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Stonewalled: One Reporter's Fight for Truth in Obama's Washington
Who's been Hacking Sharyl Attkison's computers? Computers that turn themselves on in the night, make strange noises, then shut themselves down. Whoever is doing it is using highly sophisticated spyware available only to our top intelligence agencies. Is someone trying to send Attkisson a message?
Seasoned CBS reporter Sharyl Attkisson reveals how she has been electronically surveilled while digging deep into the Obama Administration and its scandals, and offers an incisive critique of her industry and the shrinking role of investigative journalism in today’s media
Americans are at the mercy of powerful figures in business and government who are virtually unaccountable. The Obama Administration in particular has broken new ground in its monitoring of journalists, intimidation and harassment of opposition groups, and surveillance of private citizens.
Sharyl Attkisson has been a journalist for more than thirty years. During that time she has exposed scandals and covered controversies under both Republican and Democratic administrations. She has also seen the opponents of transparency go to ever greater lengths to discourage and obstruct legitimate reporting.
Attkisson herself has been subjected to “opposition research” efforts and spin campaigns. These tactics increased their intensity as she relentlessly pursued stories that the Obama Administration deemed dangerous to it. Stonewalled is the story of how her news reports were met with a barrage of PR warfare tactics, including online criticism, spying in her personal computer, probable phone taps, illegal access to her business lines to CBS, as well as emails and phone calls up the network chain of command in an effort to intimidate and discourage the next story. In Stonewalled, Attkisson recounts her personal tale, setting it against the larger story of the decline of investigative journalism and unbiased truth telling in America today.
Seasoned CBS reporter Sharyl Attkisson reveals how she has been electronically surveilled while digging deep into the Obama Administration and its scandals, and offers an incisive critique of her industry and the shrinking role of investigative journalism in today’s media
Americans are at the mercy of powerful figures in business and government who are virtually unaccountable. The Obama Administration in particular has broken new ground in its monitoring of journalists, intimidation and harassment of opposition groups, and surveillance of private citizens.
Sharyl Attkisson has been a journalist for more than thirty years. During that time she has exposed scandals and covered controversies under both Republican and Democratic administrations. She has also seen the opponents of transparency go to ever greater lengths to discourage and obstruct legitimate reporting.
Attkisson herself has been subjected to “opposition research” efforts and spin campaigns. These tactics increased their intensity as she relentlessly pursued stories that the Obama Administration deemed dangerous to it. Stonewalled is the story of how her news reports were met with a barrage of PR warfare tactics, including online criticism, spying in her personal computer, probable phone taps, illegal access to her business lines to CBS, as well as emails and phone calls up the network chain of command in an effort to intimidate and discourage the next story. In Stonewalled, Attkisson recounts her personal tale, setting it against the larger story of the decline of investigative journalism and unbiased truth telling in America today.
336 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 16, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 203 reviews
November 25, 2017
The title of this book is an attention-grabber, first and foremost and sells this book badly. In reality it is not aimed at bad-mouthing the Obama administration per sé, but throws a punch at government in general, all politicians, and big business controlling everything. Everyone who takes tax paying seriously, should read this book.
An eye-opening account of what investigative journalists have to deal with 24/7. It is a fascinating glimps on the behind-the-scenes dramas to get information out to the public.
Sharyl Attkisson describes the role of the press, the responsibility it has to tax payers to hold everyone accountable, and the challenges they face to collect and release information to the public. Their investigative efforts are seriously hampered by Big Business, Government, and media bosses. She not only describes the problems but provides numerous incidences and examples of how and when the journalists are/were thwarted.
This book is not written to entertain readers, but to provide evidence and information about the media world in all its corrupt glory. How the media fails the public. How tax money disappear; how bad guys rule the roost and get away with it. And they populate the entire Congress, not only one party. The players are stationed everywhere in government and they are dangerous people. Big Corporations have their own way of dealing with the whistle blowers.
The author manage to shed a light on the courageous journalists and provides a much needed insight on the media's challenges to succeed. It is clearly written by a professional person who values integrity and news reporting seriously. She defends the First Amendment of the Constitution against the forces who wants to destroy the rights it guarantees to every American citizen. The picture she draws is disturbing. The First Amendment is in serious trouble. And so are the American citizens.
It took me a while to finish this book between other reads, but I'm glad I did it.
An excellent read.
PS: One of my next reads will be The Silencing; How the Left is Killing Free Speech by Liberal journalist Kirsten Power. I just listened to a 2012 interview with ex-CNN reporter Amber Lyon, being fired from CNN for exposing CNN's biased reporting due to being paid by countries to suppress the real news stories and airing their propaganda instead.
An eye-opening account of what investigative journalists have to deal with 24/7. It is a fascinating glimps on the behind-the-scenes dramas to get information out to the public.
Sharyl Attkisson describes the role of the press, the responsibility it has to tax payers to hold everyone accountable, and the challenges they face to collect and release information to the public. Their investigative efforts are seriously hampered by Big Business, Government, and media bosses. She not only describes the problems but provides numerous incidences and examples of how and when the journalists are/were thwarted.
This book is not written to entertain readers, but to provide evidence and information about the media world in all its corrupt glory. How the media fails the public. How tax money disappear; how bad guys rule the roost and get away with it. And they populate the entire Congress, not only one party. The players are stationed everywhere in government and they are dangerous people. Big Corporations have their own way of dealing with the whistle blowers.
The author manage to shed a light on the courageous journalists and provides a much needed insight on the media's challenges to succeed. It is clearly written by a professional person who values integrity and news reporting seriously. She defends the First Amendment of the Constitution against the forces who wants to destroy the rights it guarantees to every American citizen. The picture she draws is disturbing. The First Amendment is in serious trouble. And so are the American citizens.
It took me a while to finish this book between other reads, but I'm glad I did it.
An excellent read.
PS: One of my next reads will be The Silencing; How the Left is Killing Free Speech by Liberal journalist Kirsten Power. I just listened to a 2012 interview with ex-CNN reporter Amber Lyon, being fired from CNN for exposing CNN's biased reporting due to being paid by countries to suppress the real news stories and airing their propaganda instead.
November 27, 2014
Scary. One of the best books you’ll read about the problems with reporting today’s news and the unbelievable current government surveillance programs being used against people like Sharyl Attkisson. This book puts Snowden and Clapper in context. CBS reporter Sharyl Attkisson’s story of the Obama administration’s hacking/intrusion of her work and personal computers is frightening. It’s a bazaar tale; it took good investigative reporting to figure out which government agency was responsible. But her analysis of current journalism – its failure to investigate stories, simply accepting the Obama administration’s official position – is well documented. She gives a perfect explanation of what’s wrong with today’s journalism, how it’s corrupted by the owners and advertisers of major news outlets and why newsroom managers get frustrated and tired fighting the Obama administration’s spin of today’s news. How bad is it? From a former executive editor for the Washington Post: “ . . . the Obama administration [is] the news media’s top choice for Least Transparent American Presidency in Modern Times.” And from the New York Times chief Washington correspondent: “This is the most closed, control freak administration I've ever covered.” Highly recommended; this book answers a lot of questions.
November 16, 2014
Whether you are a liberal, moderate, or conservative; whether you get your news from the internet, the newspapers, network TV, cable TV or the radio; you must read this book. A well written account of a journalist's experiences covering Washington for many decades.
Highly recommended to all who consider themselves thinking members of American society.
Highly recommended to all who consider themselves thinking members of American society.
