Bill Moyers Journal: Preview: BUYING THE WAR

Congress needs a paycut. Our country's broke and a vountarily, temporary pay cut wouldn't cause me to love them more, but at least I could relate.

Posted by: Joseph Dussourd | June 22, 2009 3:06 PM

I'm glad, after the flak shot at him by the (now) very worried Neo-CONservatives, that Bill had the temerity to take a lyric from a Steppenwolf song to heart, "Turn around/Don't back down/Go back the way you came". You just keep on going the way you are going, Bill; the vast majority of the disenfranchised & unable to be heard (previously) Americans are behind you 100%.

Posted by: Bath | April 10, 2009 9:32 PM

Sounds like our politicians--oops,Im' not being respectful. Funny thing, I could care less about what goes on in Hollywood on Idol shows,rappers in jail or on drugs etc, and our news commentators seem to be obsessed with these nitwits.

Posted by: Soma | April 8, 2009 11:27 AM

Thanks, interesting info.

Posted by: секс видео | December 24, 2008 6:33 PM

Bill Moyers is a true patriot .....telling the truth no matter who doesn't want to hear it or know it

Posted by: PATRICIA WIN | May 22, 2008 11:05 PM

We've heard the faulty data on Weap0ns of Mass Destruction but there must have been a reaction from the "seasoned reporters" mentioned here.

Posted by: dizi izle | May 7, 2008 8:52 PM

Thank you Bill Moyers for your courageous and insightful program. I would like to ask, in addition to the media not asking the tough questions and the administration's active propaganda, to what extent does the national consciousness and patriotism of Americans influence their willingness to go to war? And how does this relate to what Americans are taught as children through the education system? I think this is a very important point, and one that is not often debated. cheers

Posted by: C Dennis, Australia | March 29, 2008 4:18 AM

hey nice & informative article.this article really help me a lot to increase my knowleage

Posted by: Search Engine Marketing Firm | March 15, 2008 5:29 AM

Great Job Bill. Very Nice.Keep it up.

Posted by: Freedirlist | February 20, 2008 1:02 PM

The job of a news media executive is not just to oversee the content of their own product(s), but to be aware of what "the competition" is saying -- and that includes not just the work done by Knight-Ridder, but foreign news sources. And it was glaringly obvious to anyone who read those sources that the Bush regime was grossly and consciously manipulating that facts that formed the basis of the case for war.?

Posted by: cephe reklam | January 28, 2008 7:58 PM

I just wonder how long it will be before it (the Left) begins to enact it's own version of the Final Solution, and moves to make conservative opinion punishable by imprisonment, or even death.

Posted by: ensest hikayeler | January 15, 2008 7:46 PM

Thanks ... !

Posted by: mp3 | January 8, 2008 9:10 PM

Good going bill

Posted by: Jams | January 7, 2008 12:41 AM

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Posted by: bgroom | January 6, 2008 1:18 PM

It's avery nice article.

Posted by: NJ Technology | January 5, 2008 7:50 AM

Welcome Bill :)

Posted by: mp3 indir | December 25, 2007 6:48 PM

Bush had been threatening Afghanatan with bombing is they did not surrender some oil control shortly before 911. 911 happened the door opened Invade Afghanstan instead of consulting with the many countries who supported us at that time making a joint decision. The door opened wider, He alledgedly told a congressman in 1999 he was going to invade Iraq.International law states a ban on invading any country for their natural resources so he connected Saddam to 911. Then we progress to aiding the PKK against Iran and aid Turkey against the PKK. Arm and train Israel and Palistinians. Israel now literally destroying the Gaza strip,and blocking supplies from entering. Against International sanction on weapons to Ethiopia Bush got weapons to them so they can invade Somallia, and open another Quantanamo. Now Bush and Chaney threaten Iran( one of the countries that supported us in 911.) Bush calls everything under the sun terriorists in order to get support from the American public. He committed the acts (wire-tapping etc.) in 2002-03 that got Nixon impeached. There is a justice dept. now investigating Bush & Chaney for impeachment long overdue. They have trashed your Bill of Rights and the Constitution. The constitution stll...

Posted by: Janice Pound | December 21, 2007 5:49 PM

I'm Glad to see you back.

Posted by: CPBJ | December 21, 2007 12:20 AM

1) What about the SENSATIONAL COUNTERPOINT to the coming war? I watched the major networks and saw 3 to 4 minutes of "War: maybe yes, maybe no; then came 20 solid minutes of Scott Peterson and his thing. The sensational counterpoint is a recurring phenonomon now in American media. Take a look. 2) Bill Maher paid dearly for his opinions. 3) What about the TIME it takes for good reporting? To go beyond the dots takes research into things that are not yet understood – a form of scientific research. Look at Watergate. You can't do that when you have new deadlines and new drama appearing hourly. 4) Then ~ what can we do? Not that I expect a checklist to come from your program, but maybe a start of a dialog as to what MIGHT be tried. Who could you contact to see if they would like to begin such a dialog? 5) Finally, keep it up Bill Moyers.

Posted by: John Womack | December 3, 2007 12:24 AM

This was once of the best news shows I have ever seen. Thank you. For the last few years I have been writing letters opposing the Iraq war to the editor of the Delaware State News. They always printed my letters. In March, 2007, they refused to print my letters. In June, 2007, I created a blog to respond to (mostly) pro Iraq war letters that appear in the Delaware State News. I refused to be silenced. Check out my blog. http://brendanbuschi.blogspot.com/ Brendan Buschi

Posted by: Brendan Buschi | September 7, 2007 10:29 PM

This whole media world is rotten to the core. Are they going to speak the truth, and lose out on fancy free trips around the world on AirForce 1, special invitations to gourmet spreads at the White House, choice TV exposure on drilling the president with planted questions, etc, etc ? The Fourth Estate !!!!! A bumch of pompous asses, if they ever went out to make a decent and honorable living, they'd starve to death.

