FAIR:
"Of all extremist groups, the far right is consistently given the kindest news coverage in US corporate media. This weekend, the world witnessed a prime example of such friendly treatment in action.
Armed far-right anti-government militants occupied a federal building in Oregon late on January 2 and announced they would remain there indefinitely. Although the armed occupation was ostensibly organized to protest the imprisonment of ranchers on arson charges, the ultra-conservative militants made it clear from the beginning that they were willing to use violence, and hoped to inspire a larger anti-government uprising.
Major US media outlets ignored these basic facts, nevertheless, instead characterizing the far-right militants as peaceful 'ranchers’ rights protesters' and 'activists.' "
-->Why isn't this a mainstream story, how the media coddles rightwing, militia groups? Too busy stirring up Islamophobia, and these rancher groups are Christian.
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Common Dreams:
"Joining the techies and pitchers of gizmos at this week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas was Edward Snowden in a surprise 'telepresence' appearance via his trusty robot Beam. Beamed in from Moscow, Snowden virtually turned up at the Suitable Technologies booth, just down from the U.S. Army booth, utilizing the same roaming screen on wheels he used at a TED talk last year.
A Snowden Beam also resides in the offices of his ACLU attorneys in New York, where he sometimes rolls into the hallways to chat with staff - and once offered emergency medical advice - in a use of new technology his attorney touts as 'a profound response to exile.' (Less profound, but kinda nifty, is Robot Snowden's Twitter account. Sample tweet: 'Beep boop I believe in transparency.') In Las Vegas, Snowden cited the potential to liberate, transcend borders and subvert government. 'This is the power of Beam, or more broadly the power of technology,' he said onstage. 'The FBI can’t arrest a robot.' "
-->Snowden is off the radar for mainstream media, despite this being a good story and coming at the opening of the new StarWars movie. The NYT is all about upholding the power of the national security state, not of subverting it.
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Common Dreams:
"Bernie Sanders has won the presidential endorsement of progressive advocacy group MoveOn.org by the largest margin in its history, the organization announced on Tuesday.
With a record-setting 79 percent of 340,665 votes cast by the group's members, MoveOn Political Action officially endorsed Sanders for president in 2016.
'His refusal to accept the status quo of the wealthiest Americans using their power to influence politicians matters to me. If we’re going to push back against the rising oligarchy in our country, we need people like Bernie Sanders representing us in government,' said one member, identified as Matt R. from Reston, Virginia.
In fact, according to feedback from voters, the top reason Sanders won their endorsement was his 'lifelong commitment to standing up to corporate and 1% interests to fight for an economy where everyone has a fair shot.' Second on the list was his support for initiatives such as police demilitarization and an end to failed policies like mass incarceration and the so-called War on Drugs."
-->MoveOn has long supported the Clintons, often at the expense of Democratic reform candidates. The fact that this large, on-line community is now endorsing Sanders is a big deal, except for readers of the NYT who didn't get to see this story.