June 16, 2021
WARNING: Reading this book will change how you view your evening news casts (assuming you still watch any). This is not a liberal versus conservative book as Ms Attkisson has done investigations exposing corruption and waste of tax dollars on the entire spectrum and has numerous awards for her work. It is, at its core, a first-hand account of the decline of investigative journalism in America and who is controlling what will be shown and not shown in the newscasts. Today's news departments are more like a business than ever before. Their management is easily swayed when it comes to what stories they feel are important and often based on outside influence from advertisers who may pull their ads to politicians who may limit access. The world of independent investigative journalists has drastically shrunk in recent years. And many of the on line sites that pass themselves off as independent new sources are nothing more than PR outlets for one side or the other; you have to look behind the facade to see who is providing their funding, who they are connected to, etc. This book will definitely heighten your awareness of what is really happening to news sources in America today. And what you will learn should scare and deeply concern everyone. Excellent book, fast read, very well written, hard to put down. I can see why Sharyl Attkisson wins awards for her writing.I just wish I could rate more than 5 stars!
November 14, 2014
Sharyl Atkinson's incredibly interesting & well-done book exposes the thuggish tactics Obama has been using to coerce the few members of the American media who do not cover-up for him reflexively. And the Obameister's illegal threats, spying & other vicious actions have been tried repeatedly against Atkinson, as she pursued Obama's myriad criminal violations of the US Constitution & Federal statutes. These have included Fast & Furious, the Benghazi terror attacks , abuse of the IRS, abuse of the NSA, abuse of the EPA, the Obamacare frauds, the Green Energy frauds, the Solyndra Bankruptcy frauds, & others.
Ms. Atkinson's credentials are rock solid, since as a 30-years investigative reporter, 20-years of which were at CBS News, she has pursued investigations of both GOP & Democrat administrations to great effect. In her experience no other administration has ever employed the illegal concealment & coercion tactics against the press.
Atkinson names names & there are plenty to go around, but the driving force behind his administration's abuses & crimes is the Gum-Chewer-In-Chief, Barack Hussein Obama, who continues to stain his sacred office daily!!!
Try taking the "Blue Pill" & awaken to the reality of the Obama Matrix. It may frighten you & you will never see the world in the same manner, but you will be connecting to reality, possibly for the first time. CDE
Ms. Atkinson's credentials are rock solid, since as a 30-years investigative reporter, 20-years of which were at CBS News, she has pursued investigations of both GOP & Democrat administrations to great effect. In her experience no other administration has ever employed the illegal concealment & coercion tactics against the press.
Atkinson names names & there are plenty to go around, but the driving force behind his administration's abuses & crimes is the Gum-Chewer-In-Chief, Barack Hussein Obama, who continues to stain his sacred office daily!!!
Try taking the "Blue Pill" & awaken to the reality of the Obama Matrix. It may frighten you & you will never see the world in the same manner, but you will be connecting to reality, possibly for the first time. CDE
December 20, 2016
I started this book after Donald Trump was elected, wondering if I would find some things in here to help me think through the assault on the press that has started and will intensify. Never do we more need fearless investigative journalism than the days now and ahead.
The problem is that Sharyl Attkisson is not a credible messenger. She really does seem out to get President Obama, which dilutes her ability to raise concerns about real issues decreased cooperation with the news media, a concern that reads a few years later as quaint as a lily rose, and hacking and spying, as revealed by Edward Snowden. Instead of staying here, most of the book seems bent upon Benghazi and HealthCare.gov hyperventilating -- and explaining why so many trusted reporters are totally wrong and she is right. She makes the story all about her, a journalism faux pas, and claims that she is apolitical and committed to holding all sides accountable, although she trashes Media Matters -- a fact-based group with integrity -- on multiple occasions while boosting "The Daily Signal," Heritage Action's "news," as just the facts or whatever.
If Ms. Attkisson is truly committed to holding all sides accountable, one hopes she will turn her energy and talents to the Trump administration, where lack of transparency and the thuggish bullying she accuses the Obama administration of is hiding in plain sight.
Whether you are Democrat or Republican this outdated book will make excellent kindling for your holiday fire. If you can stand told hold your nose and get some dirty looks on the Metro, I do believe it's valuable to read people you strongly disagree with. What she has to say about the declining support for investigative journalism is important. Too bad it's wrapped in her agenda.
The problem is that Sharyl Attkisson is not a credible messenger. She really does seem out to get President Obama, which dilutes her ability to raise concerns about real issues decreased cooperation with the news media, a concern that reads a few years later as quaint as a lily rose, and hacking and spying, as revealed by Edward Snowden. Instead of staying here, most of the book seems bent upon Benghazi and HealthCare.gov hyperventilating -- and explaining why so many trusted reporters are totally wrong and she is right. She makes the story all about her, a journalism faux pas, and claims that she is apolitical and committed to holding all sides accountable, although she trashes Media Matters -- a fact-based group with integrity -- on multiple occasions while boosting "The Daily Signal," Heritage Action's "news," as just the facts or whatever.
If Ms. Attkisson is truly committed to holding all sides accountable, one hopes she will turn her energy and talents to the Trump administration, where lack of transparency and the thuggish bullying she accuses the Obama administration of is hiding in plain sight.
Whether you are Democrat or Republican this outdated book will make excellent kindling for your holiday fire. If you can stand told hold your nose and get some dirty looks on the Metro, I do believe it's valuable to read people you strongly disagree with. What she has to say about the declining support for investigative journalism is important. Too bad it's wrapped in her agenda.
July 24, 2015
This book can best be described as a lengthy opinion piece, with a heavy overlay of paranoia. Attkisson's oft stated claim of being politically neutral rings hollow. (Methinks the lady doth protest too much.) This book is likely to appeal to conspiracy theorists who lean well to the right of the political spectrum.
Attkisson comes across as being difficult and possibly delusional. There are few or no reliable sources, and even less attribution. Seemingly ordinary events are painted with a paranoid brush: telephone hangups are interpreted as government wiretapping; the appearance of an innocuous white van on the author's street is perceived as surveillance rather than a local contractor calling on a neighbor. Unnamed sources "confirm" Attkisson's biases.
Although the author entreats the reader to question the news, what we read, etc., she clearly expects us to accept her seemingly wild stories hook, line, and sinker, despite a striking lack of evidence. Furthermore, the author habitually discredits almost all other journalists, except in those instances where they are recognizing her superior talents. No story is more important than hers, and woe be tide to any editor who chooses another piece instead of hers. It leads one to conclude that Attkissons problems probably stem from her own insufferable behavior.
Attkisson comes across as being difficult and possibly delusional. There are few or no reliable sources, and even less attribution. Seemingly ordinary events are painted with a paranoid brush: telephone hangups are interpreted as government wiretapping; the appearance of an innocuous white van on the author's street is perceived as surveillance rather than a local contractor calling on a neighbor. Unnamed sources "confirm" Attkisson's biases.
Although the author entreats the reader to question the news, what we read, etc., she clearly expects us to accept her seemingly wild stories hook, line, and sinker, despite a striking lack of evidence. Furthermore, the author habitually discredits almost all other journalists, except in those instances where they are recognizing her superior talents. No story is more important than hers, and woe be tide to any editor who chooses another piece instead of hers. It leads one to conclude that Attkissons problems probably stem from her own insufferable behavior.
November 8, 2014
I have had this book on pre-order since I first heard of it's coming release way back in early April. And it was worth the wait! Attkinsson has an easy writing style, very readable and the story flows. She has been involved in most of the top stories of the past decade. If you are among those who even still fall into the 'I believe whatever my Government tells me is the truth' circles much of what she reveals will likely anger you and be dismissed out of hand. Exactly what they are banking on. She has the facts and knows of that which she writes. This book is so full of counter information it has left me almost on overload. And frankly, I need to think on it for a week or two and then begin again to reread it all. It's nearly too much information for one dosing. An excellent, well documented and truthful telling of a government, and country, flying off the rails. It's chilling.