Posted by: louis miccio | August 18, 2007 9:30 PM

Bill, you naive soul you. Do you really think this will make any difference in the way the press behaves? From "Remember the Maine" to the Gulf of Tonkin to Nicaragua and now Iraq the American mainstream press has been doing the same thing, propaganda and disinformation in service to the state(as long as the state is doing something in the interests of big business). Their two new campaigns are making sure we stay in Iraq, even though it's a complete disaster and preparing the way for some kind of military strike on Iran.

Posted by: Bob Ransdell | August 7, 2007 1:26 AM

Bill, You have done the country an outstanding service by bringing to light many of the inconsistencies that existed in our pre-war intelligence. Now, that you've taken the first step, I'd recommend you do a piece on the Project for a New American Century. I think you will find a great deal of insight into the strategies employed by the neoconservative movement; as well as, insight into relationships between the war architects and the propaganda machine that moved it. I look forward to seeing more of your work soon and thanks again for doing such a great job!

Posted by: Mike Phipps | July 12, 2007 10:41 AM

So we know good and well what the Iraq War was not about: WMD's and Iraq's supposed links to terrorism. Next Question: What WAS it about? Certainly there must have been compelling REAL reasons for the invasion, since the pretexts have been proven to be lies many times over. This would make for an interesting program. However, such a program would be useless if it interviewed the usual suspects in the media and political establishment. Answers need to come from outside the realm from which the crimes eminated.

Posted by: KC Dan | July 12, 2007 8:52 AM

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman on newspaper's role in the lead-up to the Iraq War: Paul Krugman: "The Times definitely blew it; I was reading Knight-Ridder (now McClatchy) at the time, so I thought it was obvious that the war was being sold falsely — but the typical Times reader would have had no idea of that."

Posted by: Keane | July 8, 2007 10:21 PM

The question now begs to answered: Why does the professional press act like they were born yesterday? Gullible, naive, and lacking any sense of critical judgement, it drives me to think of Larsen E. Whipsnade from the movie, You Can't Cheat an Honest Man. These are intelligent, well-meaning, extensively trained people. How does the news "system" churn out functionaries who appear on the face of it to be embarrassingly naive. What is it about the institutions of corporate media that tends to lobotomize the news? What do they teach in journalism 101? Don't they teach them the obvious, that communications emanating from sources of power and wealth do not arrive with a stamp of credibility? Herman and Chomsky outlined the very dynamics of "corporate media' as propaganda functionaries more than twenty years ago in, Manufacturing Consent. The American press has been functioning at least since the Spanish American War as propaganda regurgitators. The US does not have a functional press, in general. Responsibile journalism, such as what Mr. Moyers practices, gets marginalized because it doesn't serve the interests of either power or the corporate media. As W. C. Fields once uttered, "I've been ho-axed!" That which is presented to the...

Posted by: Mark Mason | July 1, 2007 3:14 PM

Problem with this documentary is that it questions the motives of several journalists for not asking right questions when Bush and his team prepared the nation for war. However, this documentary does not interview either Jim Lehrer of PBS or Frontline correspondent of PBS for not asking the very same questions that the popular press failed to ask. Not even a word why they were not asked to appear in the documentary, were they not in the news business as well? There was a question in the documentary about whether the Knight Ridder journalists were invited to appear on any talk shows or TV programs, they replied that only CSPAN invited them. It is worth pointing out that PBS along with the popular press also did not invite these journalists. After carefully watching the documentary, I began to question the way the material was presented. Sincerely, CK

Posted by: CK | May 21, 2007 8:10 PM

I have been conducting research on our government over the past 10 years. I tried to prevent this war, but people like then New York Attorney General Elliot Spitzer, then National Editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer Daryl Kannberg, Rep. Dennis Kucinich's legal counsel (was fired), John Loftus, and countless others chose to sit on the information. I have live video footage recorded in real time proving that the Bush lied about the Iraq war, that the 2000 election was rigged, and how and why the Federal Reserve tanked the stock market in 2000-01. This is information that has not been presented to the public till this day. Information that could change the outcome of history. Ever wonder why we have only one more choice than Russia in this country? The so-called 2 party system (Tri-angulation and on the edge of the wedge issues). Why we have no accountability from this dictatorship masquerading as a duopoly? Go to Amazon.com and click on the best seller book, "Compromised Clinton, Bush, and the CIA", by Terry Reed and John Cummings. Read pg. 277 to find out how the �2000 Selection� was really rigged. "Johnson had applied the balm, and now the message...

Posted by: Jay Conrad | May 18, 2007 2:19 PM

The selling of the war continues. I recently sent the comment below to Angela Tuck, the public editor of the Atlanta Journal Constitution about a very misleading headline on an article about "the surge". I have yet to receive an answer. (12 April 2007) "Today's AJC front page has a headline reading, "Army Widens Tours of Duty in War of Terror", a reprint with a changed headline from the Washington Post which headlined the same article, "Strained Army Extends Tours To 15 Months" with a subheading "Move Is Needed for Iraq Troop Increase." The Wall Street Journal covered the same subject under the heading, "Bush Lengthens Tours of Duty In Combat Zones" with a subheading, "Step May Further Strain Military, Vex Congress; Political Timing in Play?" I'm curious why your paper chose a heading that conflates the war in Iraq with the "war on terror." It's precisely this sort of conflation that misinformed the public leading up to the start of this disaster in Iraq. Who chose that heading?" I followed up a few weeks later asking about an answer, but never received one. Mike

Posted by: Mike Dilbeck | May 17, 2007 5:58 PM

Mr Moyers addressed something that has been within our government for a long time. There are people who are inclinded to believe that since JFK being shot in Texas . That corporations have been responsible for much actually of what has been going on with government. Let's face it who pays for politics mainly? The wealthy ofcoarse pay for what they want our country to be or not to be - quote. What if any government do you have left at all after that? I truly believe is a sham if you say there is a government at all anymore.Perhaps a money pit is better ? Something that only produces people who are at the top of cream who are ruthless business types who truly have very little conscience. Money does not insure that this country will be a democracy does it? What juvenile minds would believe otherwise? And why is it so difficult to think outside of our own arrogant control as a country that we are unquestionable? We drive the cars that pollute we allow for the divine chemical companies to put extras in our products and only if it becomes an issue via the media hype do...

