BPSDB “…we manipulate the medium … that’s how you control the online dialogue.”
American Majority trainer
This clip exposes one of the many tactics that the right wing is using to control the information that the public gets, the information that you get.
This is how The Machinery of Climate Anti-Science is operationalizing the corporate agenda, just one tactic of many being used to subvert democracy.
The clip is from the documentary (Astro)Turf Wars that was released last October
Trailer for (Astro)Turf Wars:
“We are drowning in propaganda, drowning in it. And I’m not speaking figuratively, it’s threatening our lives, it’s cutting off our air. It’s making real democracy all but impossible. It has brought the planet to the point of ecological destruction.” [emphasis added]
Mark Crispin Miller, New York University, (Astro)Turf Wars interview
Interview with Taki Oldham of (Astro)Turf Wars on TYT
See also:
- [Astro] Turf Wars Uncovered in New Undercover Documentary
- Are Right-Wing Libertarian Internet Trolls Getting Paid to Dumb Down Online Conversations?
- (Astro)Turf Wars: New Documentary Explores Corporate Influence Over Tea Parties
- (Astro)Turf Wars Home site to purchase/watch the documentary
and frightened
Just weeks before the release of (Astro)Turf Wars Alternet broke the story of teabagger stalking of news sharing sites and systematically attempting to kill posts and articles by organizations and individuals on their hit list. [I made the list! :-)]
which did get some mass media attention, but only briefly and not widely.
- Digg Patriots New York TImes
- Digg investigates claims of conservative ‘censorship’ The Guardian
The “Digg Patriots” are still active (eg see here on Facebook)
I won’t lie to you, the tea party zealots are just plain scary. Watch the documentary and see if you do not find that they are so convinced of their righteousness that it is easy to imagine them committing any act in the name of their cause.
Granted the documentary is about the phenomenon in the United States, but as John Mashey pointed out we have the same thing going on here in Canada.
Three key points:
Do something about it!
Simply being aware is not enough. If we do no actively counter this assault we can just pack it in now. Some obvious ideas would include:
Hold a tea party, literally (or some brewed substance at least). Buy a copy of the documentary, have some friends over & watch it together. Get them riled up about the assault on their freedom.
Contact whichever government representatives at whatever level and demand transparency from and government review of the phony right wing non-profits. Exposure of the corporate control and manipulation of the astroturf is the most effective way to kill it.
erode their base
I’m hoping that the tea baggers who appear in the documentary are not too typical because I cannot see how one could even begin to talk to them. Regardless, as I have noted before, paradoxically a significant portion of the right-wing base are also our natural allies because as poor and disenfranchised they will be the ones affected first and worst by climate change.
How we go about doing that is a whole other matter, but that does not make it less true. For the moment I would just say that we need to keep that clearly in mind as we contemplate our strategies.
Democracy is already crippled
We aren’t getting out of this mess simply with blogging, petitions and voting. “We need to escalate our methods as well as our energies. Boycotts, hunger strikes, civil disobedience in it’s myriad forms; noncooperation and direct intervention must be the new focus of our actions, of our lives.” The Path of Resistance.
Having seen what we are up against, can you doubt it?
There it is, get used to it, prepare for it.
We give our consent every moment that we do not resist.
Comment Policy
–
It is worth knowing and abiding by whether you comment on this blog or not.
- The “Mostly” Open Thread” is for general climate discussion that is not relevant to a particular post. Spam and abuse rules still apply;
- The “Challenging the Core Science” Comment Thread is for comments that purport to challenge the core science of anthropogenic climate change.
- The “Spam” Comment Thread is for comments posted by people who think that they can ignore site policy.
Greenfyre's 
At this next link you will learn how oil and coal industry money is funneled through different foundations to bury the money trail, and “wipe the oil” off of it.
They set up organizations like Policy Communications, The Western Business Roundtable, Partnership for America, and Americans for American Energy, to make it seem like there is this groundswell of grassroots organizations opposing the scientific theory of man made climate change and opposing the move to sustainable energy. These are actually all the same people from the fossil fuel industry and mining industry. They are all staffed by the same executives.
from Desmogblog:
“It’s called “astroturfing” – the setting up of fake grassroots organizations and it’s one of the oldest tricks in the books.