January 9, 2015
Scary. Not a fun read. It should probably be at least a 4 for the Benghazi section alone. But I had no enjoyment in reading about the PR and marketing practices that are considered current truth in politics. The Politics of Healthcare section UNDERTELLS, if that is possible, the slant in which it was promoted. Not every one was too dumb to understand it, I'd guess.
It is tough to be principled and to fight against this kind of ant crushed by a boot process to begin with, but she has documented to a 5 star. Kudos!
It is tough to be principled and to fight against this kind of ant crushed by a boot process to begin with, but she has documented to a 5 star. Kudos!
November 13, 2014
Attkisson has given us a book about investigative journalism - a search for the truth no matter where it leads. I am a conservative but find this type of journalism near to my heart and beliefs. Attkisson has shown that she goes after liberals and conservatives. That type of real, factual journalism I can believe and have faith in. She discusses how the politicians, especialy the White House, can make things very difficult for those who do not follow the White House line and has written a very creditable book on the matter. If you like this type of journalism or are wary of losing your freedoms, this book makes for an excellent read.
J. Robert Ewbank author "John Wesley, Natural Man, and the Isms" "Wesley's Wars" and "To Whom It May Concern"
J. Robert Ewbank author "John Wesley, Natural Man, and the Isms" "Wesley's Wars" and "To Whom It May Concern"
December 19, 2014
This is easily the best book of 2014. I sincerely think everyone should read this. There would be a lot of people unwilling to accept the documented facts contained herein, and would dig their heads further into the sand to deny what is happening with their own government and the press, whose job is ostensibly to be a watch dog.
In a nutshell, Stonewalled is about how the government operates and how they interact with the media. If it were a simple matter of "the government lies" well, that's not much of a story. The story is the pattern of lies, manipulation and withholding of what should rightfully be public documents, and using "communications" people as their personal PR staff instead of them doing media relations and communicating with the public. No one expects a government agency to not spin issues in the light most favorable to them, but there is a huge difference between spinning and outright lying, bullying, and manipulating.
The common way of doing business for the Obama administration seems to be that when a reporter airs a story about X,Y, and Z the administrations denies everything. When faced with incontrovertible proof, they'll say "well it turns out that X happened, but not Y or Z." More evidence is provided, and the next line is "OK X and Y happened, but not Z. That's just outrageous to even consider, it never happened." Then eventually, "oh, I misunderstood the question. X,Y, and Z all happened, but the president had no knowledge of it." Somewhere in that process, which may stretch out for months, the reporter and his or her sources are demonized, phone calls are made to editors and managers, and paid bloggers parrot the administration's spin so that anyone who Googles the issue will find liberal blogs posing as news as the top hits.
I can't say I'm a "fan" of Attkisson's but for a long time I was a news junky and I watched her quite often in her early days, and thought she was one of the best. That opinion hasn't changed. She still is one of the best. I confess that I assumed that she may have developed a lean to the right, based on her reporting in the last few years, but she addresses that perception in Stonewalled. She provides plenty of instances where the targets of her investigations were Republicans or Republican interests. In an expose' about how freely congress spends tax dollars on earmarks, she profiled the six worst Democrat offenders, and six worst Republican offenders. The worst of all was Ted Stevens, the Republican from Alaska.
This book should serve as a loud wake up call about what our government has become, and the incestuous relationship between the government and the press. The reason I wish everyone would read this book is because I believe most people of any political stripe would be outraged enough not to settle for this anymore. And the ones who choose to ignore the wake up call, well, at least they wouldn't be able to say they didn't know.
In a nutshell, Stonewalled is about how the government operates and how they interact with the media. If it were a simple matter of "the government lies" well, that's not much of a story. The story is the pattern of lies, manipulation and withholding of what should rightfully be public documents, and using "communications" people as their personal PR staff instead of them doing media relations and communicating with the public. No one expects a government agency to not spin issues in the light most favorable to them, but there is a huge difference between spinning and outright lying, bullying, and manipulating.
The common way of doing business for the Obama administration seems to be that when a reporter airs a story about X,Y, and Z the administrations denies everything. When faced with incontrovertible proof, they'll say "well it turns out that X happened, but not Y or Z." More evidence is provided, and the next line is "OK X and Y happened, but not Z. That's just outrageous to even consider, it never happened." Then eventually, "oh, I misunderstood the question. X,Y, and Z all happened, but the president had no knowledge of it." Somewhere in that process, which may stretch out for months, the reporter and his or her sources are demonized, phone calls are made to editors and managers, and paid bloggers parrot the administration's spin so that anyone who Googles the issue will find liberal blogs posing as news as the top hits.
I can't say I'm a "fan" of Attkisson's but for a long time I was a news junky and I watched her quite often in her early days, and thought she was one of the best. That opinion hasn't changed. She still is one of the best. I confess that I assumed that she may have developed a lean to the right, based on her reporting in the last few years, but she addresses that perception in Stonewalled. She provides plenty of instances where the targets of her investigations were Republicans or Republican interests. In an expose' about how freely congress spends tax dollars on earmarks, she profiled the six worst Democrat offenders, and six worst Republican offenders. The worst of all was Ted Stevens, the Republican from Alaska.
This book should serve as a loud wake up call about what our government has become, and the incestuous relationship between the government and the press. The reason I wish everyone would read this book is because I believe most people of any political stripe would be outraged enough not to settle for this anymore. And the ones who choose to ignore the wake up call, well, at least they wouldn't be able to say they didn't know.
October 4, 2015
I have for some time felt I was not getting the news I wanted to hear about from the Big Three Networks, ABC, CBS and NBC. I also felt there was a biased not only in the news that these three networks put on the air but that bias may have been what caused them to NOT put certain stories on air.
Stonewalled is Ms. Attkisson's personal story about how she would research and do the leg work on various stories only to have CBS initially show great interested but then bury the story and it would never see air time. Stories on Fast and Furious, Benghazi and Obamacare to name a few. While Ms. Attkisson never directly states the "why" they never saw air time it is quite obvious at least to me why they were buried.
Some of the reasons were personal agendas, White House pressure and pressure from advertisers none of which should keep stories from being aired but that is what happened.
This is a book that every American should read. It is proof positive that if you are getting your news from ABC, CBS and/or NBC, you are only getting part of the news that is ongoing. A horrible situation.
Stonewalled is Ms. Attkisson's personal story about how she would research and do the leg work on various stories only to have CBS initially show great interested but then bury the story and it would never see air time. Stories on Fast and Furious, Benghazi and Obamacare to name a few. While Ms. Attkisson never directly states the "why" they never saw air time it is quite obvious at least to me why they were buried.
Some of the reasons were personal agendas, White House pressure and pressure from advertisers none of which should keep stories from being aired but that is what happened.
This is a book that every American should read. It is proof positive that if you are getting your news from ABC, CBS and/or NBC, you are only getting part of the news that is ongoing. A horrible situation.
November 27, 2014
How many times have you been frustrated and confused by the news and thrown up your hands in despair saying "We'll never know the real truth of what happened!"? Well, Sharyl Atkinsson is one of a few journalists who refuse to follow the Administration's party line, or "AstroTurf" as she calls it which is designed to draw everyone away from the truth and onto the sleight of hand they are currently pushing. This book should be a must read for every voter - and she is neither pro Republican, nor Democrat. Atkinsson reveals the junk that goes on to lure the press and the public into following the lies and twists in today's "news". Even to the point of bugging an honest reporters computers... Chilling, but it fits! Great and inspiring read!
July 16, 2017
This was interesting at first, quite gripping actually, but as the book progressed it became a rather tedious read. I think that I would have appreciated it more had read this when it was published a few years ago, when it was current and fresh. I wish that I had read it then.
December 20, 2014
Non-partisan. Well-written. True journalism. Fact-based. Award-winning journalist.