Posted by: yvonne | May 10, 2007 5:34 AM

hey bob, Why weren't you crying about clinton going and killing all those people in Kosovo, wasn't that a civil war? or maybe ethnic cleansing? what is the difference between Iraq, then. Where did clinton take the refrugee's? They put them in camps in America, then they bought guns and tried to kill people at Fort Dix

Posted by: stewart smalley | May 9, 2007 3:31 PM

The U.N. was collecting inteligence and giving it to the U.S. so when the inspectors wanted to look into Hussein's palaces he didn't want any Americans in the group. The U.N. was comming to an agreement with Hussein but Bill Clinton decided to bomb Iraq. Many feel it was to divert attention from the Lewinski situation. Therefore the U.N. was pulled out for their own safety and they did not leave because Hussein was not co-operating.

Posted by: Chris A. Pulse | May 4, 2007 1:26 AM

Best program on Iraq so far on TV. Too bad that it seems that there will be a price paid in the form of right-wing propaganda, such as The Mormons...

Posted by: Bob | May 1, 2007 9:39 PM

where is the out rage from the media, and the left. about harry reid saying the war is lost. why we have men and women in harms way. why doesn't the same standard apply when Sen Trent Lott said something to an old man who's time fading. I don't know bias. How come the media never covers a story when someone with a gun defends themselves with it. and says without the gun they would probably be dead. oh I see we will only post the blogs we agree with

Posted by: stewart smalley | May 1, 2007 1:54 AM

Thanks Bill for thoughtful and intelligent analysis about the Iraq War and all of the nonsense from the Bush Administration concerning the reasons for going to war in the first place. Neil from Canada

Posted by: Neil Muchmore | April 29, 2007 11:42 PM

Your powerful documentary, �Buying the War,� affirms that there are courageous individuals who will fearlessly work to safeguard our democratic freedoms. By daring to speak truth to power, Mr. Moyers, you embolden our pursuit of Jacksonian ideals of journalistic integrity, including our right to question our government, its leaders, and its policies � a right that is crucial to maintaining an informed electorate. In 2002, I completed a Masters thesis that dealt with how American television�s reporting on 9/11 framed a war narrative. In the introduction I wrote, �Within the 24-hour period following the implosion of the Twin Towers, programming executives at CBS had devised an episodic theme: America Under Attack�America Rising�America Fights Back. Similar story lines were spun by the other major networks as well � variations included NBC�s America at War and CNN�s War Against Terror. Over the ensuing five years, my thesis has been supported by a growing chorus of media analysts. Rather than report on the destruction of the World Trade Center as a despicable criminal act and, indeed, a national tragedy, the mainstream corporate media used words that fostered a national predisposition to preemptive war, conveniently opening the way for the Bush administration to prey...

Posted by: Dennis Day | April 29, 2007 10:00 PM

This was a fantastic report (sadly, a few years too late). I strongly believe that everyone in congress should be given a copy of this video. It is now more than obvious that the blood of all of our fallen troops during the Iraq debaucle is on the hands of George W. Bush and each individual in his regime. I have a son serving in Iraq of whom I am very proud, and for whom I am very worried because of misleading Bush policies and mistaken Bush missions. When will he and his cronies be impeached??? So many crimes have been committed here!!! This is not the America I grew up in. We have become lemmings in this increasingly dictatorial country, and apparently the media have been jumping the cliff along with the rest of us -- the media, who should know better. Please, PBS/Bill Moyers, please send copies of this video to our representatives, ASAP. This is the kind of factual information they need, from outside the bubble. Hopefully the "mainstream" (NYT, WP, TV Networks, etc.) are watching this too, and feeling well spanked.

Posted by: Rev. H.Brooks | April 29, 2007 7:12 PM

It is a shame so many of the media pundits proven wrong about the war are still working! In some cases promoted! Great to have you back Bill.

Posted by: Fidencio Campos | April 29, 2007 5:08 PM

Mr Moyers, I have never thought that you were very objective on any issue. I may be wrong on one. Although I believe that you are still a far left wing activist, I believe that it is interesting that you dug up this info. However, you did get your facts from the Knight-Ridder journalists and then interviewed your favorite experts to support it. I think there always has been doubt on WMD but we all wanted a scapegoat. You did do a decent job and FOX-Ailes will probably rip you for it on their shows. I also think it is now obvious that Bill O' has turned into Rush II now and I am on the conservative side. I do think the truth is, that Mr. Cheney, with support from friends, did stretch the truth about WMD to get this war started. Colin Powell did resign, later, in part, because they forced him to lie at the UN-from my Pentasgon source. In Dick Cheney's mind, war is a money maker and the Middle East has lots of rich buyers and his friends will be happy to sell. When Cheney's own country is attacked then he has to get back at...

Posted by: Gary Tucken | April 29, 2007 4:55 PM

Your return to television is mose welcome--and overdue. "Buying the War" is something that every citizen of this country should see and ponder. As a nation, we have allowed ourselves to become something we should abhor, an imperial power, using its military power carelessly to pursue the ambitions of men and women who should probably be locked up. Thanks for the wake-up call.

