Free Republic

The latest campaign-finance reports show that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign owes about $2.5 million to the firm of Mark J. Penn, who quit as chief strategist after embarrassing the campaign and left a leadership shake-up in his wake. The debt persisted on the campaign's ledger for February, according to reports filed for the March 20 deadline, despite payments of more than $3 million to Mr. Penn's polling firm that month, according to the most recent campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. Mr. Penn, who has long been a source of internal strife at the campaign, stepped...

Maybe the recession is good for more than just rebalancing family roles. Maybe it can bring a new level of sobriety to parenting itself. "I love this recession for families," says Wendy Mogel, a clinical psychologist and author. "It's helping kids learn to tolerate disappointment and frustration." I'm not sure I love the recession

The New York Times Talks Tough By MarketWatchDec. 8, 2009, 4:24 p.m. EST NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Stop kicking sand at the New York Times Co. already. It's hard to know what to make of the Times sometimes. The publisher boasts the best-known name in media, and yet has often had lots of trouble maximizing the glitter over the years. The Times' problem seems to be indecisiveness. The company understands that the momentum in the media world nowadays seems to be swinging toward charging individuals for content online. Advertising spending continues to be dicey, and media firms must find revenue...

Greta Van Susteren feels sorry for CNN. On her blog today, she writes: So why do I feel bad (almost) for CNN? Because I have friends there...friends who now whisper to me everytime they see me, "what do you think is going on here? The place feels awful...it is dying." I worry about them. I want my friends to have jobs. Don't get me wrong I want to continue to win, but not to the extent their place goes belly up and my friends lose jobs. You should hear what is being said inside CNN. It is really bad when...

The government’s attempt to defend the constitutionality of the accounting oversight board went very badly. The argument before the court turned on whether the president has sufficient control over the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board to make it constitutional. The government argued that the PCAOB was sufficiently controlled by the president because the president has the power to control the SEC by removing the chairman, and the SEC has “comprehensive control” over the PCAOB. The government’s position is likely to be supported by the four most liberal justices on the court and opposed by the four most conservative justices. This...

An amendment to a bill currently being considered by the Senate would deny ordinary citizens doing vital investigations in the public interest the same legal protections as professional journalists. If it were to become law, the change could significantly stifle important citizen journalism efforts similar to the recent ACORN expose

It was on this day five years ago — December 2, 2004 — that Brian Williams took over the NBC Nightly News desk, succeeding Tom Brokaw. "Whatever success we have enjoyed over these five years is thanks to the people I work with and for," Williams tells TVNewser. "It's thanks as well to the fact that I took this baton from a pillar of class and decency, Tom Brokaw — who anchored this broadcast with distinction for 23 years." TVNewser has learned the anniversary will be noted toward the end of tonight's broadcast. But today, Williams is reflecting on more...

WASHINGTON –The head of the Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday the agency will study whether government should aid struggling news organizations, which are suffering from a collapse in advertising revenues as the internet upends their centuries-old business model. FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz's comments came during day one of a two-day "workshop" sponsored by the agency that became a forum for arguments among the heads of a diverse array of news organizations over the future of journalism. Mr. Leibowitz said his agency will examine whether government should change the way the industry is regulated, from making news-gathering companies exempt from antitrust...

Newspaper publishers will now be able to set a limit on the number of free news articles people can read through Google, the company has announced. The concession follows claims from some media companies that the search engine is profiting from online news pages. Publishers will join a First Click Free programme that will prevent web surfers from having unrestricted access. Users who click on more than five articles in a day may be routed to payment or registration pages.

We can abandon Afghanistan and it can revert to being an Islamist police state run by the Taliban. It can return to being a safe haven for those who want to destroy America, exterminate the Jewish race, and create a world in which marrying children and mutilating women’s genitals are the norm. War is indeed hell — not that I’m in any way qualified to make that judgment. (Read Karen Northon to get a more informed view. Patriotic heroes like Leo Thorsness also have a thing or two to say on the matter.) But which is worse: war or a...

For more than five years, Hal Turner of North Bergen lived a double life. The public knew him as an ultra-right-wing radio talk show host and Internet blogger with an audience of neo-Nazis and white supremacists attracted to his scorched-earth racism and bare-knuckles bashing of public figures. But to the FBI, and its expanding domestic counter-terror intelligence operations in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, Turner was "Valhalla" — his code name as an informant who spied on his own controversial followers. Turner's clandestine past was confirmed this past summer when he was jailed on charges that he made...