Sad to see a veteran watchdog like this minimized after decades of thorough, trustworthy work. I'm a conservative, and I view (it appears correctly) CBS as liberal. Attkisson always caught my attention for her non-partisan reporting, otherwise, I wouldn't give CBS two seconds of my time. I appreciate the investigative work. I appreciate the simplifying of a complex story without leaving out the guts of the controversy or altering the guts of the news of the story. Attkisson is an old-school reporter who knows her role - that of being a watchdog over government and other entities where there is so much room for fraud and very little oversight. Sadly, this kind of truth in reporting is falling by the wayside.
This is the story of a knowledgeable, instinctive, well-trained journalist who does it the correct way - with elbow grease and legwork - and gets shunned for it. This type of Woodward and Bernstein investigative work is a thing of the past. Young journalists today need to read this book (and it should be required reading in J-Schools nationwide) because it shows you that politics WILL filter into your work life - but you can't let it dictate where the story leads you. If you have integrity, you will be met with pushback. Attkisson pushed BACK, and I intend to follow her freelance work religiously. With no incestuous relationships between network uppers and the government, imagine the insight she'll be able to provide and the fraud she could expose!
This sounds eerily similar to what John Stossel went through over at ABC. He gives a very similar account of being freezed out by network execs, his stories being strung along until they are no longer newsworthy, or just flat out being told to "drop the story" by ABC execs. So that's CBS and ABC.... Hmmmmm .... I see a pattern.
Sad to see a veteran watchdog like this minimized after decades of thorough, trustworthy work. I'm a conservative, and I view (it appears correctly) CBS as liberal. Attkisson always caught my attention for her non-partisan reporting, otherwise, I wouldn't give CBS two seconds of my time. I appreciate the investigative work. I appreciate the simplifying of a complex story without leaving out the guts of the controversy or altering the guts of the news of the story. Attkisson is an old-school reporter who knows her role - that of being a watchdog over government and other entities where there is so much room for fraud and very little oversight. Sadly, this kind of truth in reporting is falling by the wayside.
This is the story of a knowledgeable, instinctive, well-trained journalist who does it the correct way - with elbow grease and legwork - and gets shunned for it. This type of Woodward and Bernstein investigative work is a thing of the past. Young journalists today need to read this book (and it should be required reading in J-Schools nationwide) because it shows you that politics WILL filter into your work life - but you can't let it dictate where the story leads you. If you have integrity, you will be met with pushback. Attkisson pushed BACK, and I intend to follow her freelance work religiously. With no incestuous relationships between network uppers and the government, imagine the insight she'll be able to provide and the fraud she could expose!
This sounds eerily similar to what John Stossel went through over at ABC. He gives a very similar account of being freezed out by network execs, his stories being strung along until they are no longer newsworthy, or just flat out being told to "drop the story" by ABC execs. So that's CBS and ABC.... Hmmmmm .... I see a pattern.
May 5, 2015
Sharyl Attkisson's book is troubling because of the picture it portrays of TV news.
As a former journalist who did investigative reporting I was always enamored with the legacy of CBS News. But the inside picture painted by Attkisson is one of a petty organization where a few high-level editors are able to act at gatekeepers to assure their own political slant on stories is represented on the network news shows. I want to believe her allegations are false because I want to believe that some news organizations are above politics. Sadly that's doesn't seem to be the case at least at CBS.
All investigative journalists are sometimes stonewalled when pursuing controversial stories. The fact that Attkisson was stonewalled is not surprising considering what was at stake in the stories. I'm a little troubled that she decided to highlight the stonewalling of the Obama Administration as if it has never happened before. It occurred before Obama and will happen after Obama regardless of which political party is in control of the White House. What is new is the level of sophistication in the tools they use to gain access to computers and other private information.
When Attkisson decided to focus on the Obama administration and include the ridiculously inflammatory subtitle, it immediately placed the book into the realm of politics subjecting her work to the age-old liberal vs. conservative arguments. This is unfortunate because it could have been a much better book had it focused more on journalism in general and an inside view of CBS in particular. As it turned out, her book came across as just another partisan voice in an already crowded field. If she is upset with the way the book has been received in some quarters, she needs to accept part of the responsibility in the way she handled the material.
As a former journalist who did investigative reporting I was always enamored with the legacy of CBS News. But the inside picture painted by Attkisson is one of a petty organization where a few high-level editors are able to act at gatekeepers to assure their own political slant on stories is represented on the network news shows. I want to believe her allegations are false because I want to believe that some news organizations are above politics. Sadly that's doesn't seem to be the case at least at CBS.
All investigative journalists are sometimes stonewalled when pursuing controversial stories. The fact that Attkisson was stonewalled is not surprising considering what was at stake in the stories. I'm a little troubled that she decided to highlight the stonewalling of the Obama Administration as if it has never happened before. It occurred before Obama and will happen after Obama regardless of which political party is in control of the White House. What is new is the level of sophistication in the tools they use to gain access to computers and other private information.
When Attkisson decided to focus on the Obama administration and include the ridiculously inflammatory subtitle, it immediately placed the book into the realm of politics subjecting her work to the age-old liberal vs. conservative arguments. This is unfortunate because it could have been a much better book had it focused more on journalism in general and an inside view of CBS in particular. As it turned out, her book came across as just another partisan voice in an already crowded field. If she is upset with the way the book has been received in some quarters, she needs to accept part of the responsibility in the way she handled the material.
January 28, 2015
I'd like to give this book 6 stars.
I use 4 stars for books that I think people with similar reading tastes to me would like. I use 5 stars for books that I think even people that normally read different books than me would like.
I use 6 stars for people that don't ever read books that should go out of there way to read a book. But since 6 stars is like a Spinal Tap 11, I'll reluctantly rate it 5 stars.
The reason I give this such a high rating is that Attkisson has written a book that deserves the attention of every American voter. Incredible as it may seem, Attkisson became a target of the Obama Justice Department. Her computers and phones were illegally tapped and the Obama administration has not denied the spying, nor given an explanation or revealed who ordered it done. (Since the book was published Attkisson has filed a suit against the Obama administration for spying on her.)
The reason Attkisson was a target for government spying is due to her dogged investigative reporting of many of the Obama administration's embarrassments. As a veteran reporter for CBS News Attkisson did breaking stories on the Fast and Furious gun walking scandal, the bankruptcies of numerous green energy companies after Obama provided them with millions in tax dollar support, the Benghazi cover up, and the healthcare.gov fiasco. Attkisson's original stories were an embarrassment to the Obama Administration and they made it a major effort to shut down her stories. The president of CBS News is the brother of a top White House official. On a number of occasions, one of Attkisson's stories would be watered down or even cancelled because it reflected poorly on Obama.
Attkisson points out that most of the news management is very liberal and go out of their way to protect Democrats in office (not surprising to conservatives). The worst example was when CBS had an interview from the day after Benghazi where Obama claimed it was not a terrorist attack (though he knew better) and refused to air it because it contradicted Obama's public position.
Reading this book will leave you sober and maybe a little bit paranoid and scared. Attkisson points out that the government has the tools to remotely control a car's gas pedal and brakes. (Then she points out a reporter friend working on a probe of government died in a mysterious car crash.) Mostly it should make you mad that we have a rogue government spying on reporters who are doing the important job of making sure that government is acting in the best interest of it's citizens and not in the best interest of special interest groups and government bureaucrats.
Nixon was impeached for actions that were not as bad as what Obama's underlings have done. We don't know if Obama has personal knowledge of these criminal actions, but he has taken no action to clean house. He's just better at covering up than Nixon was.
I use 4 stars for books that I think people with similar reading tastes to me would like. I use 5 stars for books that I think even people that normally read different books than me would like.
