Posts by Philip Barron

Philip Barron is a St. Louis writer and author of the blog Waveflux.

Media: War in Iraq a "Lifestyle Issue," Not News
Posted by Philip Barron, Waveflux.net on June 11, 2008 at 8:24 AM.

At the St. Louis Post-Dispatch website, a recent Editor’s Desk response to criticism of the paper’s Iraq coverage wasn’t much better than no response at all.

A retired Globe-Democrat staffer called to criticize our day-in and day-out reporting on the war in Iraq. Not enough, not prominent enough, she said.

Five years into the war, is an 8-inch story in the middle of Page A5 enough?

Points for snark, none for actually addressing the question on “day-in and day-out reporting.” The editor goes on to recount the obvious - “war news is more likely to be inside the main news section than on the front page” - as though the mere fact supplied its own explanation. Again:

In terms of news and interest, are those developments in Iraq worth greater display? Obviously, our news editors and page designers last night thought not.

Yes, obviously.

The reader who criticized the paper - a former staffer at the long-dead Globe-Democrat, a conservative rival to the P-D - charged the Post-Dispatch with liberal bias. That charge doesn’t hold water: you’d think that a media source run by flaming liberals would be more likely rather than less to run Iraq news.

The matter of unsatisfactory coverage of the war from media outlets in general, both print and electronic, is broader than the stories that appear - or don’t - in any single newspaper, regardless of ideological slant. A recent Zogby study commissioned by the Poynter Institute revealed than while 75 percent of those polled felt “well-informed” about Iraq, the majority were still not satisfied with the coverage they were getting:

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What Should John Edwards Do Next?
Posted by Philip Barron, AlterNet on January 30, 2008 at 8:21 AM.

As Alice Bonner explained so eloquently at The Root, I was looking forward to voting for John Edwards. The reason, in a one word: class.The manifestations and disparities of class give rise, Hydralike, to aspects of American society as varied as race, health care, education, taxation, housing, even environmental issues. The reality of class, the prevalence of poverty, is something that few in this country care to contemplate. Poverty is decidedly unglamorous, after all, so much so that people avoid even acknowledging it, as if doing so meant risking contamination. It is, for many, evidence of moral failing - thus the emphasis in some quarters on helping the "deserving" poor. In a culture where the virtues of wealth, attainment, and upward striving are extolled from cradle to grave, the notion of two disparate Americas separated by wealth is, well, a political clunker. To say nothing of being - in the age of The Apprentice, Paris Hilton, ad nauseum - a real media downer.

A presidential candidate with the courage to push class front and center, given the culture's hostility to the concept, was an easy pick for me.

Of course, Edwards' campaign was doomed from the start for that very reasons. Other circumstances (like being a plain old white-guy-running who lacks the compelling historical/rockstar interest of a Clinton or Obama) seem incidental in comparison. The sad fact is that forty-four years after the declaration of the War on Poverty - and incredibly, two years after Hurricane Katrina - this society simply isn't ready for the core message Edwards brought in his two White House campaigns: that policy, not charity, is the path to helping the poor.

Edwards' chief role in the 2008 presidential race had been that of progressive conscience/gadfly to the two frontrunners. His presence in the race served to prompt Clinton and Obama into making, at the very least, supportive noises on poverty issues. As it turned out, that was the best Edwards could hope for - and that alone would have justified voting for him. What interests me, though, is what happens now that the lights have gone dark and Edwards has retired his campaign.

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Soldier Mysteriously Killed in Afghanistan, Family Kept in the Dark, Sound Familiar?
Posted by Philip Barron on October 3, 2007 at 6:47 AM.

This post, written by Philip Barron, originally appeared on Shakesville

Someone familiar with the story of LaVena Johnson forwarded to me a Boston Globe story by Noah Bierman that is hauntingly familiar:

Mystery surrounds death of soldier

Quincy woman is called a noncombat casualty

The Massachusetts National Guard soldier from Quincy who died in Afghanistan Friday was found with a single bullet in her head lying near her church on a secure military base, her family said yesterday after a briefing from Army officials.

The Department of Defense said in a statement yesterday that Ciara Durkin's injuries came from a "non-combat related incident" that is under investigation. The statement contradicts a Sunday statement from the Massachusetts Army National Guard that said Durkin, an Army specialist, was killed in action. A guard spokesman said the term was meant to imply that Durkin was deployed in Afghanistan at the time of her death.

"We're completely in the dark," said Pierce Durkin, the soldier's 28-year-old brother. "Patience is probably dissipating."

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Father of Mysteriously Murdered US Soldier in Iraq: "Why Cover Up A Crime Like This?" [VIDEO]
Posted by Philip Barron on August 20, 2007 at 10:42 AM.

Dr. Johnson spoke last Friday at the Veterans for Peace speakout on sexual assault in the military outside the Robert A. Young Federal Building in downtown St. Louis. This was just one of many events and workshops comprising the 22nd annual national convention of VFP.

In the video to your right, Dr. Johnson talks about learning of LaVena's death, his suspicions about how she died, and the family's attempts to get the Army to reopen its investigation. He is introduced by antiwar activist and retired Army colonel Ann Wright.