Posted by: Thomas Gans | April 29, 2007 4:49 PM

Good job of indicting the co-conspirators. What was missing was the Israel connection. Kristol, Safire, Perle, Wolfowitz, Woolsey, Libby, Feith, Krauthammer, etc, are all part of the U.S. branch of the Likud, supporting Israeli colonialism on the West Bank and placing the defense of Israel above U.S. interests. Their code is "spread democracy in the Middle East" (except when groups like Hamas win fair elections) which they have used to support knocking over the governments of Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, and maybe Saudi Arabia. Whose interests does that serve? It was because they believed that Saddam had secreted his nuclear weapons program underground that they agitated for an invasion of Iraq. It's because of Iran's putative nuclear program that they are clamoring for an invasion of Iran. Oh, yeah...anyone who criticizes them is anti-Semitic, the first defense of the Israel-first crowd.

Posted by: Tom Maertens | April 29, 2007 4:22 PM

Your expose of those making the errors in thier information and judgement both in the govt and press was excellent. This is a good first step. The issue next is: What price are they going to pay to deter similar negligence in the future? Or are we going to allow them (and others) to feed us even more of the same on other issues of foreign policy.

Posted by: Gilbert Lawrence | April 29, 2007 2:38 PM

Mr. Moyers, This certainly has a different tone than your "Winning the War on Terror" from 4/8/2004. I certainly liked the comment posted by Doug Fuda about your doing a show highlighting the initial antiwar movement, people who had it right from the start. Any chance of that happening?

Posted by: Carter Mitchell | April 29, 2007 1:01 PM

Thank you for your work, Mr. Moyers. I agree with Mr. Aucoin's post. If the American people genuinely desire an end to "endless war" then we must face what is difficult for many and work together to expose the 9/11 cover up. The attack of 9/11 has been used to justify pre-emptive war, the erosion of civil liberties here at home, and will continue to be invoked for political purposes until the truth is exposed. 9/11 Truth leads to peace.

Posted by: Crystal U. | April 29, 2007 10:35 AM

Mr Moyers I don't know you personally and I don't like to write. In fact this is my first time I'm doing so. After viewing your special on "Buying the War" I commend you and you staff for the truth about what I belive since the Bush Administration started. Finally, there are people like yourself who are courageous in carrying out a revelation of the truth. I hope you continue with all the other people behind the scenes involved with getting us into the Bush/Cheney War(i.e. Paul Wolfowitz, Michael Ladeen, Doug Feith, Richard Perle, etc.) I support you and all those who are part of your work in what you are doing. Please continue in your efforts to unravel the current Skull organization that is currently undermining all of the principles our early Fathers have established in this country.

Posted by: Peter Bergeron | April 29, 2007 9:57 AM

Now we just need the truth about the media's coverup of 9-11. For that, we must watch the horrifying documentary "9-11 Press Fro Truth." http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3979568779414136481

Posted by: Rich Aucoin | April 29, 2007 9:45 AM

Bill, two comments: (1) can I buy a DVD of "Buying The War"? and (2) I love the blog feature but I think you should require people to use a name when posting.

Posted by: Dennis McDonald | April 29, 2007 8:48 AM

Mr. Moyers, Instead of spending 90 minutes of precious TV time interviewing celebrity newspeople and intellectuals who are complicit along with the government and the War Party in enabling and promoting a war of aggression and possible war crimes, why don't you do a show about the many courageous people in the antiwar community who got the story right from the very beginning. I will be happy to provide you with a list of experts and activists (not just liberals and progressives, but people from across the political spectrum) who consistently stood for peace and non-intervention. Such a show might give us a fighting chance to head off the next installment of "the long war" in which we are now embroiled by our so-called leaders. It would be a lot more interesting than a bunch of media honchos sitting around wringing their hands and whining about all the "pressure" they were under from the big bad neocons. for more see this blog: http://antiwarleague.net/blog/index.php?itemid=63

Posted by: Doug Fuda | April 29, 2007 8:06 AM

Thank you for speaking truth to power. Your show was such a refreshing change from the usual ClapTrap on MSM news parodies. Moyer,Stewart,Marshall, yours are the voices of real America. Let's hear from people like Marcos "KOS", Marcy Wheeler and Jane Hamsher of Firedoglake, Arianna Huffington or anyone speaking reason in these Unreasonable times.

Posted by: CS | April 29, 2007 12:52 AM

Mr. Moyers, we've turned a corner. No longer is intelligent reasoned discourse such as yours so easily buried under an avalanche of hateful, scared and ignorant scorn, wrapped in swaths of false patriotism, as that exhibited by some whiners below. While the echo chamber is not dead, I can't help but feel that we can more and more laugh them off now and continue again to talk with simple reason and truth, unburdened by their jingoism. Thank you so much for wading through the hatred spewed at you by those too fearful or foolish to understand, and continuing to bravely speak truth to an increasingly aware America. You sir, are a true national hero and history will duly note you as such.

Posted by: Roger Doran | April 29, 2007 12:33 AM

"nobody does it better, makes me feel sad for the Rest..." I wonder if the Partridge, Parks, Clements, Alpert, Rapoport, & those other magnificent PBS Foundation sponsors who support this oh-so needed project could be convinced to start a Moyers Journalism Scholarship Fund in North America?? We're heading into seriously deep waters... we need all the help we can get! Spread Love... ... but wear the Glove! BlueBerry Pick'n can be found @ ThisCanadian "Silent Freedom is Freedom Silenced"

Posted by: BlueBerry Pick'n | April 28, 2007 9:58 PM

great job mr moyers....i hope you can also include "the new american century" in one of your reports....this is at the root of our problem......thanks for being a great american........kevin barber

Posted by: kevin barber | April 28, 2007 9:51 PM

'Twas a great show. Finally--FINALLY--the word "lie" was used. Finally the "mainstream" media compliance with power has been exposed. Perhaps have an additional show referring to the concepts of "embedded" journalists and associated institutions of bad media.