"TURN OFF FOX," an anti-free speech, Marxist activist group, is forming for the exclusive purpose of stifling dissent against their "Dear Leader", Barack Obama. Their target? FOX News, the only major media outlet not performing as the propaganda wing of the federal government. Consider the following from the "TURN OFF FOX" website:

At the White House today, President Obama will give one lucky turkey a second chance at life and save it from ending up as Thanksgiving dinner. North Carolina farmers send off turkey to be "pardoned" by President Obama. (Bobby Williams/Goldsboro News-Argus)Obama, a former constitutional law professor, will issue a presidential pardon to Courage, a 20-week-old, 45-pound turkey from Princeton, N.C .

When my family lived in West Berlin, some of the simple personal freedoms Germans enjoyed — freedoms that we here in the US don’t have — amazed me. They were small things, really – like no speed limit on the autobahn (highway), and no legal restrictions on the drinking age. Such restrictions have become so commonplace for us, that we can scarcely imagine life without them. I told a German friend of mine that I found it odd that her fellow countrymen had so many more personal freedoms than we do in America. She shrugged her shoulders and said, with...

CNN is now claiming that Nidal Malik Hasan, the Fort Hood shooter, is a conservative. On November 10, 2009, CNN Special Investigations Correspondent Drew Griffin called Hasan “conservative,” [Rush] and now that talking point is being spewed again on today’s front page online story. The story, about Hasan’s search for a wife, discusses how two imams told CNN “about [Hasan’s] conservatism.” The story also mentions Hasan’s “conservative” clothing choices.

Seems that former WSVN and WPLG reporter Olga Bichachi is sick and tired of the fluff her former employers pass off as news, reports SFLTV. She recently joined a group of protestors outside Local 10, and found time to give an interview that was posted on YouTube.

Alice Palmer is a Chicago based academic, activist and former friend, employer and political ally of Barack Obama. In the mid 1990s Alice Palmer, then an Illinois State Senator, employed Obama has her chief of staff, when she attempted an ill-fated run for the US Congress. Obama was part of Friends of Alice Palmer, alongside controversial property developer Tony Rezko and Democratic Socialists of America members Danny Davis, Betty Wilhoitte and Timuel Black-also a member of Committees of Correspondence).

Alice Palmer is a Chicago based academic, activist and former friend, employer and political ally of Barack Obama. In the mid 1990s Alice Palmer, then an Illinois State Senator, employed Obama has her chief of staff, when she attempted an ill-fated run for the US Congress. Obama was part of Friends of Alice Palmer, alongside controversial property developer Tony Rezko and Democratic Socialists of America members Danny Davis, Betty Wilhoitte and Timuel Black-also a member of Committees of Correspondence). continue reading Here

Direct relations were established between the White House and the Muslim community under Bill Clinton from 1992-2000, and were strengthened under George W. Bush’s administration from 2000-2008. Bill Clinton was the first to commend Islam in public speeches, and the first to issue invitations to the White House on Islamic holidays such as a yearly dinner celebrating the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan that continued through George W. Bush’s Administration and into the Barrack Obama’s.

Are you more likely to stay informed of National and World events today than you were one year ago? Yes, new media sources--blogs, websites, etc.--make it easier to stay informed. Yes, events in the past year compel me to stay informed. No, I've always been fairly well informed. No, I've aways avoided the news. My news watching has not changed. No Opinion.

LISTEN TO THE REAL REVEREND JESSE ON THE INTERNET OR A RADIO STATION IN YOUR AREA......BOND Action, Inc...Educating, Motivating and Rallying Americans! The Jesse Lee Peterson Radio Show Streamed live online from 6-9 a.m. PST / 9-12 a.m. EST. Call in the same times usually. For Live Questions or Comments Call 1-888-77-JESSE(5-3773) You can email comments and questions to radio@bondaction.org For more information on getting The Jesse Lee Peterson Show picked up on a station in your local area call Ermias Alemayehu at 1-877-WE ACT77 (932-2877) Go to HERE and order a truckful of these bumper stickers as Jesse says.....

For all of you out there... No matter what branch of the United States Armed Forces you serve under or have served under, this song is dedicated to you. “The Warrior Song” is currently for sale to the public on iTunes for .99 cents. Every purchase supports members of the United States military, as the profits derived from its sale will be donated to the Armed Forces Relief Trust, to be dispersed by, and at the discretion of, the respective charities operated by the Navy/Marines, Army, Coast Guard, Air Force, and National Guard. Active duty and former servicemen and women...

