Lots of obvious buzz today about the “victory” of Democratic candidates in the House and Senate races. Conservatives are blaming their Repulican candidates for shooting themselves in the foot and Democrats are celebrating victories on hollow, or, in most cases, non-existant platforms.
But it wasnt politicians who won or lost these elections. These elections were won by the MSM. It has been their coverage of the news – whether it’s been about the economy, domestic policies, immigration, or, their favorite horse to beat: the War In Iraq – that has shaped public opinion. And it’s through this shaping of public opinion and creation of “the issues” – brought about by distorted and slanted reportage from those esteemed members of the press who are overwhelmingly liberal in the views and opinions – that policy will now be set.
So, to Republicans I say dont fret. This election is just proof that the David of a political party didnt beat the Goliath of the Mainstream Media.
And to the Democrats celebrating I say enjoy these hollow victories all you can. It may seem as if your party has won, but those who will really be calling the shots from now on – the MSM – arent the people you elected to lead this country.
Yes. It’s ironic that the only real parallel between Vietnam and our involvement in Iraq is in the massively dishonest press coverage.
Val, anyone who reads MSM outlets like AP and Reuters (especially) knows about the distortion. But I wouldn’t give too much credit to the MSM, just as I don’t give that much credit to the Democrats.
Contrary to what they would have us think, this wasn’t a referendum on the decision to invade Iraq. That referendum happened in 2004, and we all know how that went.
These mid-terms were a referendum on the situation in Iraq as it stands today. In the words of General Patton: “Americans love a winner. Americans will not tolerate a loser.” And when I see hawks like LTC Ralph Peters calling for withdrawal in an op-ed piece, I start to wonder what the hell is going on here.
I think the only good news to come out of yesterday’s election was Liberman’s victory. And that’s not saying much.
The other parallel with Vietnam is the refusal to fight hard. While we won all the military actions in both wars, we were unwilling then, and are unwilling now to crush the enemy. Vietnam was supported by a majority of Americans through Richard Nixon’s election in 1968. He promised a plan to end the war – which most folks in my part of the country took to mean end the war by winning. When it became clear in the early 70s that Nixon intended no such thing, support collapsed, and what had been an anti-draft movement became an anti-war movement. The Republicans failure to fight hard cost them the election – and it may cost us our civilization, as the American people seem to lack the will to fight the enemies of freedom.
Yoan,
You may be right, of course. And since youve actually served in the Sandbox you obviously have a better understanding of the situation over there. Still, though, I cant help but think that the MSM’s coverage has been unbelivebaly slanted on the war in Iraq and that has played a major role on war policy.
Ive stated this before, but truly, as much as I admire and respect and thank the Armed Services of the US, I dont think this country will ever again win another war. And it wont be because of those fighting siad war or the equipment and arms available, it will be because the MSM deteriorates the one thing needed, absolutely, to be victorious over an enemy: the will of the American people to win.
I take comfort in the fact that lots of good measures passed. The affirmative action-ban succeeded in Michigan, Clinton’s phoney-baloney ethanol program where he claimed to know what was going on in Brazil (he didn’t) failed in California. Gay marriage failed in some other state. Some illegal immigrant measure passed somewhere, too. I suspect the Dems won’t dare govern like the nuts that they are. I am probably overoptimistic but it’s all I can do. The Dems may be there but they might be forced into acting sanely or get booted in two years. I sure hope so.
I usually don’t do personal attacks but a little humor shouldn’t hurt anybody. Here are a few phrases that describe all those who voted for a Democrat:
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Hills/3456/h_creative.html
Yoan, I agree with you.
Val, I agree with your statement about the will of the American people…and the best example of that is the movie “Flags of our Fathers” a time when the press was a bit more into spilling support than confidential information.
On November 4th 1992 I thought the world was going to end. But of course it didn’t. Two short years later the Republicans won a stunning victory taking over the house for the first time in like 40 years. And the truth is that we were a better opposition party than the party in charge.
So now it’s time to regroup. Val as you correctly stated the media has been throwing rocks at us for 6 years now and now the Dems are going to have to feel some heat because we’re the ones with the rocks in our hands now.