I use 6 stars for people that don't ever read books that should go out of there way to read a book. But since 6 stars is like a Spinal Tap 11, I'll reluctantly rate it 5 stars.
The reason I give this such a high rating is that Attkisson has written a book that deserves the attention of every American voter. Incredible as it may seem, Attkisson became a target of the Obama Justice Department. Her computers and phones were illegally tapped and the Obama administration has not denied the spying, nor given an explanation or revealed who ordered it done. (Since the book was published Attkisson has filed a suit against the Obama administration for spying on her.)
The reason Attkisson was a target for government spying is due to her dogged investigative reporting of many of the Obama administration's embarrassments. As a veteran reporter for CBS News Attkisson did breaking stories on the Fast and Furious gun walking scandal, the bankruptcies of numerous green energy companies after Obama provided them with millions in tax dollar support, the Benghazi cover up, and the healthcare.gov fiasco. Attkisson's original stories were an embarrassment to the Obama Administration and they made it a major effort to shut down her stories. The president of CBS News is the brother of a top White House official. On a number of occasions, one of Attkisson's stories would be watered down or even cancelled because it reflected poorly on Obama.
Attkisson points out that most of the news management is very liberal and go out of their way to protect Democrats in office (not surprising to conservatives). The worst example was when CBS had an interview from the day after Benghazi where Obama claimed it was not a terrorist attack (though he knew better) and refused to air it because it contradicted Obama's public position.
Reading this book will leave you sober and maybe a little bit paranoid and scared. Attkisson points out that the government has the tools to remotely control a car's gas pedal and brakes. (Then she points out a reporter friend working on a probe of government died in a mysterious car crash.) Mostly it should make you mad that we have a rogue government spying on reporters who are doing the important job of making sure that government is acting in the best interest of it's citizens and not in the best interest of special interest groups and government bureaucrats.
Nixon was impeached for actions that were not as bad as what Obama's underlings have done. We don't know if Obama has personal knowledge of these criminal actions, but he has taken no action to clean house. He's just better at covering up than Nixon was.
May 26, 2016
A long time ago, I had heard it said that there's no point in talking to the press, because they make up their stories before they go out and "get the facts". It was, I thought, hyperbole, but in fact Attkisson describes that exact scenario here as SOP for at least some editors. In fact, by the end, you're sort of surprised it isn't all of them.
The beauty of this book is that it will confirm your worst beliefs about the media, wherever you are on the issues. Conservatives, Republicans and "right wingers" will be pleased to see their beliefs about liberal bias confirmed. At the same time, no bones are made about how quickly news operations cave to business interests, as leftists always like to claim.
If you think about it, that means there's damn little an honest reporter can actually write about. In Atkisson's case, where CBS was happy to have her muckraking while George W. Bush was President, they didn't want anything to do with Obama's many scandals. In fairness, a lot of times Ms. Attkisson would be encouraged to pursue a story—but in fairness, when the scandal led to the White House, interest would suddenly stop, and discouragement began in full force.
Conservatives are occasionally mocked for the implications of bias. "As if," the scoffers say, "there's some GRAND conspiracy working against them!" As if a grand conspiracies were needed, when it's virtually expected that the "right sort" of people know the "right sort" of stories they should be reporting on. We'll set aside the whole issue of the head of CBS news being the brother of the President's foreign policy guru (David and Ben Rhodes). Of NBC hiring Chelsea Clinton. Of ABC making Clinton shill Stephanopoulos the face of the news—to say nothing of moderating the GOP 2012 debate.
Attkisson's computers were bugged—quite obviously by the government—and instead of responding with the sort of righteous outrage that is the hallmark of the crusader journalist mythos (think "All The President's Men"), CBS is curiously, even aggressively disinterested, and even hostile toward Attkisson.
Which underscores that it's not really the bias that's the problem. It's the fact that the world is hollow: The government pretends to do things, the news media pretends to report on them, and people pretending to listen to them pretend to be well-informed.
But, this is such an excellent work because you never really know where the author stands, politically. You don't even know where she stands on the specific issues she's covering. You only know where she stands on the subject of the government's responsibility to the public, as well as the media.
And it's a viewpoint not many in the government—or the media—agree with.
The beauty of this book is that it will confirm your worst beliefs about the media, wherever you are on the issues. Conservatives, Republicans and "right wingers" will be pleased to see their beliefs about liberal bias confirmed. At the same time, no bones are made about how quickly news operations cave to business interests, as leftists always like to claim.
If you think about it, that means there's damn little an honest reporter can actually write about. In Atkisson's case, where CBS was happy to have her muckraking while George W. Bush was President, they didn't want anything to do with Obama's many scandals. In fairness, a lot of times Ms. Attkisson would be encouraged to pursue a story—but in fairness, when the scandal led to the White House, interest would suddenly stop, and discouragement began in full force.
Conservatives are occasionally mocked for the implications of bias. "As if," the scoffers say, "there's some GRAND conspiracy working against them!" As if a grand conspiracies were needed, when it's virtually expected that the "right sort" of people know the "right sort" of stories they should be reporting on. We'll set aside the whole issue of the head of CBS news being the brother of the President's foreign policy guru (David and Ben Rhodes). Of NBC hiring Chelsea Clinton. Of ABC making Clinton shill Stephanopoulos the face of the news—to say nothing of moderating the GOP 2012 debate.
Attkisson's computers were bugged—quite obviously by the government—and instead of responding with the sort of righteous outrage that is the hallmark of the crusader journalist mythos (think "All The President's Men"), CBS is curiously, even aggressively disinterested, and even hostile toward Attkisson.
Which underscores that it's not really the bias that's the problem. It's the fact that the world is hollow: The government pretends to do things, the news media pretends to report on them, and people pretending to listen to them pretend to be well-informed.
But, this is such an excellent work because you never really know where the author stands, politically. You don't even know where she stands on the specific issues she's covering. You only know where she stands on the subject of the government's responsibility to the public, as well as the media.
And it's a viewpoint not many in the government—or the media—agree with.
January 12, 2015
The author writes convincingly about the Obama Administration's lack of transparency and willingness to obviate the truth when it comes to topics harmful to his agenda even when one allows for the usual deference afforded politicians who are putting a spin on things; the question is whether this administration transcends the "stonewalling" tactics of the other recent Presidents. Attkisson, who has over 30 years of investigative reporting skills, clearly believes Obama is far worse than the others because of his intimidation, bullying, surveillance and threats of criminal prosecution. She carefully details her case against the administration's team, including the actions of Hillary Clinton, Rice, and others. She also makes it clear that her bosses at CBS allowed their political leanings to affect the news stories by limiting or eliminating various investigative reports; Attkisson provides ample examples where top CBS executives deliberately misled the public for political and economic purposes. Her primary focus is on the "Fast and Furious" U.S./Mexico weapons scandal, Benghazi, the Health Care Program and the government's spying activities on American citizens- including her; specifically, she claims (and has since filed a law suit) that government agents hacked her personal and business computers and cell phones to keep tabs on her. The book levies a strong indictment on the news media in general stating ". . . newsgathering [to them] is defined as, quite literally, gathering other outlet's news". She says reporters have become "expert confirmers" who simply regurgitate government press releases and then report the releases as facts. Attkisson is a little light on her named sources throughout the book and appears to be conservative in her political beliefs. Moreover, I am confident that her allegations are hotly disputed by some, but many of her allegations (especially where they pertain to the media), seem to ring true. The most troubling allegation she makes is that the government invaded her computers and phones, and if this is ever proven to be true, it would be little different than planting devices at the "Watergate" building. I recommend the book.
