Into the Buzzsaw: Leading Journalists Expose the Myth of a Free Press

by Kristina Borjesson

Featuring a foreword by Gore Vidal, a penetrating collection of powerful essays, from award-winning print and TV journalists, details the perilous state of American journalism in today's world by revealing their own personal experiences with censorship and concerted corporate and/or government efforts to destroy their controversial stories and their careers.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Journalism, Conspiracy Theories, History, Biography, Social Commentary

392 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2002

About the author

Born in Washington, D.C. Borjesson grew up in Port-au-Prince Haiti, the daughter of a civil engineer and a businesswoman. She has been an investigative reporter for thirty years. She published her first book, Into the Buzzsaw: Leading Journalists Expose the Myth of a Free Press, in response to being censored while investigating the 1996 crash of TWA Flight 800. Buzzsaw won the National Press Club’s Arthur Rowse Award for Media Criticism and the Independent Publishers Award. Her second book, Feet to the Fire: The Media After 9/11, was an examination of why the nation’s most prominent reporters and news executives failed to verify the reasons given for going to war with Iraq. Feet to the Fire also won the Independent Publishers Award. Borjesson’s third book, The Reptile Club Librarian, is the fictionalized memoir of a man who spent his career working both sides of the law.

Reviews

[Bruce · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a must read for aspiring journalists and for people who are interested in keeping the U.S. a free, democratic country. These essays by award-winning investigative journalists and news anchors point out how the media moguls control what is news and what is not. The lament several of the authors have is the lack of gumption to go against the grain. Too many reporters and journalists are willing to accept the data sheets provided by both government and corporations rather than do any investigating themselves. The media corporations are more worried about profit than truth. This is perhaps most clearly shown in the actions of international news organization CNN. In the last essay Robert McChesney reports that CNN (the most trusted name in news) broadcast two different versions of the War in Iraq, one was for its international audience the other for domestic consumption. With the consolidation of media outlets into fewer and fewer corporations (conglomerates) we find that the coverage or lack of coverage of certain events and issues are based not on truth but the bottom-line.

[Cwn_annwn_13 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I already knew that the mainstream media is a totally controlled propaganda tool for the ruling class so while these stories were all interesting, none were any surprise to me. What surprised me is that journalists from outlets like CNN, CBS news, Fox news, BBC and major big city newspapers would actually speak out about their experiences being censored, spied on, slandered, threatened and in the case of Gary Webb, in my opinion, murdered after digging up stories that step on the wrong peoples and/or entities toes. The brightside is the independent media is stronger than ever and more and more people are figuring out what a joke the controlled mainstream outlets are.

[Mia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gets 5 stars for its outrage-provoking and often mind-blowing content. I read it when it first came out, but now that I see there is a revised and expanded edition with updates on the original cases and new ones added, including on one Iraq, I think I need to read it again. The Publishers Weekly reviewe said, 'if members of the general public read this book, or even portions of it, they will be appalled.' What higher recommendation do you need?

OK, you need more? Here is the first paragraph of the Amazon book description: "Critics described the first edition of this highly acclaimed book as "fascinating and disturbing," "uplifting" and "infuriating," as well as a "penetrating collection of powerful essays." This highly acclaimed book won the National Press Club’s Arthur Rowse Award for Press Criticism and was selected by the New York Public Library as one of the most extraordinary titles of 2002."

Check out the rest of it as well to get a better idea: http://www.amazon.com/Into-Buzzsaw-LE....

A really important book. I hope you read it too.

[Mia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gets 5 stars for its outrage-provoking and often mind-blowing content. I read it when it first came out, but now that I see there is a revised and expanded edition with updates on the original cases and new ones added, including on one Iraq, I think I need to read it again. The Publishers Weekly reviewe said, 'if members of the general public read this book, or even portions of it, they will be appalled.' What higher recommendation do you need?

OK, you need more? Here is the first paragraph of the Amazon book description: "Critics described the first edition of this highly acclaimed book as "fascinating and disturbing," "uplifting" and "infuriating," as well as a "penetrating collection of powerful essays." This highly acclaimed book won the National Press Club’s Arthur Rowse Award for Press Criticism and was selected by the New York Public Library as one of the most extraordinary titles of 2002."

Check out the rest of it as well to get a better idea: http://www.amazon.com/Into-Buzzsaw-LE....

A really important book. I hope you read it too.

[Lee Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book recently brought back a lot of memories of the 1990s/early 2000s, the constant parade of official lies, and the way the corporate media has given up any pretense of doing real journalism. Terrified that they might be labeled "unpatriotic" or friendly to terrorists, and pressured by their corporate executives to get with the program, reporters in the last few decades have essentially become court stenographers. This book contains many excellent articles about the TWA 800 cover-up, CIA cocaine trafficking, the MIA/POW issue, and other corporate/government scandals. The only weak chapters are by Dan Rather and Maurice Murad, who can't let go of the myths about the "good old days" of journalism, and still cling to some elements of the corporate media in the hope that they are staying well-informed.