Much as I hate to say this, we may not get our will back until our backs are to the wall. It seems to be the way Western nations are shaken out of their stupor.
If there’s one constant in present-day conservative ideology, it’s blame the media game.
Time for some soul searching. Don’t put it off the same way you kick “RINOs” to the curb.
Lesly can kiss my ass.
I could, but I have to live with myself.
While the dem’s razor-thin edge is a victory, this was no landslide. But a lot of their candidates moved either to the center or just to the right of it while campaigning — not much different from the opposition.
Watch all the wacky leftist initiatives that have lost across the country … from a reverse of affirmative action in MI to the ban on gay marriages in several states. Take those in the light of the dem victory.
By the way, while I agree with Val and George up to a point, I believe it’s counterproductive to blame the media. The White House needs an overhaul in its communications department; they need to kick ****ss when it comes to handling the so-called WHouse press corps. They’ve been playing nice with the vipers and they’ve been bitten in their sitting muscles. Until they go on a take-no-prisoners offense with the MSM wackjobs, expect more of this.
Better yet, get some of that big time conservative money and start an alternative news channel or newspaper. Like the Herald — it gets away with murder because it has no competition.
Lesly,
Youll forgive me, tbut there’s more than ample proof of the meida’s blatant slant and bias, especially regarding the War in Iraq. It has been documented plenty of times in plenty of places and your failure or refusal to accept the verifiable facts as widely presented in the aforemetioned make you comments here, and on your blog, disingenuous at best, completely worthless at worst.
and one other thing, Lesly, regarding your “RINOs” comment. You need look no further than the Lamont/Lieberman game to see absolute proof of a political party throwing one of their own to the wolves, and with disastrous results for that party.
Remember just a few years ago, Lierberman was the Deomcratic vice presidential candidate, and today, he’s the pariah.
LOL! Talk about sour grapes, denial and revisionism. It’s all here in this blog entry!
The “David” of a political party? Are you kidding me? Under what rock have you been living during the past 4-6 years? You know, as the GOP amassed control of the 3 federal branches, the governors’ seats and most state assemblies? Oh yeah, and I’m sure the big, bad media (does that include Fox News and Drudge too?) includes the bevy of former high-ranking military officials that are on record criticizing this administration’s bungling of Iraq? I suppose the media conjured the Abrahmoff scandal out of thin air? Puh-lease. Get a grip.
For once I actually agree with George: Republicans have to get back to their roots. IMO, the Libertarian platform today is the Republican platform of yesterday. IOW, a platform of fiscal responsibility and decentralized authority. The GOP has whored itself out to too many fringe elements of its base. The best, most obvious examples are the religious right and “social conservatives.”
Ah, happy checks & balances are here again…
digitalcubano,
I think they have “whored” themselves but not to whom you say. Instead they’ve done it to all the politically correct elements in Washington. They’ve spent money like drunken sailors and have sold out to the interests of big business to the detriment of of the middle class.
Also, Harry Reid and other Dems have plenty of scandals and nothing happened to them. Why would Senator Reid making over 1 million bucks on property that he no longer even owns not be HUGE news. What would have happened if instead of Reid it was Hastert? What about William Jefferson’s frozen money?
So the MSM has had a hand in this. It can’t be denied.
Mavi is right on the money: the MSM has not played up Dem scandals the way they have the Reps. What Harry Reid did is a HUGE ethical violation. Yet… not a fucking word spread in the MSM after the AP broke the story. Wonder why? Bias, maybe?
DigitalCubano, I can’t believe I’m writing this, but… but… I… arrrrgghhh… agree… with you that fiscal responsibility and decentralized authority have been forgotten by the Reps. On the other stuff, you’re still full of… well you know.
Lesly!! What are you doing back on the blog? Did the remedial reading classes end early this year, or did they let you our early ’cause they ran out of milk & cookies?
Val dijo: You’ll forgive me, but there’s more than ample proof of the meida’s blatant slant and bias, especially regarding the War in Iraq. It has been documented plenty of times in plenty of places and your failure or refusal to accept the verifiable facts as widely presented in the aforementioned make you comments here, and on your blog, disingenuous at best, completely worthless at worst.
