Media Spin Toward WTO Summit In Seattle - by Norman Solomon FWD
Tom Boland (wgcp@earthlink.net)
Thu, 11 Nov 1999 15:49:57 -0800 (PST)
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FWD Thu, 11 Nov 1999 09:05:18 -0800
CC Replies To: Norman Solomon <mediabeat@igc.org>
NEARING GLOBAL SUMMIT, WTO ON HIGH MEDIA GROUND
By Norman Solomon / Creators Syndicate
When thousands of protesters converge on Seattle at the end of this
month to challenge the global summit of the World Trade Organization,
they're unlikely to get a fair hearing from America's mass media.
Consider how one of the nation's most influential newspapers framed
the upcoming confrontation as November began. The Washington Post reported
on its front page that the WTO has faced "virulent opposition" -- an
assessment not quoted or attributed to anyone -- presumably just a matter
of fact.
"Virulent"? According to my dictionary, the mildest definition of
the word is "intensely irritating, obnoxious or harsh." The other
definitions: "extremely poisonous or pathogenic; bitterly hostile or
antagonistic; hateful."
Don't you just love objective reporting?
Headlined above the fold on page one of the Post, the Nov. 2
article went on to quote four pro-WTO sources: the organization's
president, a top executive at the Goldman, Sachs investment firm, the U.S.
trade representative and a member of the British House of Commons. In
contrast, quotations from foes of the WTO were scarce and fleeting.
Such coverage of trade issues is significant because it's routine.
For much of the U.S. news media, the virtues of economic globalization are
self-evident, like motherhood and apple pie.
Overall, in recent years, journalists depicted the NAFTA and GATT
trade pacts as steps toward rationality and global progress. Opponents have
been frequently discussed -- but not often heard. The media "debate" over
globalization has resembled the sound of one side clapping.
Many of the anti-WTO activists who'll soon be heading to Seattle
have gained in-depth knowledge about key aspects of trade and the global
economy. They will bring a wealth of information and deep concern about the
environment, labor, human rights and economic justice.
Meanwhile, in the halls of corporate power, strategists are worried.
The Nov. 8 issue of Business Week features a downbeat piece by
Jeffrey Garten, a former undersecretary of commerce in the Clinton
administration, who declares: "In late November, Seattle is likely to be
the scene of a big test for global capitalism. That's when more than 1,000
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are planning to disrupt the kickoff of
a new round of global trade negotiations."
Similar concerns are being voiced by many other media commentators.
What are they afraid of? Undue democratic participation in decision-making.
NGOs "have skillfully exploited the void between shrinking governments
unable to cushion the impact of change on ordinary citizens and
multinational companies that are the agents of that change," Garten writes.
Translation: Huge firms have been able to bend and shape government
policies, while "ordinary citizens" have suffered dire consequences. Rather
than passively accept the results, activist groups are resisting -- and
what's worse, they're getting somewhere.
"While governments and chief executives bore the public and the
media with sterile abstractions about free markets," Garten adds, "NGOs are
sending more nuanced messages sensitive to the anxieties of local
communities around the world. At the same time, they are preparing
sophisticated strategies to influence television networks, newspapers and
magazines."
Translation: Activists are threatening to usurp the prerogatives of
big money to determine the main media messages.
"If Washington and Corporate America don't move decisively," Garten
warns, "NGOs could dominate public opinion on global trade and finance."
Translation: Washington and Corporate America must make sure that
they continue to dominate public opinion.
But the fears of some are the hopes of others: During the week
after Thanksgiving, events in Seattle could signify a breakthrough for
advocates of democratic processes. The surfacing activism could create a
new dynamic powerful enough to shift the terms of public discourse.
Throughout this decade, as government leaders and corporate execs
have marched to the beat of multinational drums, grassroots oppositional
movements have taken root and flowered in many communities. Gradually,
since the founding of the World Trade Organization five years ago, they
have developed ways to monitor the secretive WTO's activities and to work
together -- across boundaries of race, class, language, culture and
nationality.
Truly democratic procedures -- not unelected WTO officials --
should determine the rules of the global economy. The implications are
profound: for human rights, workers, public health and the environment.
With a worldwide movement emerging to challenge the corporate globalizers,
we'll see how much of its message can get through the media filters during
the historic Seattle summit.
_________________________________________________
Norman Solomon's latest book is "The Habits of Highly Deceptive Media."
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