November 27, 2014
A well written detailed account of an American Dictatorship. Confirmation of my own long held opinions and suspicions. A respected, educated and very experienced investigative journalist presents a bleak outlook for freedom of speech in this country or perhaps more accurately the suppression of information Americans are entitled to by the very same Constitution and premises this country was founded upon. Very accurate description of the National newscasts, although news is somewhat of a misnomer as warm fuzzy feeling stories have replaced meaningful items such as the current slaughter fest in the Mideast, or a large country’s attempt to muscle in on a small country’s oil and gas resources. I have deduced a larger country’s effort to reclaim lost territory is seemingly no longer news worthy. These are eye opening accounts of prevarications, deceit, and bullying by the very leaders we the people have selected based in large part upon their promise to be open and informative. For many households the television is a background diversion, first appliance on in the morning, last off at days end. Meanwhile few can repeat what was said by whom after a given broadcast. Take time to note how many times President Obama says “I am the President”. Staples has their “That was easy” button, our Commander in Chief has his “Executive order” button. This book presents actual and well documented scenarios I would expect of taking place in Russia, China, or numerous other countries where manipulation of and withholding of news and factual accounting have an impact on every citizen. Reading this book has given me pause to reconsider my thoughts on Edward Snowden. I can only commend the author, and in my opinion and figuratively speaking say she has “more balls” than many in the news industry. I highly recommend this book to any all and especially for those with concern for the direction of this country.
May 4, 2015
Outstanding book from a media insider. I sort of expected this to be a pro-conservative book. I was pleasantly surprised to find that, while it's not complimentary of the Obama Administration, it's also not a partisan hit piece. (Though I could see how partisan Democrats could take it as such.) Despite being touted as a promoter of one political-side or the other, Atkisson's work resulted in repeated awards for journalism and recognition for her work (even when her network attempted to prevent her from being recognized).
I believe Atkisson focuses mostly on the Obama Administration out of frustration with them. She says, more than any past administration - including the Bush Administration, of whom she was no fan - the current one has been the worst to deal with from a news reporting standpoint. If press/administration relationships have been adversarial in the past, the current environment seems to be downright war-like. Journalists seem to be either political collaborators or the enemy to this administration. And major media outlets, not wanting to be shut out of Executive Branch news, seem willing to play along. Atkisson also notes that the lack of transparency from this administration and the lack of realization that people in the government are supposed to be public servants and not tinpot dictators.
For news consumers who value the truth more than they value "gotcha" politics or seeing "our side" win, Atkisson's "follow the story where it leads" brand of investigative journalism is sorely need and badly missed these days. I long for a news organization that will ditch the partisanship in favor of the truth. Maybe they'll finally give Atkisson a good home to do the investigative work she does so well.
I believe Atkisson focuses mostly on the Obama Administration out of frustration with them. She says, more than any past administration - including the Bush Administration, of whom she was no fan - the current one has been the worst to deal with from a news reporting standpoint. If press/administration relationships have been adversarial in the past, the current environment seems to be downright war-like. Journalists seem to be either political collaborators or the enemy to this administration. And major media outlets, not wanting to be shut out of Executive Branch news, seem willing to play along. Atkisson also notes that the lack of transparency from this administration and the lack of realization that people in the government are supposed to be public servants and not tinpot dictators.
For news consumers who value the truth more than they value "gotcha" politics or seeing "our side" win, Atkisson's "follow the story where it leads" brand of investigative journalism is sorely need and badly missed these days. I long for a news organization that will ditch the partisanship in favor of the truth. Maybe they'll finally give Atkisson a good home to do the investigative work she does so well.
May 13, 2015
Wow. This is a well-written & compelling indictment of liberal bias in the media, and the declining value placed on independent, objective investigative reporting. An Emmy-winning journalist who was celebrated when she was reporting on the Bush administration scandals is shunned & diminished when she dares to report on the Obama scandals.
The chapters on her Fast & Furious and Benghazi reporting were a bit of a slog to get through because of all the detail involved in her investigations, but by the time you got to the last two chapters on the NSA spying and infiltration of her own personal computers was nothing short of stunning. The overt attempt by CBS News to manipulate the 2012 presidential election by withholding the Steve Kroft interview with President Obama about Benghazi was, unfortunately, not surprising. The phone call Attkisson received from the WH about Benghazi right before the second presidential debate was shocking and goes a long way to explain how Candy Crowley was played during the debate. Anyone who is paying any attention at all to politics & the media will be saddened but not surprised by this book.
It's no wonder trust in the media is at an all-time low. Read this book & you'll think even less of the mainstream media; CBS News in particular.
The chapters on her Fast & Furious and Benghazi reporting were a bit of a slog to get through because of all the detail involved in her investigations, but by the time you got to the last two chapters on the NSA spying and infiltration of her own personal computers was nothing short of stunning. The overt attempt by CBS News to manipulate the 2012 presidential election by withholding the Steve Kroft interview with President Obama about Benghazi was, unfortunately, not surprising. The phone call Attkisson received from the WH about Benghazi right before the second presidential debate was shocking and goes a long way to explain how Candy Crowley was played during the debate. Anyone who is paying any attention at all to politics & the media will be saddened but not surprised by this book.
It's no wonder trust in the media is at an all-time low. Read this book & you'll think even less of the mainstream media; CBS News in particular.
March 24, 2015
This book represents a turning point in how I think both about the US government in general and Obama administration in particular. The content of this book, together with this one: http://www.amazon.com/935-Lies-Declin... leads me to believe that the truth is not valued whatsoever and those who are intent on exposing it will never be protected or respected. This book details why true journalism that holds powerful individuals/orgs accountable does not exist, and perhaps never did?
For someone who grew up in a middle-class, white family who was taught to generally trust institutional authority, this information has opened up a new reality. She details the different ways that the CIA uses to spy on its own citizens and to keep journalists from doing their jobs. She is currently suing the DOJ for hacking into her CBS and personal computers. It's the stuff of movies, but it's real life. Together with the information disclosed by Snowden and Michael Hastings' strange death, Sharyl's story just adds to the evidence of a secret system that I don't think any of us understand. Moyers discussed the beginnings of it in the 80's in this documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28K2C...
For someone who grew up in a middle-class, white family who was taught to generally trust institutional authority, this information has opened up a new reality. She details the different ways that the CIA uses to spy on its own citizens and to keep journalists from doing their jobs. She is currently suing the DOJ for hacking into her CBS and personal computers. It's the stuff of movies, but it's real life. Together with the information disclosed by Snowden and Michael Hastings' strange death, Sharyl's story just adds to the evidence of a secret system that I don't think any of us understand. Moyers discussed the beginnings of it in the 80's in this documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28K2C...
April 18, 2015
George W Bush was elected president the year I turned 20. As a result for the first 8 years of my adult life Bush was president. I was seriously unimpressed with his administration and that's putting it mildly. The patriot act, Iraq war, continued growth of the federal government and overall lack of transparency there was plenty for a young optimist to find objectionable.
But finally 2008 rolled around and there was hope, a new president had been elected and transparency was part of his platform!
Well 7 years have gone by and I find there is much not to like, perhaps this is unsurprising, no plan survives the first shot. But on that key piece of the initial platform: transparency, we may have actually lost ground.
If you believe public officials have a duty to tell the truth then you owe it to yourself to read this book. The topic is covered from several angles and the individual stories are interesting in and of themselves. But the thing that makes this a 5 star book is the overarching theme of an administration serving it's own interests instead of those of the public.
Jerry's Iron Law at work...
http://www.jerrypournelle.com/reports...
But finally 2008 rolled around and there was hope, a new president had been elected and transparency was part of his platform!
Well 7 years have gone by and I find there is much not to like, perhaps this is unsurprising, no plan survives the first shot. But on that key piece of the initial platform: transparency, we may have actually lost ground.
If you believe public officials have a duty to tell the truth then you owe it to yourself to read this book. The topic is covered from several angles and the individual stories are interesting in and of themselves. But the thing that makes this a 5 star book is the overarching theme of an administration serving it's own interests instead of those of the public.