What I find disingenuous, not to mention depressing, is how easily regulars make assumptions about non-Republicans posting on this blog. For example, I didn’t deny there is bias in the media. You may believe I did, but I didn’t. I simply remarked that conservatives blame the media even in the best of times.
Yes, there is media bias and plenty of evidence to ascertain that. It’s in the media’s best interest to agree with you. You’re more likely to watch news outlets that confirm your own biases and raise their Nielsen ratings.
What I reject is the “liberal media conspiracy/persecution” meme propagated by conservatives. It flies in the face of reason for Conductor to say “Val as you correctly stated the media has been throwing rocks at us for 6 years” when one takes into account that the media couldn’t lick the administration’s balls more thoroughly if it tried in the build-up to the Iraq invasion.
I’ve noticed the media is sucking up to the Left lately. Why? Because the media is a de facto lapdog allowing whichever party it perceives to be riding the tide of public support to take it by the leash. And that’s something both parties can honestly bitch about.
Lesly, please, don’t try to convince us that there is no organized “meme” going on here because there is. You are so wrong on so many levels, and so disingenuous in your comments, that I’m going to hand you over to our readers for their persepctives.
Suffice to say that the liberal media has been against conservatives AS LONG AS I HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN THE POLITICAL PROCESS — and that’s from the Vietnam days. I vividly remember the contempt and, yes, hatred, thrown at Ronald Reagan, with all those snide jokes and subtle insults about his intelligence. I’ve lived through it Les, and that’s why what you say is absolute rubbish.
I don’t think this election is a surprise or the “big referendum†the news pundits are making it out to be. Admittedly I am a Republican (and a Christian), but I do not count myself with the religious right. Both parties are full of hypocrisy, Nancy Pelosi being the biggest hypocrite of all with here millions of dollars and employment of un-documented workers for her wine vineyards.
Another point that played into the election is that (unfortunately) many Americans saw the Republican answer (which could have been done better) to Michael J Fox’s commercial as an attack, when in reality Fox opened himself up for criticism, but the media would not allow a fair discussion here. The problem was that people in the media thought that Fox was above criticism because of his disease, but he was not. If someone with every bad thing that could happen to a person came out and backed Osama Bin Laden (or Adolph Hitler) as the greatest most moral man to walk the planet, they should be open to criticism (Quite honestly my life has sucked, but I am not above criticism.
All this said, I am certainly do not always agree with the Republicans. The religious right is more about image than substance and I can say this from experience; I have three special needs children and our Evangelical Church turned its back on us in our family’s darkest hour. One has Autism and was kicked out of our Evangelical Church Nursery, who knows, maybe stem cell research can help him. My daughter was “harmed†by a person during a nervous breakdown my wife had after multiple difficulties and diagnosis with our children.
The interesting thing about the large switch of congressional seats is unlike the pundits claim of a referendum, this is quite normal in two ways; One it is common for the party in power (President) to loose seats in the midterm; Two every president since the Civil War has lost seats in a big way during war time, and this includes Roosevelt in WWII (considered to be a popular war?) and Lincoln in the Civil War. And I personally think Lincoln was our greatest president, the Emancipation Proclamation was very un-popular and as important as the Civil War was in holding our nation together, it was neither popular or a good vs. evil war (unlike WWII in my opinion), there were plenty of issues on both sides.
Common Lesly, what about the Lancet report that came out a few weeks ago. Anyone with some math skills would tell you that they exagerated the number of deaths in Irak to the point that it is actually absurd. Yet the media took it as HUGE news, when it was a number based on a very bad estimation process.
The media doesn’t ride the tide of public support. First, because their polls are slanted. Second, because they favor the liberal left whether there is a Republican or a Democrat in power. Third, because they are in essence sensationalistic and because they are selective in their coverage of HUGE news. And Finally, even if the media did intend to ride with the tide of public support, that is still wrong because they should be reporting FACTS and giving fair coverage, NOT riding with any tides whatsoever.
There is bias in the media, like you said, and it DOES have an influence on public opinion, especially when it comes to the voters whose source of info is the MSM. Not all voters have time to go on blogs and on the internet and find out what the MSM is under-reporting or slanting.