[Tom Kenis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite the eyeopener about the state of US media, and where some want to take Europe's too – to the extent that that's not already well underway.
Case in point: the well-documented refutation, at the hands of seasoned investigative journalists whose efforts were thwarted at every turn, of the official story surrounding the demise of TWA flight 800. Igniting fuel vapours in the centre wing tanks due to faulty wiring most certainly did not cause the deaths of 230 people. The sinister truth was kept from the public due to an even more deadly malfunction; that of the fourth estate.

[Marsha]

NPR. "Journalists expose the myth of a free press" --

[Herbert Wagner · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is interesting that the current problem with the main stream media in the United States has been going on since the 1950's according to many of the authors of this book. Divided into a dozen and a half individual essays by various journalists, the book paints an overall picture of a media censored by many sources (entrenched government, big corporations, political groups, etc.). There are few solutions offered and much of the cases are dated (pre 2002), before the emergence of smaller Internet news sources.

[Christel Keijzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Various journalists exposing some of the methods used by media,government bodies and corporations to prevent the truth from getting out, through topics they've experienced and covered in their careers. A reminder to folk on how easily we get hoodwinked and the facts of history get altered. Many of the journalists with integrity lose their jobs, reputations, assets and livelihoods whenever they push to expose the lies.

[Hailey Gosack · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's so nice to finally hear the "behind-the-scenes" take on popular stories with half-truths reported or stories that never made it to mainstream to begin with. This book leaves you with a strong impression of investigative journalism in the modern-day. Does mainstream media today contain true investigative reporting or is it just sponsored/controlled news? Read the book and you be the judge.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

A testament to why our local and national news looks like infotainment. If you want real news, then you have to look for it. For those interested, try Democracy Now, Truthdig, or the Intercept. There are many other worthwhile sites, but these are a good start.

[Charlie Cocks · Rating 5 out of 5]

This may be the most eye-opening book I have ever read. I highly recommend it

[Tony Brasunas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great compilation of stories by censored journalists.

Highlights include the essay by McChesney and the account of Gary Webb.

[Stephanie Griffin · Rating 3 out of 5]

INTO THE BUZZSAW: Leading Journalists Expose the Myth of a Free Press, pretty much says it all right there in the title. Edited by Kristina Borjesson, an Emmy and Murrow Award winner for her investigative journalism, this revised version (published in 2004) contains 19 accounts and essays about the censoring and decline of investigative journalism and the reasons behind it.
Not just for other journalists, the accounts in this book are of serious issues and should be read by everyone.
From the covering up of the number of soldiers left in Vietnam after that war, to the cancellation of investigative reports regarding growth hormones fed to cattle, and the silencing of non-government people over evidence in the TWA 800 crash investigation, the media has been dumbed-down according to the whims of corporations and government. Corporations are dollar-driven, they own a lot of the media outlets, and they want the news slanted in their favor; the government just outright lies or withholds information to keep its citizens pacified.
Each reporter has their own style, some being a bit more professional, some being a bit sensationalist. All together it makes for a well-rounded representation of independent journalism.
Although the incidents written about are all before 2004, they are still important to know and are a good example of what journalists are up against when they attempt to find the truth of matters.

[Harvey · Rating 4 out of 5]

- a collection of stories about journalists who became marginalized (even black-listed and prosecuted) for reporting the "high crimes and misdemeanour's committed by government agencies and powerful, wealthy corporations. Censorship is alive and well in America (the supposed free-speech poster-child for the world). C.I.A. drug smuggling, the Dupont family's criminal history, and the U.S. military's cover-up of shooting down T.W.A. flight 800, were my favourite chapters

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A series of individual essays that show what stories get out and what ones go into the shredder. The old saying from Mark Twain was never truer: If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed

[Beth in SF · Rating 3 out of 5]

Journalists points of view when trying to get their stories in print, and being stopped by the powers that be.

[Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book by reporters on why they can't get certain stories into main stream media. brilliant book.

[Toothy_grin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A vital, reality-based antidote to the propaganda about liberal media.

[Dan Conover · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must-read collection of essays for anyone who claims to be interested in modern news media.

[Allison Thurman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frightening how much the modern American press is compromised.

[Edward Amato · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant expose' on our "Liberal Press" and how corporate America has control over what is reported. If you think you hate Monsanto now, wait until you read this.

[Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read for looking at the main stream media and how it works.