Posted by: Tim Scanlon | April 28, 2007 9:44 PM

Moyer you are so full of crap! I can't believe people are actually starting to believe your anti American B.S! You have not changed a bit and you are trying to make your Sadam loving anti American ass sound like you take the stand of the American people. I disliked you then just as much as now and if people believe your B.S I feel this country is going to get hit even harder then the last time. You, and the democrats, are going to help our enemies bring a dirty bomb to this country. Have you no shame! You suck!

Posted by: Steve Northrup | April 28, 2007 9:38 PM

Well done, Mr. Moyer! Finally a journalist who is not afraid to report the truth.

Posted by: sue h | April 28, 2007 8:27 PM

If Mr Moyers feels the media did not do its job and the President lied to get us into the war against Iraq, why not remind the public that other countries had the same intelligence, as well as congress that supported the war? Presenting "clips" of other networks, OUT OF CONTEXT, is not a lie? I am not glad Mr. Moyers is back, more bias views instead of reporting the news. Politicians and Journalist could learn a great lesson from our Military: Country before self/party!

Posted by: DONNA | April 27, 2007 4:40 AM

I can't help but think that if the media had done it's job, we wouldn't be in the position we're in right now with Iraq. Sure, they were afraid of the bully's intimidation (remember Mccarthy), yet business priorities, "The Scoop" (which were freely handed out I might add), drove the fevor. Made ya'll feel special, huh? Important? TV Personality? Old hands, secure in their importance and young folks, who pined away as teenagers to be "A JOURNALIST", all lost sight of the reason and participated in the grand circle-jerk. And played it safe. God forbid you get hollered at (used to be, that was a badge of courage!). Yet few, very few asked the $64 questions that may of stopped this maddness by exposing the deception and hidden agendas. Journalism, by it's very nature is supposed to ask the hard questions. If it's not you, then whom? When politics has become simply the advertisement for an agenda, who then. is our "consumer reports"? And then, what good are you but to sell yet another product accomplished simply by putting yet another ego on the front page or on TV? Are we all on auto-pilot?

Posted by: Bill Jackson, Austin, TX | April 26, 2007 10:54 PM

The show last night reminded me of a wonderful quote attributed to Richard Whately: "Everyone wishes to have the truth on his side, but not everyone wishes to be on the side of truth." Thank goodness for those real journalists who are not afraid to search for the truth and put it out there for all of us to see.

Posted by: L Kizer-Paquette | April 26, 2007 6:00 PM

Will the show that aired last night "Buying the War" be rebroadcast? If so, please advise. Thanks, Susan Kirshenbaum

Posted by: Susan Kirshenbaum | April 26, 2007 5:53 PM

Thank you for another excellent, though deeply disturbing program. I knew, from reading independent media sources, that the WMD, terrorist links and such were outright lies, and I knew that Judith Miller of NYT was a shill for the administration. But the sections on the Knight-Ridder team deeply discouraged me anew , as they demonstrated just how thoroughly the WP, NYT, CNN, CBS and most of the others failed to even attempt due dilligence by questioning the administration line. Russert was the most disturbing as he was so smug and content that he surely did the right thing. I will continue turning to Bill Moyers, Frontline, and to other independent media for my news. Peace, Randy Gabrielse But looking back, it was informative to see just how the propaganda machine worked, how the papers of record surrendered real journalism and replaced it with repeating official statements, and confirmation of just how symbiotic the relationship between Russert et. al. and the administration really is.

Posted by: Randy Gabrielse | April 26, 2007 5:49 PM

Great show last night. Thank god you're back! Looking forward to the new series with high expectations! I will now renew my membership to KUHT!!

Posted by: Roger Matice | April 26, 2007 4:10 PM

The press has always been lied to; it's part of the subjectivity of human thought and its presence in the flow of communications. How much of it is actually orchestrated at any given time is unknown. Starting a war by the Bush administration in this manner was not a good idea to say the least. One must wonder 'why?'--why was it necessity to interrupt tribal cultures to 'set them straight'. Sometimes news organizations suspend their search for root facts in hopes of serializing an immediate perception without the presence of dense facts. The press was (and often is) all too willing to suspend their judgment in favor of another: In this case, The White House Crew. It happens everyday. Bill Moyer's piece illustrated this point once again. And now, as he pointed out: more US soldiers have died in Iraq then in the Twin Towers

Posted by: sj martin | April 26, 2007 3:00 PM

Great show mr moyers. it was great to see you back on the air. The corporate news media in the usa is pretty sad in its lapdog subserviance to this and other admininstrations. It is no wonder that they were completely embarrassed in the last 2 years when they just were happy to recycle the bush admin pre iraq war garbage. the networks are loaded with all kind thumbsuckers and pundits as the guy from cnn said.

Posted by: matthew loughran | April 26, 2007 2:42 PM

So much for honesty? Thank you for commenting. Your comment has been received and held for approval by the blog owner. Return to the original entry

Posted by: tim kugel | April 26, 2007 2:34 PM

The press will always be lied to considering the subjectivity of human thought and its presence in the flow of communications. How much of it is actually orchestrated at any given time is unknown. Starting a war b the Bush administration in this manner was not a good idea to say the least. One must wonder 'why?' the necessity to interrupt tribal cultures to 'set them straight'. Sometimes news organizations forget their deep researched roots in hopes of serializing an immediate perception without the presence of dense facts. The press was all too willing to suspend thier judgment in favor of another: The White House crew. It happens everyday. But sometimes the stakes are considerably higher-- such as in invading Iraq (and Afghanistan for that matter). Bill Moyer's piece illustrated this crisis of judgment by individual press members and their employers, an brought this point home once again. And now, as he pointed out, more have died over there in Iraq then in the twin towers. It seems each of us are responsible for searching and turning up our own facts. The results may well with less bias or dilution presented by popular media, left or right. Seek the middle...