The MSM has a responsability which is not fullfilling, and that is something that has yet to be solved.
BTW Charles Rangel is chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, what kind of crap is that?????
I am just grateful that there is a presidential veto, thank you checks and balances!!!!!
Moneo dijo: Lesly, please, don’t try to convince us that there is no organized “meme” going on here because there is. You are so wrong on so many levels, and so disingenuous in your comments, that I’m going to hand you over to our readers for their perspectives.
I’m not here to convince anyone of anything, Moneo. Least of all you. I’m giving my 2c. I don’t buy into a grand conspiracy. You do. That’s fine. It takes coordination to pull one off. A liberal media conspiracy wouldn’t let something as trivial as demand for conservative news and opinion to be realized with FOX News (Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, John Gibson, Neil Cavuto, Steve Doocy, E.D. Hill, Brian Kilmeade, Brit Hume), Clear Channel, Laura Ingraham, Dr. Laura, Rush Limbaugh, Hugh Hewitt, Ann Coulter, Newsmax, G. Gordon Liddy, Michael Reagan, Michael Savage, The New York Post, Sinclair Broadcast Group (WLOS13, Fox 45, WTTO21, WB49, KGAN, WICD, WICS, WCHS, WVAH, WTAT, WSTR, WSYX, WTTE, WKEF, WRGT, KDSM, WSMH, WXLV, WURN, KVWB, KFBT, WDKY, WMSN, WVTV, WEAR, WZTV, KOTH, WYZZ, WPGH, WGME, WLFL, WRLH, WUHF, KABB, WGGB, WSYT, WTTA), David Horowitz, Rupert Murdoch, PAX, and MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough.
qbanartemisa dijo: Common Lesly, what about the Lancet report that came out a few weeks ago. Anyone with some math skills would tell you that they exaggerated the number of deaths in Iraq to the point that it is actually absurd. Yet the media took it as HUGE news, when it was a number based on a very bad estimation process.
I haven’t read the report and don’t want to comment on it. I will say, however, that the random death toll sampling method used in Iraq, cluster sampling is the same sampling methodology used in every war-torn region of the world. The “political hacks” with an ax to grind at John Hopkins didn’t cook it up overnight.
BTW, Lesly, the name is George. Calling someone by their last name is rude… 🙂
Okay, George.
Lesly
The report claimed that there have been 655 000 civilian deaths since the Iraq war started. If you do some math that gives a rate of 500 deaths per day which in itself is a very absurd unrealistic number. The Lancet people definetly did some real bad “cooking” of numbers because not only are all those bodies of dead nowhere in sight, but the actual number of casualties is around 48 000 according to the Iraq Body Count detailed database of each violent incident.
But what is more absurd is that the MSM took in this inaccurate estimate by the Lancet report and portrayed it as NEWS and as truthfull.
It is just ugly manipulation from the MSM
gbanartemisa dijo: If you do some math that gives a rate of 500 deaths per day which in itself is a very absurd unrealistic number. The Lancet people definitely did some real bad “cooking” of numbers because not only are all those bodies of dead nowhere in sight,
Corpses don’t march themselves to the morgue in war and humanitarian situations. To deny this is to deny Saddam is responsible for the mass graves we’ve dug up since occupation. The IBC, as I understand it, only adds up alleged deaths reported in the media. They don’t do research, and the media is more interested in reporting violent deaths than deaths related to infrastructure or the Iraq government’s ability to meet the needs of its citizens.
The average 6th year loss is 31 House seats and 8 Senate seats, yet the Dems, with the most favorable political environment imaginable, were only able to win 29 and 6.
Yesterday was actually a GREAT day for the GOP. It will flush out the dead wood like Lincoln Chafee and Conrad Burns and George Allen (who exposed himself as a buffoon) and allow the party enough time to regroup for 2008.
This GOP Congress did absolutely nothing on tax reform, nothing on corporate tax policies that drive jobs to Mexico and Asia, nothing on illegal immigration, etc., and yesterday they paid the piper.
I have to say, I’m disappointed in both Hispanics and whites. Hispanics appear to have defected back to the Dems in large numbers, which exposes them yet again as the pro-illegal aliens, pro-big govt people they’ve always been. Meanwhile, whites — the main losers in the pro-illegal aliens, pro-big govt movement — also voted heavily Dem even though the Dem party offers them nothing.
