This powerful opinion piece expresses the author's outrage about the role played by the media in supporting the Bush Administration's unfounded justifications for the war in Iraq. He makes some good points about the refusal of some media luminaries to accept responsability for their failure to speak truth to power. But the emotional tone of this post is a bit concerning, and makes me want to hear from other independent voices, to get the full picture. The same applies to Bill Moyer's documentary. They may well be right on the money, but their charges are so strong that I believe we need a full hearing on this issue, involving all sides of this controversy, before we can reach a definitive conclusion.

Finally! A news story from a respected journalist which tells it like it really is. To say the news media were compliant is like saying Cheney and Bush are concerned about us Real Americans. Actually, the media fell all over themselves cheerleading for the administration and do so even today. Will journalists ever admit their failings? Not a chance with the bloated egos saturating the media. That said, the centralization of media ownership into five or six mega conglomerates—with the enthusiastic encouragement of the Bush administration—puts the media and their content under control of a handful of CEOs, all of whom are fervent special-interests Bushies who would never have let this story be made public before the 2006 ... More »

Mr. Greenwald presents an insightful review and analysis of Bill Moyers documentary. But more valuable are his musings on the show's ultimate impact as well as his UPDATES, a collection of reactions by principals in the show or the industry.

An important review on an important show. Required viewing - there is a link to view the documentary in case you missed it.

Good stuff, but I posted a much more revealing interview with Moyers including clips of the film from Democracy Now! It's currently in "stories for review."

Although it says important things about press in America, the article fails to reflect the bigger picture of who owns the medias in America... and misses the utmost important development of that story: If so many American citizens still believe that Saddam Hussein was the cause or the perpetrator of 9/11, there is a big big problem with information in the US.

The very best in true journalism. Too bad it wasn't broadcast much, much earlier, say 2004. But, of course, the White House media and propaganda machine, the rabid, gullible, and corrupted mainstream press (particularly the N Y Times and the Washington Post), along with Congressional funding attacks on PBS prevented any honest and incisive journalism from reaching the public. Now, at least, after the worsening debacle in Iraq has become evident, an endless series of revealed corrupt practices has beenflowing from the White House, and Republican members of the Congress are being investigated, convicted, and jailed - - we have Bill Moyers back with us. Now we shall see if he will be allowed to comment and report as a true ... More »

Reviews Moyers' documentary of uncritical journalism that brought us a war on false pretenses.

If you were to list the top five trusted journalists today, Bill Moyers would have to be on that list. Bill Moyers has consistently provided thoughtful and insightful journalism. He served as White House Press Secretary for LBJ from 1965 to 1967, and transferred that experience into well-reasoned and highly researched television programs on PBS and documentaries. "Buying the War: How did the mainstream press get it so wrong?" which is the subject of this article, is an excellent example of how Moyers can help us all detach from the emotion, and begin to find truth. Glenn Greenwald has provided a concise snapshot of Moyers' documentary, with several updates. Although it has been included in the opinion pages of Salon, the ... More »

Bill Moyers retired? Not even close. "Now" and his show are without a doubt the best source of information on TV. I just wish PBS could get away from corporate sponsership (a legacy of the Regan era) so we could have our original PBS back.