August, 24 2010, 02:50pm EDT
Tell NBC: Debate the Afghanistan War
Meet the Press Missing Antiwar Voices
NEW YORK
Thousands have signed on to FAIR's petition--add your voice today and keep the pressure on NBC to have a real war debate!
July saw more U.S. troop fatalities in Afghanistan than any month since the war began nine years ago. Gen. Stanley McChrystal was removed from his commanding post amid controversy, and WikiLeaks released a trove of classified documents that paint a picture of a failing war and unreported civilian casualties.
How has NBC's Meet the Press responded to these developments? By inviting on guests to defend the war and Obama's Afghanistan policy.
Sundays on NBChave been a steady drumbeat of pro-war sentiment: an hour-long puff piece on Gen. David Petraeus (8/15/10); a one-on-one with Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (8/1/10); and panel discussions stacked with hawks (7/27/10, 7/11/10). Over the past two months, a single strong antiwar voice has been heard on Meet the Press--California Rep. Barbara Lee (7/27/10)--but she was given little room to speak on a panel with four pro-war guests.
Public support for the war has dropped sharply over the past several months (CNN's most recent poll shows 62 percent oppose the war). So why has NBCbeen so intent on promoting it?
Tell NBCthe public needs a real Afghanistan War debate on Sunday morning, not a parade of generals and other hawkish pundits. Click here to sign FAIR's petition today--and spread the word!
FAIR, the national media watch group, has been offering well-documented criticism of media bias and censorship since 1986. We work to invigorate the First Amendment by advocating for greater diversity in the press and by scrutinizing media practices that marginalize public interest, minority and dissenting viewpoints.
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