Posted by: sj martin | April 26, 2007 2:32 PM

I suppose the press is lied to all the time; considering the subjectivity of human thought and its presence in the flow of communications. How much of it is actually orchestrated at any given time is unknown. Starting a war b the Bush administration in this manner was not a good idea to say the least. One must wonder 'why?' the necessity to interrupt tribal cultures to 'set them straight'. Sometimes news organizations forget their deep researched roots in hopes of serializing an immediate perception without the presence of dense facts. The press was all too willing to suspend thier judgment in favor of another: The White House crew. It happens everyday. But sometimes the stakes are considerably higher-- such as in invading Iraq (and Afghanistan for that matter). Bill Moyer's piece illustrated this crisis of judgment by individual press members and their employers, an brought this point home once again. And now, as he pointed out, more have died over there in Iraq then in the twin towers. It seems each of us are responsible for searching and turning up our own facts. The results may well with less bias or dilution presented by popular media, left or right...

Posted by: sj martin | April 26, 2007 2:31 PM

I wish the broadcast HAD been produced with taxpayer monies. It would have been the most productive, responsible expenditure in recent years...remember this broadcast when your taxes go up....and up...and up - - to pay the bill for this Iraq fiasco; made all the more expensive, because it is based on a lie and it could have been avoided - if we all would have stepped up to create the market forces necessary to insist upon the responsible use of our airwaves... better late than never - but the meter still runs...can we afford to advance another trillion dollars just to 'save face'? That's one helluva mirror we're gonna need!

Posted by: paul | April 26, 2007 2:29 PM

I suppose the press is lied to all the time; considering the subjectivity of human-- thought and its presence in the flow of communications. How much of it is actually orchestrated at any given time is unknown. Starting a war b the Bush administration in this manner was not a good idea to say the least. One must wonder 'why?' the necessity to interrupt tribal cultures to 'set them straight'. Sometimes news organizations forget their deep researched roots in hopes of serializing an immediate perception without the presence of dense facts. The press was all too willing to suspend thier judgment in favor of another: The White House crew. It happens everyday. But sometimes the stakes are considerably higher-- such as in invading Iraq (and Afghanistan for that matter). Bill Moyer's piece illustrated this crisis of judgment by individual press members and their employers, an brought this point home once again. And now, as he pointed out, more have died over there in Iraq then in the twin towers. It seems each of us are responsible for searching and turning up our own facts. The results may well with less bias or dilution presented by popular media, left or right...

Posted by: sj martin | April 26, 2007 1:53 PM

I suppose the press is lied to all the time; considering the subjectivity of human-- thought and its presence in the flow of communications. How much of it is actually orchestrated at any given time is unknown. Starting a war b the Bush administration in this manner was not a good idea to say the least. One must wonder 'why?' the necessity to interrupt tribal cultures to 'set them straight'. Sometimes news organizations forget their deep researched roots in hopes of serializing an immediate perception without the presence of dense facts. The press was all too willing to suspend thier judgment in favor of another: The White House crew. It happens everyday. But sometimes the stakes are considerably higher-- such as in invading Iraq (and Afghanistan for that matter). Bill Moyer's piece illustrated this crisis of judgment by individual press members and their employers, an brought this point home once again. And now, as he pointed out, more have died over there in Iraq then in the twin towers. It seems each of us are responsible for searching and turning up our own facts. The results may well with less bias or dilution presented by popular media, left or right...

Posted by: sj martin | April 26, 2007 1:52 PM

No wonder many Republicans are so eager to cut funding to NPR and PBS. They fear serious, honest, critical journalism and reporting that rises above the level of Fox and Cnn "news" and commentaries. Bill, you have given them additional reason to fear. Several years ago when we met in Mexico I mentioned to you that I had noticed a pervasive collective expression of cynicism, helplessness and hopelessness in our society. I said we needed individuals like you to speak up. You have, and in one brilliant documentary shown up not only the deficiencies of our media but also the many lies, hypocracies and deceptions of this executive branch of government and its supporters. More than any politician, you have given hope to the true patriots of this great country that the situation can change. Welcome back and thanks.

Posted by: Barry | April 26, 2007 1:51 PM

This was a truly valuable piece of work.

Posted by: joan howell | April 26, 2007 1:34 PM

Bill's former PBS show, "NOW" promised to continue "traveling across the Country" to get the facts and report on difficult issues. In fact the show suffered serious dilution under David Brancaccio, who never seemed to venture far from NYC. Let's hope PBS understood it drifted far from the roots of its viewers and it now committing to stronger reporting. Bill Moyer's first 90 minute show overstretched this viewer's attention span in an effort to "pound too many nails" in the subject. You could have edited to 60 minutes and still had a great show. The real costs of this War are yet to be realized. Our Soldiers were rescued from death, only to return with horrific head and extremity trauma of a magnitude not previously seen. Will we have the perserverance truly to save the lives of our Veterans?

Posted by: Duke Stone | April 26, 2007 1:09 PM

A good show Bill to help balance the normal shows dedicated to shopping, scandal and sports. But this is supposed to be a democracy so I do not blame the political, media, business or religious leaders. They just do what many humans tend to do when left to their own devices without proper oversight or control. It all comes down to the people. Do we take the time to pay attention or not. The buck does not stop at the president’s desk, the buck stops with each and everyone. The American people must demand political, business and religious leaders who are not overly fearful, greedy and ignorant. We must treat other people around the country and the world as we would be treated.