Jerry's Iron Law at work...
http://www.jerrypournelle.com/reports...
November 24, 2014
Attkisson has done her homework, she documents her facts and no one who believes that government should behave legally and ethically should miss this book. The dominant pattern of political strategies overriding facts and spinning stories without correction by journalists and news media outlets is a plague that corrupts our political process. Thomas Jefferson once commented that if he had to choose between living in a nation with government and no newspapers or one with newspapers but no government, he would choose newspapers. I think he might conclude we are on the brink of becoming a nation with government but no newspapers. This is a sobering but significant work of a journalist trying to live up to the historic role of the press in a free society!
August 10, 2015
If you are concerned about what is happening to personal freedom in this country under Barack Obama, you must read this book. It is a powerful litany of government overreach and intrusion on reporters and the press. CBS Investigative journalist Sharyl Atkisson documents in great detail how she was suppressed, ostracized, intimidated, and smeared all because of her investigative reporting on this administration. Worse, her personal and work computers and phones were bugged. Who would do that do you think? This book is extremely scary and hard to put down.
September 20, 2016
Very disappointed by this book after reading all the great reviews.
The first 100 pages felt like a rant that would be more appropriate at after work round of beer with friends than a book. The rest of it lacks substance, the writing style probably work for news articles but for a book i was expecting a more fact based/constructed text instead of a collection of anecdotes.
Could have been a good 30-50 page book.
The first 100 pages felt like a rant that would be more appropriate at after work round of beer with friends than a book. The rest of it lacks substance, the writing style probably work for news articles but for a book i was expecting a more fact based/constructed text instead of a collection of anecdotes.
Could have been a good 30-50 page book.
March 12, 2015
honesty supported by examples and research
Thank you for tKing the time to come forward and share this with your readers. Fairly written and we look to continue hearing from your reporting ... Whether we like it or not!
Thank you for tKing the time to come forward and share this with your readers. Fairly written and we look to continue hearing from your reporting ... Whether we like it or not!
October 26, 2014
It's tough to be principled.
November 27, 2014
From the book review to "Stonewalled" posted on my blog... http://waynenalljr.blogspot.com/
I just finished reading one of the most remarkable and yet disturbing books that I've come across in some time.
Former CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson has written a blockbuster of a book with a blockbuster title: Stonewalled: One Reporter's Fight for Truth in Obama's Washington Despite the attempts to denigrate her in the media (which ironically follows the same pattern of "controversializing" an opponent which she describes in her book), she is eminently qualified to write this book. She has been a working journalist for more than thirty years (over twenty years of that time being with CBS News) and has been described in the Washington Post as a "persistent voice of news-media skepticism about the government's story." She is the recipient of five Emmy Awards and an Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative reporting . Her work has appeared on the CBS Evening News, CBS Sunday Morning, 48 Hours, and CBS This Morning. Up until recently, Sharyl Attkisson has been "an insider's insider." She has done multiple investigative stories critical of both Republicans and Democrats.
Since the book came out last Tuesday, I have read and watched multiple interviews of Sharyl Attkisson. (Not one of these has been with any of the Big Three networks - surprise!). There is one sensational and disturbing section of the book in which Attkisson discloses that both her CBS computer and her personal computer were found to have unauthorized software installed on them that were too sophisticated for anyone but the government to have installed. Almost every interview focuses on this one part of the book, which is indeed incredible and frightening. One of the three separate investigators who analyzed her computers stated that it was "worse than anything Nixon ever did." However, few of these interviews really delve into the bigger picture of what the book is about. In this post, I want to concentrate on the first three chapters of the book. I plan to cover the last three next time, which includes the alarming section about the computer breach.
Chapter 1: "Media Mojo Lost: Investigative Reporting's Recession"
As a consumer of news for the last forty years (I remember watching the Watergate Hearings gavel-to-gavel when I was ten years old. I was a strange kid!), it has been obvious to me that the national news media was and still is flagrantly biased towards the left side of the political spectrum. The difference between the way that a Republican Administration and a Democratic Administration are reported on should be obvious to any thinking person. However, in Stonewalled, Attkisson not only confirms what I've known all along, but shows how endemic this tendency is, citing multiple examples by playing "The Substitution Game" throughout the book. In each of these sections, she chronicles how the mainstream media covers a story coming from the Democratic side, then posits how reporters would have covered the same story if it had come from the Republican side. One example that she gives is then-Senator Obama's remark in 2008 presidential campaign that he had visited fifty-seven states. The news media by and large gave Obama a pass. While stating that everyone knows that he meant forty-seven states, she states, "the remark, nothing more than a verbal gaffe, didn't make big headlines. Substitution Game: What if Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin had uttered the same misstatement? Do you think the news media would've been so quick to overlook it?" Anyone who paid attention to the way the press excoriated Palin would know the obvious answer to that question.
Yet, Attkisson, in her book, shows that the endemic liberal bias of the press is only one of the barriers to fair and honest reporting of the facts. She also makes the following point:
Pushing original and investigative reporting has become like trying to feed the managers spinach. They don't like the taste, but they occasionally hold their nose and indulge because it's good for them—or because it looks good. They much prefer it to be sugarcoated , deep-fried, or otherwise disguised so that it goes down easier.
She states that the mainstream press as a whole has lost its "mojo", which she describes as the press's "ability to serve vigorously and effectively as the Fourth Estate (and be the) watchdog to government and other powers that may otherwise overstep their bounds." The national news media has become compliant. In many cases, they have allowed the government under the Obama administration to bully them into submission. They also practice "playing it safe."
Playing it safe means airing stories that certain other trusted media have reported first, so there's no perceived "risk" to us if we report them, too. We're not going out on a limb; we're not reporting anything that hasn't already been reported elsewhere. But it also means we're not giving viewers any reason to watch us. Playing it safe can mean shying away from stories that include allegations against certain corporations, charities, and other chosen powerful entities and people. The image of the news media as fearless watchdogs poised, if not eager, to pursue stories that authorities wish to block is often a false image. Decisions are routinely made in fear of the response that the story might provoke.
She later states:
The tendency to stick to mostly "safe" stories means you'll see a lot of so-called day-of-air reports on topics that won't generate pushback from the special interests we care about. Think: weather, polls, surveys, studies, positive medical news, the pope, celebrities, obituaries, press conferences, government announcements, animals, the British royals, and heartwarming features. They fill airtime much like innocuous white noise.
She describes this as "homogenized, milquetoast news." She illustrates this by comparing stories from one evening's news on the Big Three networks:
On February 21, 2014, all three networks lead with three minutes on the troubles in Ukraine. Everyone has two to three minutes on the weather: a new popular favorite dominating the news almost every night. Everyone has stories on the Olympics. Everyone does the exact same feature in the middle of their broadcasts about a woman who saved her baby nephew's life (a story widely circulated on the Web the day before). Everyone reports President Obama's decision to award the Medal of Honor. Two of the three networks devote more than two minutes of their precious, limited news time to tributes to their own network's employees: one who passed away and another who is retiring. Are we producing a newscast more for ourselves and each other rather than the public? What did we really tell America on this night that they didn't already know?
What are some of the stories they could have covered instead?
My own network is passing up stories on the crumbling Affordable Care Act; an exclusive investigation I offered about a significant military controversy; an investigation uncovering a history of troubles surrounding Boeing's beleaguered Dreamliner; and massive government waste, fraud, and abuse. Largely untouched are countless stories about pharmaceutical dangers affecting millions of Americans, privacy infringement, the debate over President Obama's use of executive orders, the FDA monitoring of employee email, the steady expansion of terrorism, the student loan crisis, the confounding explosion in entitlements, the heartbreaking fallout from the Haiti earthquake, continuing disaster for government-subsidized green energy initiatives, the terrorist influences behind "Arab spring," various congressional ethics investigations and violations, the government's infringement of and restrictions on the press, escalating violence on the Mexican border, the debt crisis, the Fed's role and its secrecy, to name just a few.
