights law through the prism of El Salvador's bloody civil war.

Life and Debt

Posted on Jan 24, 2002, Source: AlterNet

A new film hitting theaters all over the country is earning raves from critics because it does the impossible: turns the stale subject of "free trade" into a riveting narrative.

Trading Democracy

Posted on Jan 15, 2002, Source: AlterNet

In a new PBS special, Bill Moyers exposes what may be the acme of global corporate malfeasance -- a law that penalizes governments for trying to protect their citizens.

Amour Online: Darwin Wouldn't Have Been Surprised

Posted on Jan 14, 2002, Source: AlterNet

Is online dating a bleak reflection of an overworked, commodity-oriented society, or a love panacea that will forever change human relationships?

When War Doesn't End

Posted on Jan 7, 2002, Source: AlterNet

Unexploded cluster bombs, like ones being dropped on Afghanistan today, have killed 12,000 civilians in Laos since the end of the U.S.'s "secret" war there 30 years ago.

The War for Public Opinion

Posted on Dec 10, 2001, Source: AlterNet

By clamping down on information like never before, the Bush administration has sold America the Terror War. Will critical journalism from the Internet and abroad break the deal?

Weapons of Mass Destruction Easier to Get Than Ever

Posted on Nov 29, 2001, Source: AlterNet

The end of the Cold War was supposed to mark the end of the arms race. Instead, weapons of mass destruction are proliferating -- and after 9-11 this reality is getting harder to ignore.

Falling Down in Qatar?

Posted on Nov 12, 2001, Source: AlterNet

If this week's WTO meeting in Qatar fails, it won't be because of street protests or media scrutiny, but because international trade has been transformed in the the post-9/11 age.

Women and the Future of Afghanistan

Posted on Nov 6, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Spending an afternoon with Tahmeena Faryal, a member of the Afghan feminist group RAWA, makes it clear that women should participate in the emerging government there.

The CNN of the Arab World

Posted on Oct 26, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Al-Jazeera, the 24-hour Arab news network that came to prominence when American media aired its videotapes of Osama bin Laden, has been called highly objective and extremely biased. Which is it? AlterNet spoke to veteran Middle East journalist Lamis Andoni to find out.

Coming This Fall ... More Media Deregulation

Posted on Oct 23, 2001, Source: AlterNet

This fall, two important media ownership rules will be reconsidered by the FCC, and given the commission's Republican majority, both will likely be thrown out.

Afghanistan's Coming Humanitarian Disaster

Posted on Oct 12, 2001, Source: AlterNet

The looming refugee crisis in Afghanistan, where millions are on the brink of starvation, begs the question: will the U.S. provide real aid this time, or just lip service?

Peter Barnes Wants to Commodify the Sky

Posted on Sep 25, 2001, Source: AlterNet

A visionary solution to global warming has been proposed by the founder of Working Assets -- a plan to make the sky public U.S. property and charge those who pollute it. (Also, an excerpt from Peter Barnes' book, "Who Owns the Sky?")

When Work Goes Global

Posted on Aug 28, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Telemarketers in India with perfect West Virginian accents. American cyber-boys paving the high-tech road in Africa. A new PBS series, "PlanetWork," explores the changing nature of employment.

The Mother Teresa of All Web Sites

Posted on Aug 21, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Despite the dot-com bust, VolunteerMatch -- the Webby-winning site that helps people volunteer -- is enjoying wild success. What does it mean for corporate and community life in the tech age?

Bush's Texas-Sized Summer Vacation (And Your Rhode Island-Sized One)

Posted on Aug 14, 2001, Source: AlterNet

An irony of the 2001 summer is that our CEO-style President is enjoying a 31-day, European-sized vacation, while most Americans eke out a mere nine or 10 days off.

The Geeks Return

Posted on Jul 24, 2001, Source: AlterNet

The Fifth Annual Webby Awards, honoring the best Internet Web sites, underscored a hallmark of Internet culture: geek power rules, sophistication is irrelevant.

The Privacy Paradox: Surveillance vs. Celebrity

Posted on Jul 17, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Americans are increasingly watched by law enforcement and private industry. But we also are increasingly in search of public fame. How will privacy evolve in the era of the unwanted and wanted gaze?

The Anti-Bush Majority

Posted on Jul 10, 2001, Source: AlterNet

According to a recent poll, a majority of Americans are still angry about the 2000 election. You wouldn't know it from the press, but on the Web that anger is red-hot.

The Pandemic and the Blue Lady

Posted on Jun 26, 2001, Source: AlterNet

This week the UN General Assembly held its first ever special session on AIDS. But can the world's most lumbering bureaucracy stop the new global plague?