Posted by: Mike Swayne | April 26, 2007 1:08 PM

"I know we were lied to ... however, the problem isn't the past, it's the future. What do we do now and how do we get out of this mess? Posted by: STacey" I think the first step is to have OPEN government. Why do we need to keep secrets from the people & how can we possibly have the consent of the governed if we don't know what we're consenting to? Is there a reason Cheney had to set our energy policy in secret & refuse to give any information to congress about who those corporate heads were, & what they decided was in our best interest. The beginning of my distrust of this regime happened then when Cheney so condescendingly dismissed conservation as quaint, & deepened after 9/11 when they told us that the best way to secure our country was to consume & fear others. Perhaps the greatest insight of our founding fathers was the checks & balances. It seems to me that a FULLY OPEN & honest government is the only way to maintain those checks & balances.

Posted by: Jill H | April 26, 2007 12:42 PM

Mr. Moyers, Good report, but it was very one-sided and biased one. It was so obvious that you and your staff are trying to bash this administration and President Bush. While I do not always agree with all this administration policies such as immigration, taxes, Medicare, etc, but I am very disappointed that PBS would use the public money to hire you to produce a mere propaganda to lobby your supporting party for upcoming election. However, I have to agree with you that both liberal and conservative media were buying the “bad” intelligent about Iraq’s WMD. But who would not when all high-ranking democrat, republican senators, world leaders, and ever UN inspectors said so! And nobody could deny that Saddam had used WMD to murder his own people before. Plus, the 9/11 strategy had just happened, and its aftermath affects were so huge that nobody dared to not side with the administration’s reason for war with Iraq. We were all scared of another attack with even deadlier than the last one. I was wondering how you felt and what you were doing as journalist at that time. My last point is that it is true that the administration does not...

Posted by: Minh Tran | April 26, 2007 12:40 PM

It is wonderful to have Bill Moyers return to the air! We need his courageous voice. Many thanks also to John Walcott and Warren Strobel for their work on behalf of our country. Kudos to them and others who continuously search out truth. From the beginning, it was clear to many that the beltway and the press were immobilized by fear of the Bush administration. The question was "why?" The "patriot police" and other forms of pressure help to answer that question. When "media" is "big business" and in need of Washington's favor, true "freedom of the press" cannot exist! When bullying and fear control the beltway and the press, we have lost much of what makes our country great! It was obvious from the beginning, as Bush boldly told the UN what he intended to do, with or without them, that the administration had an agenda it intended to accomplish, no matter what. The arrogant mentality of "my way or the highway" continues. Now Bush cries "party politics" when he doesn't get his way. The administration doesn't care that the American public, whom it "serves" absolutely does not agree with its agenda and is disguested by its arrogance and...

Posted by: Marcia from Pennsylvania | April 26, 2007 11:53 AM

What if? What if the Bush administration had come in, and found out, that all of this about the existing view, when he was elected; the view that Saddam did not posess WMD's, that he did not have the will and programs to reconstitute WMD's, that he was not a threat to the security of the US and our allies and it's neighbors, that Saddam had not already caused the death of something approaching 2 million people, that he did not have enough nerve gas to kill every person on the face of the earth? What if Bush presented to the American people that all of these things that the Clinton adminsitration had been brainwashing us with for several years, notabably accelerating the effort just in front of each and everyone of his military campaigns in Iraq, that most of this was false - that the Clinton team had misrepresented and hyped all of this to the people and to the media? Would not it had just been called just another right wing conspriacy - out to smear Pres. Clinton? Want to do Kosovo? At the trials in the Hague, it was determined that some 6,000 persons had been murdered...

Posted by: Gary Hall | April 26, 2007 11:48 AM

I know we were lied to by the government and those lies were perpetuated by the media, however, the problem isn't the past, it's the future. What do we do now and how do we get out of this mess? I consider myself a conservative on most things, but I am disgusted by our government and some serious consequences need to come down on those in power.

Posted by: STacey | April 26, 2007 9:47 AM

Now that the media is shown as the propaganda medium they are... what about investigating what motivates (hint: $$$) them into helping the politics spread the lies...?

Posted by: JD | April 26, 2007 9:32 AM

I have to say to Dan Rather's comment when he referred to himself..."who am I to ask these questions of the President...?" You're the guy with the job...it's your job! That's what you were hired for! We had faith in you to do your job! I was amazed as I watched you all let us down. We, so many of the public, knew he was lying, how did you not?!? You gave Bush credibility that we knew in our hearts he didn't deserve. I know my generation, (your's), doesn't have too much faith in our government telling us the truth, but we still had hope that the press was there for us, our watchdogs. Like the Watergate reporters! Now what do we have...how disheartening?!

Posted by: jone suleski | April 26, 2007 9:05 AM

This show was a bunch of lberal partisan nonsense. I can only laugh at Bill Moyers' hypcrisy. It is unfortunate that my tax dollars go to fund partisan propoganda. As every single post on this board is an accolade for Moyers, it is clear that posts are being censored for not applauding Moyers and his venom. So much for mulitple points of view right. Thanks for proving again the liberals are intellectually dishonest hypocrites.

Posted by: Mike | April 26, 2007 9:05 AM

I was a bit disappointed with last night's episode. I am a teacher in Detroit and active in the fight for equality and justice in education for my students, but certainly not a Washington journalist with contacts at the White House and Defense Department, and I knew there were never any WMD's. I knew that the build-up to the war was being orchestrated by the Bush administration, and Dan Rather and Tim Russert damn well knew that too. Bill Moyers treated them with kid-gloves. Russert and Rather were complicit in the Administration's march to war. These two well-respected journalists made conscience decisions to report distortions and outright lies rather than the truth. They lacked the courage and integrity to do their jobs honestly and as a result thousands are now dead. I don't buy the lines "if only I got a call" or the tears and "we all were swept up in the moment." Tens of thousands of Americans were NOT swept up in the moment and were fighting like hell to get the truth out and the news media and their reporters ignored it. M. Heather Miller Marquette Elementary School Teacher Detroit Public Schools

Posted by: M. Heather Miller | April 26, 2007 8:59 AM

Amazing. I stumbled on this show last night and was just stunned by some of the revelations. The most important show in the last 20 years. Should be mandatory viewing for every journalism student. Thanks Bill. Great work.