In this chapter, she also describes the many fascinating ways that the government, especially the current administration (which even the press now acknowledges to be the most obstructive in history), manipulates the press for their own ends. In one of the most shocking ways (to me) that they use it what is called "The Astroturf Effect," in which the Obama administration teams up with a cadre of special interests who:
…disguise themselves and write blogs, publish letters to the editor, produce ads, establish Facebook and Twitter accounts, start nonprofits, or just post comments to online material with the intent of fooling you into believing an independent or grassroots movement is speaking.
One of the "astroturf" websites is the ultra-liberal Media Matters, which is an Obama administration sycophant. Even before her book came out this last week, they have been publishing multiple articles supposedly "debunking" this book. Must be hitting close to home!
If the book had only this first chapter, it would have been worth the price of the book. However, there's much more.
To continue...click here. http://bit.ly/1tRUZIr
I just finished reading one of the most remarkable and yet disturbing books that I've come across in some time.
Former CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson has written a blockbuster of a book with a blockbuster title: Stonewalled: One Reporter's Fight for Truth in Obama's Washington Despite the attempts to denigrate her in the media (which ironically follows the same pattern of "controversializing" an opponent which she describes in her book), she is eminently qualified to write this book. She has been a working journalist for more than thirty years (over twenty years of that time being with CBS News) and has been described in the Washington Post as a "persistent voice of news-media skepticism about the government's story." She is the recipient of five Emmy Awards and an Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative reporting . Her work has appeared on the CBS Evening News, CBS Sunday Morning, 48 Hours, and CBS This Morning. Up until recently, Sharyl Attkisson has been "an insider's insider." She has done multiple investigative stories critical of both Republicans and Democrats.
Since the book came out last Tuesday, I have read and watched multiple interviews of Sharyl Attkisson. (Not one of these has been with any of the Big Three networks - surprise!). There is one sensational and disturbing section of the book in which Attkisson discloses that both her CBS computer and her personal computer were found to have unauthorized software installed on them that were too sophisticated for anyone but the government to have installed. Almost every interview focuses on this one part of the book, which is indeed incredible and frightening. One of the three separate investigators who analyzed her computers stated that it was "worse than anything Nixon ever did." However, few of these interviews really delve into the bigger picture of what the book is about. In this post, I want to concentrate on the first three chapters of the book. I plan to cover the last three next time, which includes the alarming section about the computer breach.
Chapter 1: "Media Mojo Lost: Investigative Reporting's Recession"
As a consumer of news for the last forty years (I remember watching the Watergate Hearings gavel-to-gavel when I was ten years old. I was a strange kid!), it has been obvious to me that the national news media was and still is flagrantly biased towards the left side of the political spectrum. The difference between the way that a Republican Administration and a Democratic Administration are reported on should be obvious to any thinking person. However, in Stonewalled, Attkisson not only confirms what I've known all along, but shows how endemic this tendency is, citing multiple examples by playing "The Substitution Game" throughout the book. In each of these sections, she chronicles how the mainstream media covers a story coming from the Democratic side, then posits how reporters would have covered the same story if it had come from the Republican side. One example that she gives is then-Senator Obama's remark in 2008 presidential campaign that he had visited fifty-seven states. The news media by and large gave Obama a pass. While stating that everyone knows that he meant forty-seven states, she states, "the remark, nothing more than a verbal gaffe, didn't make big headlines. Substitution Game: What if Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin had uttered the same misstatement? Do you think the news media would've been so quick to overlook it?" Anyone who paid attention to the way the press excoriated Palin would know the obvious answer to that question.
Yet, Attkisson, in her book, shows that the endemic liberal bias of the press is only one of the barriers to fair and honest reporting of the facts. She also makes the following point:
Pushing original and investigative reporting has become like trying to feed the managers spinach. They don't like the taste, but they occasionally hold their nose and indulge because it's good for them—or because it looks good. They much prefer it to be sugarcoated , deep-fried, or otherwise disguised so that it goes down easier.
She states that the mainstream press as a whole has lost its "mojo", which she describes as the press's "ability to serve vigorously and effectively as the Fourth Estate (and be the) watchdog to government and other powers that may otherwise overstep their bounds." The national news media has become compliant. In many cases, they have allowed the government under the Obama administration to bully them into submission. They also practice "playing it safe."
Playing it safe means airing stories that certain other trusted media have reported first, so there's no perceived "risk" to us if we report them, too. We're not going out on a limb; we're not reporting anything that hasn't already been reported elsewhere. But it also means we're not giving viewers any reason to watch us. Playing it safe can mean shying away from stories that include allegations against certain corporations, charities, and other chosen powerful entities and people. The image of the news media as fearless watchdogs poised, if not eager, to pursue stories that authorities wish to block is often a false image. Decisions are routinely made in fear of the response that the story might provoke.
She later states:
The tendency to stick to mostly "safe" stories means you'll see a lot of so-called day-of-air reports on topics that won't generate pushback from the special interests we care about. Think: weather, polls, surveys, studies, positive medical news, the pope, celebrities, obituaries, press conferences, government announcements, animals, the British royals, and heartwarming features. They fill airtime much like innocuous white noise.
She describes this as "homogenized, milquetoast news." She illustrates this by comparing stories from one evening's news on the Big Three networks:
On February 21, 2014, all three networks lead with three minutes on the troubles in Ukraine. Everyone has two to three minutes on the weather: a new popular favorite dominating the news almost every night. Everyone has stories on the Olympics. Everyone does the exact same feature in the middle of their broadcasts about a woman who saved her baby nephew's life (a story widely circulated on the Web the day before). Everyone reports President Obama's decision to award the Medal of Honor. Two of the three networks devote more than two minutes of their precious, limited news time to tributes to their own network's employees: one who passed away and another who is retiring. Are we producing a newscast more for ourselves and each other rather than the public? What did we really tell America on this night that they didn't already know?
What are some of the stories they could have covered instead?
My own network is passing up stories on the crumbling Affordable Care Act; an exclusive investigation I offered about a significant military controversy; an investigation uncovering a history of troubles surrounding Boeing's beleaguered Dreamliner; and massive government waste, fraud, and abuse. Largely untouched are countless stories about pharmaceutical dangers affecting millions of Americans, privacy infringement, the debate over President Obama's use of executive orders, the FDA monitoring of employee email, the steady expansion of terrorism, the student loan crisis, the confounding explosion in entitlements, the heartbreaking fallout from the Haiti earthquake, continuing disaster for government-subsidized green energy initiatives, the terrorist influences behind "Arab spring," various congressional ethics investigations and violations, the government's infringement of and restrictions on the press, escalating violence on the Mexican border, the debt crisis, the Fed's role and its secrecy, to name just a few.
In this chapter, she also describes the many fascinating ways that the government, especially the current administration (which even the press now acknowledges to be the most obstructive in history), manipulates the press for their own ends. In one of the most shocking ways (to me) that they use it what is called "The Astroturf Effect," in which the Obama administration teams up with a cadre of special interests who:
…disguise themselves and write blogs, publish letters to the editor, produce ads, establish Facebook and Twitter accounts, start nonprofits, or just post comments to online material with the intent of fooling you into believing an independent or grassroots movement is speaking.
One of the "astroturf" websites is the ultra-liberal Media Matters, which is an Obama administration sycophant. Even before her book came out this last week, they have been publishing multiple articles supposedly "debunking" this book. Must be hitting close to home!
If the book had only this first chapter, it would have been worth the price of the book. However, there's much more.
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