One reads and hears with increasing disbelief and anger that we don't know the motive or motives of Nidal Malik Hasan, the Army major who fired over 100 shots at his fellow American soldiers in order to murder and maim as many as possible. Hasan ended up allegedly murdering 13 people, but government and Army spokesmen and the mainstream media claim they just can't figure out why he did this. They are, however, certain that it was not an act of terrorism. Sunday's New York Times "Week in Review" article about Nidal Hasan was titled "When Soldiers Snap." The gist...

In a case that raises questions about online journalism and privacy rights, the U.S. Department of Justice sent a formal request to an independent news site ordering it to provide details of all reader visits on a certain day. The grand jury subpoena also required the Philadelphia-based Indymedia.us Web site "not to disclose the existence of this request" unless authorized by the Justice Department, a gag order that presents an unusual quandary for any news organization. The subpoena (PDF) from U.S. Attorney Tim Morrison in Indianapolis demanded "all IP traffic to and from www.indymedia.us" on June 25, 2008. It instructed...

This is the link to Fox News 'Live". It is streaming 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and Yes .. It is the channel that we all know and love! (Well except Shep Smith LOL) Seriously though, All of Fox is streamed here .. Including Smith! http://www.tvpc.com/Channel.php?ChannelID=1520

Last week's poll, "Do you believe Fox News is a legitimate news organization?" brought suggestions that we ask the same of MSNBC. So we are.

I manage campaigns for candidates I agree with, (right to life, conservative party etc.). I am a political scientist by training and web designer when not engaged in a fight. I am quite familiar with the political game and I know what is going on. In my college years both undergraduate and graduate level I was for some time a committed Marxist of the Stalinist variant. I devoured everything from Marx to Kautsky, Lenin, Gramsci, Guevara, Mao et al. I have a good insight to what the left does and their tactics. Conservatives have unfortunately been checkmated by the left...

Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats have taken over health care. Despite the tea parties, the town halls, the rallies and the protests, the House of Representatives passed the health care bill 220-215. The bill now heads to the Senate. The legislation on which Barack Obama has hinged his presidency is close to coming to fruition. Unless we act. Republicans, almost to a man, fought the good fight in attempting to stop this massive $2 trillion monstrosity from seeing the light of day. Rep. Candice Miller, R-Mich. said, "We are going to have a complete government takeover of our health care...

A real death threat made public against Christian convert Rifqa Bary.

Our weekly, unscientific poll asks: Do you believe Fox News is a legitimate news organization? Results posted Monday.

Here is a letter that No Compromise wrote to her Congress Critter which you can use if you choose. Plz do not hesitate to fax, call or email your critter today because the House of Reps is expected to vote on this anti-American bill between today and Saturday. NC advices people to fax opposed to call or email as emails are being round-filed by the 1000s.

I've got Comcast in Indiana. Fox news has been down since 6am. Is it down anywhere else?

In the early stages of his presidency, many decisions by President Obama have been viewed as being rash, uninformed, and more than slightly arrogant. But for me, his latest transgression upon the nation singularly stands out. The president's midnight run to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to "honor" 18 Americans killed in Afghanistan was a sensationalistic but desperate political stunt, and he should be called out on it.

Do you believe Fox News is a legitimate news organization? YES, NO or WHO CARES?

It is in this spirit that I am writing to let you know I am supporting Bill Owens for Congress and urge you to do the same. It’s not in the cards for me to be your representative, but I strongly believe Bill is the only candidate who can build upon John McHugh's lasting legacy in the U.S. Congress. John and I worked together on the expansion of Fort Drum and I know how important that base is to the economy of this region. I am confident that Bill will be able to provide the leadership and continuity of support...

Rahm Emanuel once sent a dead fish to a live pollster. Now he's put a horse's head in Roger Ailes's bed. Not very subtle. And not very smart. Ailes doesn't scare easily. The White House has declared war on Fox News. White House communications director Anita Dunn said that Fox is "opinion journalism masquerading as news." Patting rival networks on the head for their authenticity (read: docility), senior adviser David Axelrod declared Fox "not really a news station." And Chief of Staff Emanuel told (warned?) the other networks not to "be led [by] and following Fox."

We need to make some big numbers on this thing. Fox may not be perfect, but its the best we have in terms of Television.

Based on this detailed, comprehensive Mayo Clinic definition, one that I believe perfectly describes Obama, it's obvious he needs prescription medicine and extended psychotherapy. Our country is in tremendous danger with a person suffering from this complex mental illness in our White House.