As always, I ask you to help the Johnson family by signing the petition to the Senate and House Armed Services Committees, and by directly contacting your Senator or Representative on those legislative bodies. Thank you.

The Dirty Little Secret About Matt Drudge
Posted by Philip Barron on August 8, 2007 at 12:00 PM.

You may have noted the recent LA Times piece on how news organizations scramble for notice by über-gossipmeister Matt Drudge.

Every day, journalists and media executives in newsrooms across the land hope they'll have something that catches Drudge's fancy — or, as he has put it, "raises my whiskers." Most keep their fingers crossed that he'll discover their articles on his own and link to them. Others are more proactive, sending anonymous e-mails or placing calls to him or his behind-the-scenes assistant.

As Greg Sargent comments at TPM Election Central, it's a reminder of the pathetic state of journalism in these United States - though not a surprise. That story that came to mind today as I skimmed a piece at the website of my hometown paper, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. I saw that the P-D had jumped on the social networking bandwagon, providing "Save & Share" links at the end of its stories. "Save & Share" is old news for such online papers as the Washington Post; the usual options for sharing stories include such venues as del.icio.us, Digg, reddit, Facebook, and the like.

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A Bitter Anniversary For the Family of a Murdered Soldier
Posted by Philip Barron on July 27, 2007 at 11:00 AM.

Today, July 27th, marks what should have been a joyous celebration, perhaps including a party filled with family and friends. Today would have been LaVena Lynn Johnson’s 22nd birthday.

The month of July also marks another solemn milestone.

Two years ago this month the body of PFC Johnson was returned to her family and laid to rest, but there can be no rest for her her family and friends. The military continues to claim that LaVena took her own life while serving in Iraq, despite several indications to the contrary.

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On Bush's Order, Miers Defies Subpeona
Posted by Philip Barron on July 11, 2007 at 2:10 PM.

If George Bush could order anyone to defy a Congressional subpeona regarding the U.S. attorney firings, it would of course be Harriet Miers, whose unabashed idolatry of the president is well-established. Even given that, the defiance of Miers - who isn't even on the Bush payroll anymore - is still quite remarkable. I always shake my head when I hear people use the term "Bush Crime Family," but it certainly seems to apply here. I haven't seen a better example of the code of omerta outside of a Scorsese gangster movie.

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The Problem With Iraqi Security: More Than a Numbers Game
Posted by Philip Barron on June 25, 2007 at 2:30 PM.

A critical component of the surge strategy in Iraq - arguably the most important element - involves the ability of Iraqi security forces to actually maintain security. U.S. generals are admitting publicly that that element is sadly lacking:

The U.S. commander of a new offensive north of Baghdad, reclaiming insurgent territory day by day, said Sunday his Iraqi partners may be too weak to hold onto the gains. The Iraqi military does not even have enough ammunition, said Brig. Gen. Mick Bednarek: "They're not quite up to the job yet."

His counterpart south of Baghdad seemed to agree, saying U.S. troops are too few to garrison the districts newly rid of insurgents. "It can't be coalition (U.S.) forces. We have what we have. There's got to be more Iraqi security forces," said Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch.

It would be one thing if mere numbers were the only concern, but an ongoing Time investigation indicates that the performance of Iraqi security is the weak link in the surge strategy, and that the insurgency is eagerly exploiting it:

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Two Women Left to Die by Authorities
Posted by Philip Barron on June 13, 2007 at 2:00 PM.

Two dead women, half a country apart. One of them dying in a failing hospital in Los Angeles, the other while being held in a St. Louis jail. Both of them failed by systems and authorities charged with watching over them. The Los Angeles case is making national news, while the St. Louis matter remains a local story...for the moment.

In Los Angeles:

A woman who lay bleeding on the emergency room floor of a troubled inner-city hospital died after 911 dispatchers refused to contact paramedics or an ambulance to take her to another facility, newly released tapes of the emergency calls reveal.

Edith Isabel Rodriguez, 43, died of a perforated bowel on May 9 at Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital. Her death was ruled accidental by the Los Angeles County coroner's office. [...]

County and state authorities are now investigating Rodriguez's death. Relatives reported she died as police were wheeling her out of the hospital after the officers they had asked to help Rodriguez arrested her instead on a parole violation. Sheriff's Department spokesman Duane Allen said Wednesday that the investigation is ongoing. [...]

The incident was the latest high-profile lapse at King-Harbor, formerly known as King/Drew. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is investigating claims of recent patient care breakdowns, including Rodriguez's case.

Federal inspectors last week said emergency room patients were in "immediate jeopardy" of harm or death, and King-Harbor was given 23 days to shape up or risk losing federal funding.

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Chancellor Merkel Gets the Bush Treatment on Global Warming
Posted by Philip Barron on June 7, 2007 at 9:30 AM.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, one of George Bush's celebrated new best buddies on the world scene, is now finding out what Tony Blair took years to learn: Partnership with Bush is a one-way street.