Policy Communications
An energy industry-backed astro-turf network concocted by a single PR/Lobbying firm that is working to undermine the efforts of environmental groups and organizations like the Western Climate Initiative (WCI). that are pushing for solutions to climate change.”
http://www.desmogblog.com/policy-communications-inc-astroturf-shell-game
Another example of “wiping the oil’ off the money is how the inaptly named Friends of Science(FOS), had money funneled to what they called the Science Education Fund. The money came from the Alberta oil and gas industry through the Calgary Foundation, who funneled it through the University of Calgary and ultimately ending up at FOS.
FOS has funded Fred Singer, Sherwood Idso, Robert Balling and Pat Michaels.
These 32 organizations have all been involved in the tobacco industry’s campaign to deny the science showing the dangers of tobacco.
They are all now involved in the campaign to deny the science of climate change.
1. Acton Institute
2. American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)
3. Alexis de Tocquerville Institute
4. American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
5. Americans for Prosperity
6. Atlas Economic Research Foundation
7. Burson-Marsteller (PR firm)
8. Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW)
9. Cato Institute
10. Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI)
11. Consumer Alert
12. DCI Group (PR firm)
13. European Science and Environment Forum
14. Fraser Institute
15. Frontiers of Freedom
16. George C. Marshall Institute
17. Harvard Center for Risk Analysis
18. Heartland Institute
19. Heritage Foundation
20. Independent Institute
21. International Center for a Scientific Ecology
22. International Policy Network
23. John Locke Foundation
24. Junk Science
25. National Center for Public Policy Research
26. National Journalism Center
27. National Legal Center for the Public Interest (NLCPI)
28. Pacific Research Institute
29. Reason Foundation
30. Small Business Survival Committee
31. The Advancement of Sound Science Coalition (TASSC)
32. Washington Legal Foundation
The Koch brothers created #5 and #9 and have their hands in others, including some not on this list.
#24 is Steve Milloy’s aptly named Junk Science. Milloy is one of Fox News’ favorite climate experts. Of course he isn’t a scientist. He’s a PR man and paid lobbyist for fossil fuel interests. He was also involved with pushing for the Citizens United court decision, that allows corporations unlimited political spending, lobbying etc.
Notice some of the Orwellian names.
Citizens Against Government Waste
Consumer Alert
Frontiers of Freedom
European Science and Environment Forum
Harvard Center for Risk Analysis
International Center for a Scientific Ecology
National Legal Center for the Public Interest
Reason Foundation
The Advancement of Sound Science Coalition
They all sound so benign
Koch’s web of influence
Koch spends tens of millions trying to shape federal policies that affect their global business empire – by John Aloysius Farrell
http://www.publicintegrity.org/articles/entry/3120/
“The tentacles of the Kochtopus: What you need to know about the financiers of the Radical Right”
Read the summary here:
http://climateprogress.org/2011/04/04/kochtopus/
Read the full report here- 31 pages
http://www.americanprogressaction.org/issues/2011/04/koch_brothers.html
“Charles and David, Koch funded not only the Tea Party but also the hydra-headed campaign to undermine the science of global warming, all in the service of even more profit for their oil and gas business.”
http://www.grist.org/article/2011-03-12-why-doesnt-congress-give-a-damn-about-climate-hint-not-messaging
“The Koch Brothers’ End Game in Wisconsin: take over state-owned power plants for pennies”
http://climatechangepsychology.blogspot.com/2011/02/koch-brothers-end-game-in-wisconsin.html
“12 Politicians and Execs Blocking Progress on Global Warming”
#1 Rupert Murdoch #2 Koch brothers ….
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/lists/whos-to-blame-12-politicians-and-execs-blocking-progress-on-global-warming-20110119/rupert-murdochceo-news-corporation-19691231
—-
[…] kunnen fucken’ en internetdiscussies verstoren. “We manipulate the medium … that’s how you control the online dialogue” zo stelt een van de instructeurs en zo verzuipen we in de propaganda, […]
[…] ‘polls kunnen fucken’ en internetdiscussies verstoren. “We manipulate the medium … that’s how you control the online dialogue” zo stelt een van de instructeurs en zo verzuipen wij in de propaganda, wordt […]