I guess, in the end, people get what they deserve.
Lesly,
Guess what, people die in wars. that’s the reason wars are bad.
The problem is that the MSM reports only on the death and doom aspects of the war. they dont report on the infrastructure of the country being rebuilt, on US service men and women rebuilding schools, mosques, hospitals. Organizations like Operation Give and others dont get any mention about the great work they do.
Yes. People are dying in Iraq and that’s an awful thing, but fact of the matter is that death and destruction arent the only happening in Iraq, yet you would never tell for the MSM coverage of it.
digitalcubano,
Learn to read, or do some reading comprehension exercises. I compared the Republican party to David as related to the MSM Goliath and not the Democrats. Aint nothing Goliath about the Democratic party save for its collective ego.
The Lancet “report”?! Please.
I think the Administration hasn’t helped its own cause, either. It’s true the Marines have more or less failed at destroying the insurgency in places like Fallujah and Ramadi. They’ve stabilized the situation, but the MSM has had a field-day with how crappy things are in al-Anbar.
Meanwhile, the Army kicked al-Qa’eda’s butt in Tal Afar. As far as I know, President Bush made one speech about it. *One* speech about possibly the greatest _military_ victory against the insurgency thus far.
Lesly,
BTW, thanks for that list. Here’s one for you to ponder:
ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, TBS, NPR, CNN, BBC, HBO, HSN, MTV, VH1, Showtime, The Abortion Channel, Gore TV, Reuters, The Associated Press, Time Magazine, Newsweek, The New Republic, the Nation, The New Yorker, TV Guide, People Magazine, Teen People, Us Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, Oprah Magazine, Ladies Home Journal, Woman’s Day, The Advocate, Esquire, Vogue, Cosmopolitian, Humpty Dumpty, Architectural Digest, Cat Fancy, Playboy, Penthouse, Hustler, Swank, Sugar Tits Quarterly, the Harvard Perspective, High Times, The New
York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Seattle Times, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Seattle Weekly, The Boston Globe, The Village Voice, The San Francisco Chronicle, The San Francisco Examiner, USA Today, The Washington Post, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Arizona Daily Star, The Anniston Star , The Decatur Daily, Montgomery Advertiser, The Tuscaloosa News, Anchorage Daily News Arkansas Time, Tuscon Daily Star, The Alameda Times-Star, Contra Costa Times, The Los Angeles Daily News, The Fresno Bee, Marin Independent Journal, Merced Sun-Star, The Modesto Bee, The Monterey County Herald, The Oakland Tribune, La Opinion, The Santa Rose Press Democrat, The Sacramento Bee, San Jose Mercury News, San Mateo County Times, Santa Cruz Sentinel, The Valejo Times-Herald, The Eureka Times Standard, The Ventura County Star, Aspen Daily News, The Boulder Daily Camera, Durango Herald, Fort Collins Coloradoan, Greeley Daily Tribune, The Stamford Advocate, The Wilmington News Journal, Bradenton Herald, Daytona Beach News-Journal, Florida Today, The Gainesville Sun, The Miami Herald, Orlando Sentinel, The Palm Beach Post, St Petersburg Times, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Treasure Coast News/Press-Tribune, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Macon Telegraph, The Honolulu Advertiser, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, Bonner County Daily Bee, The Idaho Statesman, Chicago Defender, Chicago Sun-Times, Edwardsville Intelligencer,Rockford Register, Lafayatte Journal and Courier, The Des Moines Register, Iowa City Press-Citizen, Quad City Times, The Storm Lake Tribune, The Hutchinson News, Lexington Herald-Leader, The Louisville Courier-Journal, Teen Lexington Herald-Leader, Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer, The Shreveport Times, Bangor Daily News. the Kennebec Journal, Portland Press Herald, The Baltimore Sun, The Berkshire Eagle, The Framingham MetroWest Daily News, Milford Daily News. The Springfield Republican, The New Bedford Standard-Times, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, The Argus-Press, The