This week it's ABC News' Jake Tapper asking why the Obama team was treating one of the "sister organizations" so badly -- and the news that the White House had tried to block a Fox News reporter from interviewing the so-called pay czar. (After all the networks objected, the White House relented.) It seems like time for a survey http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2009/10/in_white_house_vs_fox_news_war.html

KABUL, Afghanistan — Ahmed Wali Karzai, the brother of the Afghan president and a suspected player in the country’s booming illegal opium trade, gets regular payments from the Central Intelligence Agency, and has for much of the past eight years, according to current and former American officials. The agency pays Mr. Karzai for a variety of services, including helping to recruit an Afghan paramilitary force that operates at the C.I.A.’s direction in and around the southern city of Kandahar, Mr. Karzai’s home. The financial ties and close working relationship between the intelligence agency and Mr. Karzai raise significant questions about...

Saturday, October 24, 2009 was a day the world’s attention was focused on the number 350. According to a Democracy Now! report by Sharif Abdel Kouddous–filling in for his comrade Amy Goodman–activists from across the globe held rallies to “call on world leaders to take strong measures at the upcoming climate talks in Copenhagen.”

CNN's prime-time programs finished fourth and last among the cable news networks in October. CNN's programs finished behind not only Fox News and MSNBC, but also its own sister network HLN.

I just read a phenomenal article. There are some quotes in it from some letters sent to the Chairman of the FCC: “These network neutrality rules are needed for people of color and low income individuals to be creators of Internet content that is relevant to their communities, not just consumers of content that is profitable for big cable and phone companies.” “the signers of this letter would like nothing more than for our communities to earn the title of “bandwidth hogs.” …using the Internet to create and distribute content that allows us to control our

Obama Administration advisor David Axelrod said his analysis of Fox News broadcasts confirms that “it is not really a news station and should not be treated as such. The President has requested that the Federal Communications Commission “review Fox’s broadcasts and determine whether its license should be revoked.” Two key charges against Fox are pending. One is that “its on-air personnel are insufficiently diversified.” “We feel fairly certain that the racial and ethnic composition of the on-air staff does not reflect a proportionate balance with the composition of the nation’s population,” Axelrod said. “This is a violation of the Equal...

Local TV teeters as staff, anchors are axed As a top anchor in Los Angeles, John Beard worked during the heyday of local TV news -- covering earthquakes, riots and the occasional celebrity on the loose. Beard was a familiar presence on L.A. TV screens for 30 years, via lead anchor roles on KNBC and then KTTV. But three decades after arriving on the West Coast from Buffalo, Beard is back where he started, anchoring a morning newscast in that small western New York community. Beard had a great run in the nation's No. 2 market -- but his exit...

Some Freepers will probably disagree with me, but I'm a believer you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. I snt this email to each of the four networks in the hopes of encouraging their efforts to keep the WH in it's place, and wanted to pass along the suggestion, that any like-minded might like to do the same: Dear Sirs, I just wanted to give you kudos for your actions re: the Kenneth Feinberg press briefing. I am a Fox News watcher, and a conservative although I occasionally turn to other channels such as yours as well. Many...

It recently came to light that individuals employed by ACORN have been apparent accomplices with regard to the conduct of alleged criminal activities. Surprisingly, it was the investigative ingenuity of ordinary citizens who brought this information to the attention of the public. As a Member of Congress, these relevations are of interest to me in that ACORN is the beneficiary of substantial federal funding. As the former Attorney General of my state of California, this story is of great concern to me for an entirely different reason. Ironically, it is those who revealed the alleged illegal acts, rather than the...

Mark Lloyd, newly appointed Chief Diversity Officer of the Federal Communications Commission, has called for making private broadcasting companies pay licensing fees equal to their total operating costs to allow public broadcasting outlets to spend the same on their operations as the private companies do.

Swine Flu Cases Overestimated? CBS News Exclusive: Study Of State Results Finds H1N1 Not As Prevalent As Feared (CBS) If you've been diagnosed "probable" or "presumed" 2009 H1N1 or "swine flu" in recent months, you may be surprised to know this: odds are you didn’t have H1N1 flu. In fact, you probably didn’t have flu at all. That's according to state-by-state test results obtained in a three-month-long CBS News investigation. The ramifications of this finding are important. According to the Center for Disease Control, CDC, and Britain's National Health Service, once you have H1N1 flu, you're immune from future outbreaks...