The Unexpected Romantic: An Interview with Chuck Palahniuk

Posted on Jun 19, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Cult novelist Chuck Palahniuk is not what he seems. The author of the apocalyptic hit Fight Club and Choke, his recent novel on sexaholism, is neither angry nor nihilistic. He's a dreamer who likes to talk about romance.

When Wal-Mart Comes to Town

Posted on May 24, 2001, Source: AlterNet

A documentary film to be aired by PBS examines why store wars are not just about retail, but about small-town economic life.

Scraping By: An Interview with Barbara Ehrenreich

Posted on May 15, 2001, Source: AlterNet

In her new book, Barbara Ehrenreich goes "undercover" as an unskilled worker and finds the dark side of American prosperity.

Resource Wars: An Interview with Michael Klare

Posted on May 1, 2001, Source: AlterNet

In the wake of the Cold War, a familiar object of strife has reemerged -- resources -- only this time the world has fewer of them.

Take Your Spectacle for Reality!

Posted on May 1, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck's new reality TV show on ABC, "The Runner," bombs to bits the last barrier between commerce and culture.

The Top Ten Censored Stories of 2000: Exposing the News that Didn't Make the News

Posted on Apr 10, 2001, Source: AlterNet

From army spinmeisters working at CNN to sweatshop-like conditions in Silicon Valley, this year's Top Ten Censored Stories highlight some huge stories that the mainstream media missed.

The Moral Calculus of AIDS

Posted on Apr 10, 2001, Source: AlterNet

If money and drugs are not forthcoming soon, AIDS will cause a plague in Africa not seen since the Black Death of the 14th century. Where is morality in the new global economy?

The Dioxin Deception

Posted on Apr 3, 2001, Source: AlterNet

The chemical dioxin is a proven deadly carcinogen. A

new report reveals how the chemical industry is keeping this

information buried.

McCain-Feingold: The Best Thing We've Got

Posted on Mar 13, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Though far from perfect legislation, the McCain-Feingold bill is the best bet America has for cleaning up politics. Tamara Straus shows why.

Jubilee 2000: The Movement America Missed

Posted on Mar 6, 2001, Source: AlterNet

The Jubilee 2000 debt relief movement has mobilized millions of people, transformed international policy and shaped public opinion -- in Europe. A look at why Jubilee 2000 never took off here in America.

The Ecstasy Generation

Posted on Feb 13, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Slowly but surely, Ecstasy is becoming the drug of choice for the millennial era. Is it just the ultimate party high, or a postmodern cure that eases spiritual emptiness, rancorous individualism, alienation and lack of community?

Bush Ignores the Anti-Drug War Tide

Posted on Jan 29, 2001, Source: AlterNet

Just when the drug war had started swinging into reform mode, the most conservative administration in years stepped into the White House. Will George W. Bush ignore the mainstream backlash against the drug war?

Super Predators No More?

Posted on Dec 19, 2000, Source: AlterNet

Vincent Schiraldi of the Justice Policy Institute speaks about a surprising federal study that shows youth crime at its lowest rate in decades.

Study Finds Rise in Corporate Power

Posted on Dec 7, 2000, Source: AlterNet

An alarming new study shows that General Motors, Wal-Mart and Exxon Mobil have greater economic power than a majority of the world's countries.

Fair Trade Coffee: Coming to a Cafe Near You (Short Version)

Posted on Nov 30, 2000, Source: AlterNet

Buying fair trade coffee -- coffee grown and sold with concern for both the coffee farmer and the land -- may not be the bravest form of activism. But the impact of consuming ethically on poverty and the environment is impossible to ignore.

Fair Trade Coffee: Coming to a Cafe Near You

Posted on Nov 30, 2000, Source: AlterNet

Thanks to a coalition of nonprofits and ethical consumers, giant coffee retailers like Starbucks have agreed to sell coffee grown by decently paid, environmentally aware Third World farmers.

The Critic as Radical

Posted on Nov 21, 2000, Source: AlterNet

AlterNet interviews Thomas Frank, widely viewed as the most brilliant critic of Generation X, whose new book, "One Market Under God," takes the smug rhetoric of the New Economy and turns it on its head.

A Manifesto for Third Wave Feminism

Posted on Oct 24, 2000, Source: AlterNet

Though few people are aware that a Third Wave of Feminism exists, feminism is not dead, nor has it ever found itself in the throes of final expiration. Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future, a new book, shows that like all movements, it has only mutated and transformed.

1 2 Next 

[ page served from web 1 ]