Bush team scolded for disguised TV report

[Mr_Spock]

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/01/07/bush_team_scolded_for_disguised_tv_report/

WASHINGTON -- Shortly before last year's Super Bowl, local news stations across the country aired a story by Mike Morris describing plans for a new White House ad campaign on the dangers of drug abuse.

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What viewers did not know was that Morris is not a journalist and his ''report" was produced by the government, actions which constituted illegal ''covert propaganda," according to an investigation by the Government Accountability Office.

...

''Our lawyers disagree with the GAO interpretation," he said. Nevertheless, if the video releases were going to be ''controversial or create an appearance of a problem," the agency decided it was not worth pursuing, he said.

____________________________________________________________

Yeah, the law only applies to "pleebs" :eyes:

[tmooses]

1. I thought all MSM News was disguised as real news?

[Kurt Remarque]

2. maybe that was before the rush bust

[arcane1]

3. we can expect more of this type of bullshit, too

-snip-

In May, the Government Accountability Office concluded that the Department of Health and Human Services violated two federal laws with similar fake news reports touting the administration's new Medicare drug benefit. When that opinion was released, officials at the drug control office decided to stop the practice, spokesman Thomas Riley said.

[Mr_Spock]

6. Unbelievable - two violations in this article and the other LBN story

about No Child Left Behind paid commentator story today "White House paid commentator to promote law"

This is a disgrace - impeach this fool who is above the law BEFORE he is sworn in!

[Democrats_win]

4. Power corrupts and they are absolutely corrupt. eom.

[FreakinDJ]

5. Should be laws against using propaganda

[NNN0LHI]

7. It is against the law n/t

[Deja Q]

11. And misinformation. When's the last time you saw a corporate commercial

that didn't have even one attosecond devoted to NOT misleading the public?

[Occulus]

8. Scolded. SCOLDED!!

My God, the arrogance.... any one of us, were we to break the law and get caught, would wind up facing a judge.

Why is this President above the law?

[PapaJoe]

12. I just found this quote

"Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart
people who are putting us on or by imbeciles who really mean
it." --Mark Twain

[catgirl]

13. This is a perfect quote!

This should be on billboards with a pic of Bush.

[htuttle]

9. I hope everyone has read 'Toxic Sludge is Good For You'

Corporations have been fooling us for YEARS with these slick 'feature commercials' that they distribute to local news stations, who in turn run them without comment or sourcing.

ANY TIME you see a 'special report' on some new widget, drug, or service that includes reporters who you've never seen or heard of before, I can guarantee that you are watching paid-for corporate propaganda that your local news is rebroadcasting as is. PR companies have been producing these things for a long time.

Been going on for years -- hardly anyone realizes this.

Read the book, "Toxic Sludge is Good For You", by John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton. It exposes all this clear as day.

[tsuki]

10. This is the second story that I have read today on paying for

MSM coverage. I wonder what the "gung-ho," "let's get those Iraqis," reports cost the taxpayer.

[Synnical]

14. Here's the GAO report

http://www.gao.gov/decisions/appro/303495.htm

Conclusion:

Since ONDCP did not provide the required disclosures, ONDCP's prepackaged news stories constituted covert propaganda in violation of publicity or propaganda prohibitions of the fiscal year 2002, 2003, and 2004 appropriations acts. Moreover, because ONDCP had no appropriation available to produce and distribute materials in violation of each of these publicity or propaganda prohibitions, ONDCP also violated the Antideficiency Act, 31 U.S.C. 1341. ONDCP must report these violations to the Congress and the President, and submit a copy of that report to this Office. 31U.S.C. 1351, as amended by Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005, Pub. L. No. 108-447, div. G, title II, 1401, 118 Stat. 2809, ___ (Dec. 8, 2004).

[Moderator]

15. duplicate topic

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1129548