Bay City Times, The Battle Creek Enquirer, the Detroit Free Press, The Flint Journal, the Lansing State Journal, Livingston County Daily Press & Argus, The Muskegon Chronicle, Parasites Weekly, Petoskey News-Review, The Saginaw News, the Port Huron Times Herald, Traverse City Record-Eagle, Duluth News Tribune, The Mankato Free Press, St. Cloud Times, the Columbia Daily Tribune, The Kansas City Star, St. Louis American, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Springfield News-Leader, Billings Gazette, Las Vegas Mercury, the Las Vegas Sun, the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Nevada Appeal, the Reno Gazette-Journal, the Concord Monitor, The Keene Sentinel, the Portsmouth Herald, The Nashua Telegraph, the Lebanon-Hanover Valley News, The Bergen Record, the Burlington County Times, the Bridgewater Courier News, the Camden Courier-Post, The Vineland Daily Journal, the Parsippany Daily Record, The Jersey Journal, The Gloucester County Times, The Hackensack Record, the Newark Star-Ledger The Trenton Times, the Albuquerque Tribune, The Santa Fe New Mexican, The Buffalo News: “News for Discerning Buffalo”, the Oneonta Daily Star, The Ithaca Journal The White Plains Journal-News, The Corning Leader, Newsday, The Glen Falls Post-Star, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, the Elmira Star-Gazette, the Staten Island Advance, the Albany Times-Union, Willie the Wino’s Grand Central Station Restroom Scribblings, the Asheville Citizen Times, The Charlotte Observer, the Elizabeth City Daily Advance, The Greenville Daily Reflector, The Raleigh News & Observer, the Greensboro News & Record, The Southern Pines Pilot, the Wilimgton Star-News, The Bismarck Tribune, the Grand Forks Herald, the Akron Beacon Journal, The Toledo Blade, the Dayton Daily News, the Zanesville Times Recorder, The Daily Astorian, the East Oregonian, the Medford Mail Tribune, the Portland Oregonian, The Eugene Register-Guard, the Salem Statesman Journal, The Coos Bay World, The Beaver County Times, The Bucks County Courier Times, the Wilkes-Barre
Citizen’s Voice, The Doylestown Intelligencer, the Uniontown Herald-Standard, The Allentown Morning Call, the Washington Observer-Reporter, The Philadelphia Daily News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, the Anderson Independent-Mail, The Myrtle Beach Sun News, The Memphis Commercial-Appeal, The Jackson Sun, Nashville Scene, The Tennessean, The Berkeley Daily Planet, Berkeley Voice, The Berkeleyan, ¡Berkemundo!, The Baytown Sun (11,374), the Corpus Christi Caller-Times, the Lone Star Iconoclast, the Longview News-Journal, The Lufkin Daily News, the Waco Tribune-Herald, the Bennington Banner, the Brattleboro Reformer, The Burlington Free Press, the Rutland Herald, The Barre-Montpelier Times Argus, the Newport Daily Press, The Roanoke Times, The Virginian-Pilot, The Everett, The Olympian, The Tacoma News Tribune, The Bremerton Sun, the Tri-City Herald, the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, the Boston Phoenix, the Charleston Gazette, the Huntington Herald-Dispatch, Howard Stern, the Madison Capital Times, The Green Bay News-Chronicle, the Racine Journal Times, the Kenosha News, the La Crosse Tribune, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The Sheboygan Press, The Wausau Daily Herald, The Guardian, The Independent, the Paris Daily Snivel, Der Spiegel, Democracy Now. The Huffington Post, The Progressive Review, Alternet, Dissident Voice, AntiWar.com, Common Dreams, Truthout.org, MoveOn.org, TomPaine.com, Counterpunch, The People’s Kool-Aid, BlameBush!, Mother Jones, High Times, The Progressive, New Internationalist, Multinational Monitor, Covert Action Quarterly, The American Prospect, Dollars and Sense, The Progressive Populist, The Weekly Standard, New Left Review, Pacifica Radio, Progressive Mind, Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, YouTube, Marvel Comics, The Weekly World News, Indymedia, DailyKos, Wonkette, DemocraticUnderground, The Prairie Home Companion, Coast to Coast with George Noory, Pravda, Granma, and Al Jazeera.