stillprecious8:03PMDec 29th 2007

"He says only 5 companies control information in this country. I wonder who he means?"

Answer:

Time Warner, Disney, Murdoch's News Corporation, Bertelsmann of Germany, and Viacom (formerly CBS) -- now control most of the media industry in the U.S. General Electric's NBC is a close sixth.


Please tell us, Tommy Christopher, you really did already know that.

ThirdRail4:42AMJan 3rd 2008

Check out our exclusive interview with democratic presidential candidate Senator Mike Gravel. We discuss his current campaign as well as his recent exclusion from the Des Moines Register debate. Listen to it in its entirety at http://media.libsyn.com/media/thirdrail/Third_Rail_Senator_Mike_Gravel_12.19.07.mp3

joewrotehaikus4:25AMFeb 10th 2008

I like your Winston Churchill quote and the question about popular will on 9/12/2001. I think it is important not to trust ourselves but so much, which is why the National Initiative (look it up, daggonit!) keeps the established branches of government, and gives said elected officials a chance to weigh in on the initiatives up for vote. On top of that, Supreme Court gets to decide if an initiative is constitutional. I would suggest, although I can't say for sure if it's already established by law, that military action be kept in check by Congress and the president.

OK, so yes, voters are stupid. Thats why they elect scum and then whine about it later. Good news is, if they vote in bad legislation, who do they whine about? They whine about their own stupidity, and with a little luck, they correct it, and then correct the bad legislation. I think Americans should feel responsible for their government's actions instead of at odds with them. Then we can start "talking with the man in the mirror."

DebbieKat12:44AMFeb 12th 2008

I've recently become a Mike Gravel supporter. I had been supporting Kucinich until he ended his candidacy. I had liked what I heard of Gravel during the few debates and chances he was given to speak. I think it's horrendous what our media has done to the presidency. We need to change how we go about choosing our candidates in this country. Too many people rely on the media and, as Mike states in his answer, it IS owned by only 5 corporations. This is a fact. And it's getting worse. Between corporate ownership and advertising dollars, the networks are beholden to their shareholders, owners and advertisers. The citizens are the ones who lose out. Luckily we have the internet, and it seems that at least there is more availability of information on these candidates available this way than any other. But, unfortunately, a majority of Americans only get their news from TV and newspapers. We need to devise a better grassroots way of getting these great candidates like Mike Gravel noticed. I wish I had known more about him sooner. I had no idea what an amazing resume he has until very recently. I happily supported him during my state's caucus. Most folks were there for Obama and a good portion for Clinton. Most people didn't know who Mike was. I don't even know if those running our caucus knew there was a third candidate running because I had to speak up to get my minute to ensure people knew it. It's a sad, sad state this country is in right now. Especially when, even at the caucus, people were going back and forth about who had more experience... Hillary or Obama. And there's Mike Gravel with this extraordinary background and they don't even know he exists.