As leaders of wealthy nations converged Wednesday at a Baltic resort for their annual summit meeting, the White House held firm against long-term targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, effectively blocking a major priority of the meeting's host, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany.

Merkel is one of the closest allies of President George W. Bush in Europe, and the two emerged from a working lunch Wednesday attempting to present a united front. But the German chancellor did not look pleased as she conceded that more work must be done before the Group of 8 nations can reach agreement on how they will address climate change.

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Miserable sinners, the lot of you
Posted by Philip Barron on June 5, 2007 at 11:47 AM.

When CNN talking head Soledad O'Brien clinched the Worst Journalist on Earth award by asking John Edwards to name the biggest sin he ever committed, Edwards might have responded thusly:

While I can't bring myself to reveal all the particulars of my transgression, I'll just say that it involved a can of whipped cream, a bathtub of gelatin, a bottle of Jack, and three of the Pussycat Dolls.

An appropriate response to an intrusive query, but Edwards didn't say that. Nor, sadly, did he say this:

This is a pathetic and insulting line of questioning that violates privacy, debases faith, and demeans the electoral process, and I decline to go along with it.

No, Edwards instead talked about what a big sinner he is - aren't we all? - and so responded much as any of the big three Dem presidential contestants did in the Sojourners/Call to Renewal forum. That is, Edwards, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama burnished their religious bonafides in an attempt to demonstrate that Democrats - like their Republican rivals - are properly down with the whole God thing.

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The London 2012 Olympic logo: Officially hideous
Posted by Philip Barron on June 4, 2007 at 10:00 AM.

If someone blew up Nelson's Column in the middle of Trafalgar Square and then applied garish spray paint to the rubble, the result would be something not unlike the newly-unveiled London 2012 Olympic logo.

The jagged emblem, based on the date 2012, comes in a series of shades of pink, blue, green and orange and will evolve in the run-up to the Games.

The word London and the Olympic rings are included in the first two digits of the new logo.

"This is the vision at the very heart of our brand," said London 2012 organising committee chairman Seb Coe.

Ah! The fragments represent numerals! 2012! And the logo is designed to "evolve" over time, perhaps more clearly revealing the date. Dynamism! Modernity! Or, uh, something.

Moral: Never give a committee £400,000 to do anything.

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"Worth the risk?": How the media chooses between sponsorship and the truth
Posted by Philip Barron on May 29, 2007 at 2:06 PM.

The Bullpen of New York University's Department of Journalism provides an illustrative tale for anyone wondering about the lack of coverage of the LaVena Johnson case in the mainstream media. Alexandra Zendrian recounts a sobering story told by Vanessa Bush, executive editor of Essence:

Sometimes conflicts of interest arise when editors plan to run a story that involves an advertiser. Bush shared one such situation with students. The story in question was a wrongful death case involving the U.S. Army. Essence wanted to run an article in their February 2006 issue about Private First Class LaVena Johnson, who the Army said had shot and killed herself. But Johnson’s family was convinced that she had been brutally beaten, and intended to bring a wrongful death case against the Army. Because the Army is one of Essence’s biggest advertisers, the magazine had to consider whether running the article was worth the risk of losing the Army’s valuable advertising dollars.

In the end, they struck a compromise: the Army agreed to continue advertising in Essence and simply pulled their ads from that month’s issue. But it was a close call, Bush said, adding that “advertisers will walk away in a heartbeat.”

It is to the credit of Essence and its editors that the story made its way to print, but the "closeness" of the call is troubling. It is disturbingly easy to imagine other media outlets choosing to look the other way, ignoring LaVena's story in the name of advertising dollars.

Remember This
Posted by Philip Barron on May 25, 2007 at 11:43 AM.

What do you say to the war dead on Memorial Day?

You tell them, perhaps, that you are sorry you never got the chance to know them. Who they were, what they loved and feared, what they hoped for. That opportunity is gone, replaced by mute stone and silent earth.

You tell them that you honor the choice they made in serving, even though that sacrifice goes unhonored by an army unwilling to answer families who want only to know how their loved ones died so far from home.

You vow to keep the unfulfilled promise of the dead in your heart. What they would have valued. What they might have accomplished. Who they would have been, if only.

On Memorial Day, you tell the war dead - you swear to them - that you will not forget.

Building the Platform
Posted by Philip Barron on May 18, 2007 at 6:34 AM.

A change in the way the people of St. Louis get their news may be on the horizon, as Chad Garrison relates in the May 9 issue of the Riverfront Times:

In November 2005 the St. Louis Post-Dispatch cleared its North Tucker Boulevard headquarters of proverbial deadwood when it offered longtime staffers a buyout package worth tens of thousands of dollars. From the editorial department alone, some 40 staffers — all age 50 or older — took the bait.

Now a few of those early retirees are planning a return to journalism — and they're taking aim at their former employer. By early this fall, they plan to launch St. Louis Platform, an online paper they believe will one-up the Post-Dispatch in both content and technological savvy. Heading up The Platform are former Post editors Margaret and Bill Freivogel, ex-managing editor Dick Weil, former features editor Dick Weiss, and ex-writers Robert Duffy and Laszlo Domjan.

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