Al Qaeda is thriving on the Internet. It's a phenomenon that is difficult to trace - and even to locate - for Westerners who don't speak Arabic. Radio Free Europe Central Asia analyst Daniel Kimmage gives Brooke a peek at the vast and sometimes disturbing world of the "Jihadist Internet."
Last weekend, Italy held elections for its representatives to the European Parliament. As in other EU member states, the results were an upset for the ruling party. But in Italy, that upset was compounded. The ticket led by television journalist Lilli Gruber, who recently left the public TV station because of government meddling in editorial decisions, trounced that of Prime Minister and media mogul Silvio Berlusconi. NPR's Sylvia Poggioli joins Bob from Rome to discuss the results.
A year ago, the alleged rape victim of NBA star Kobe Bryant exchanged a few text messages. The judge in the Bryant case says those messages could be "highly relevant" to the case and wants the cell phone company to produce the messages. That is possible - text messages, like emails, are stored on servers long after we press "delete". But what about our right to text-message in private? Brooke talks with Barry Steinhardt, director of the Technology and Liberty Project at the ACLU.
In June of 1976, Arizona Republic reporter Don Bolles, who covered organized crime, was murdered in the middle of the day in downtown Phoenix. What followed was a unique collaboration between dozens of investigative reporters from around the country who forgot that they were competitors and converged on Phoenix to finish Bolles' work. It was called The Arizona Project. KJZZ reporter Steve Goldstein recounts the tale.
This week, the National Rifle Association went live on Sirius satellite radio with its 3-hour daily talk show. The NRA says its media aspirations, which include plans to eventually buy actual radio stations, are as much about the first amendment as they are about the second one. Specifically, the group claims it's not subject to pre-election spending limits for lobbying organizations laid out in the McCain Feingold campaign finance law. Why? Because that law exempts newspapers, broadcasters, and other media outlets. Larry Noble, Executive Director of the Center for Responsive Politics, tells Bob what's at
This election season, cinematic fare has taken a decidedly political turn. Maybe it's Michael Moore, maybe it's the so-called politically divided nation, maybe it's that filmmakers can say what campaign advertisers cannot. Brooke explores the new tide of political documentaries and features, and their impact
Production costs are usually the main barrier between filmmakers and a large audience of viewers. But until recently, even well-funded docs had to settle for extremely limited distribution opportunities. Then came the independent film revolution of the 1990's, Michael Moore, and the art-house multiplex. Bob speaks with film historian Peter Biskind about the fall and rise of the documentary genre
Highlights from Past Shows
Ronald Reagan is gone, but at least as far as the cable news networks are concerned, he is not forgotten. Not so with most of the other important news items this week, which were relegated to the nooks and crannies between the Gipper coverage. OTM pauses to consider the casualties in a week of saturation death coverage.
When the Public Broadcasting Service was set up 37 years ago, its founders made various bylaws to insure that it could operate entirely free of political pressure. So for many years, the American right, which saw the network as a mouthpiece for the left, tried to divert public support away from the network. But now, according to New Yorker Ken Auletta, Republicans are changing course. He tells Brooke about how conservatives are changing PBS from the inside-out.
On the Media is funded by The Bydale Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Overbrook Foundation.