Posted by: Poidog | April 26, 2007 8:47 AM

Never, never, never believe any war will be smooth and easy, or that anyone who embarks on the strange voyage can measure the tides and hurricanes he will encounter. The statesman who yields to war fever must realize that once the signal is given, he is no longer the master of policy but the slave of unforeseeable and uncontrollable events. - Sir Winston Churchill

Posted by: Bill | April 26, 2007 8:34 AM

Shame and shame again for what all the "press" allowed itself to be suckered into . The "press" is our most trusted media for giving the nation facts and information so the citizens may decide if we are right in what we do as a nation , not just a few in an elite circle . And please never forget its the soldier that gives the press its freedom to do just that .

Posted by: Richard McCloud | April 26, 2007 8:33 AM

Welcome Back Bill now you can't leave again.

Posted by: Fabian | April 26, 2007 8:25 AM

Bill has opened my eyes. I thought the Administration was just too aggressive in promoting WMDs in Iraq. Now I see that if 2 journalists knew the whole thing was fabricated, then it is obvious the CIA knew it was. If the CIA knew, then their boss knew - Bush/Cheney lied to America. They knew an easy war would get them re-elected. They need to be impeached for sending our sons, daughters, moms & fathers to die.

Posted by: Al | April 26, 2007 8:06 AM

Watched movie "Good night and good luck" the other day and realized how much we need another "Edward R. Murrow" these days. Thank you for coming back to us!!! We love you, we need you - and good luck as well.

Posted by: martina | April 26, 2007 4:00 AM

Thank you Bill Moyers and Kathleen Hughes, for your probing journalism. Finally, we have some actual reporting on the intricate weave woven by our politicians and television conglomerates. The conservative agenda was loudspeakerd several years ago- "own the media networks to get our message out". It seems they have succeeded quite well. Thankfully, we still have an open internet with great online journalists. As a society of citizens, we should all be voicing our disdain for what has sadly happened to TV news and we should also be alert to ownership rules on the internet. Each year I see TV journalism eroded to entertainment news. PBS, CSPAN and MSNBC are the only networks today doing any real reporting. We need to monitor media ownership rules closely, if journalism on television and the internet is to remain relevant and truly informative.

Posted by: Victoria Casasco | April 26, 2007 2:04 AM

I'm delighted that Bill Moyers is back on the air; he's a national treasure. And what could be more important these days than the media collusion in leading the country to war? But I was puzzled by the choice of making Knight Ridder the hero of the story. It's ironic that in a show about how certain positions get ruled out of bounds, that Buying the War would neglect the vibrant progressive media so critical of this war from the very beginning. There were lots of profound questions being raised prior to the launch of war in 2003: The Nation, In These Times, The Progressive, Counterpunch. In the arena of how K-12 teachers could equip students to think critically about war and peace issues, the magazine that I work with, Rethinking Schools, ran articles in just about every issue. Sure, give Knight Ridder its due, but don't erase the grassroots journalists that raised questions and objections from the very beginning. -- I look forward to future shows with more coverage of grassroots activism.

Posted by: Bill Bigelow | April 26, 2007 1:55 AM

I hope that journalist have learned a lesson. Their were some who did speak out, ask questions and make movies, but they were criticized for speaking out. I only seen part of this show, but I was glad to hear what I did.

Posted by: Tedd | April 26, 2007 1:35 AM

I just wanted to thank you for the wonderful program, BUYING THE WAR. Hopefully this kind of program would encourage all of us Americans to be more demanding for the truth from the media and for the rationale behind decisions and actions of our congressmen. Again, the program was wonderful BUT are we going to make any changes in the way we broadcast news? Sadly, media continues to freely present biased news to the public. We are all clear that George Bush, the Republican Party, and FOX News are beating the drums for yet another war, this time with Iran. News agencies of the entire world should be in crisis mode right now, working non-stop to prevent the U.S. and Israel from starting a war against Iran. It's time for the progressive media such as Knight Ridder newspapers to rebut Bush's Iran lies in real time and prevent a war which perhaps will finally break our own backs. Unfortunately however, media is playing the same tactic and lies in Iran as they did before the Iraq war. I strongly believe that now is the critical time to make up for the prior mistakes. I suggest you extend programs such as...

Posted by: Farina | April 26, 2007 1:07 AM

Sorry that I attached this comment to the wrong article, BUT-- I think it no coincidence that both LBJ and George W. are the result of Texas politics, their methodology is so similar--though years apart--that they are absolute in their objectives if for no other reason than to prove that everyone else is wrong and that when history writes the final chapter on their endeavors it will prove how right they were. How stupid! I was raised in Texas and like the Dixie Chicks I am ashamed that Bush claims to be from Texas--he really is a malignant growth that found sympathizers and like minds in Texas. Regretably, I have relatives, family members that become quite defensive when I try to discuss any issue, current or past, related to Dubya as Mollie would say. I regret that I no longer have any feelings for where I was raised, on the Texas coast. I don't feel as if I even know those that are supportive of this administration. Obviously, I don't live there anymore. I must also say that I feel the person in the administration that has fallen the farthest is Colin Powell. He was complicitious in the whole...

Posted by: Ben F Wofford | April 26, 2007 12:38 AM

Thank You. The critical intellect is sacred, not money, titles or positions of power. More elusive than even the bluebird of happiness it must for our own preservation & survival be our only quest. You are one of several saving graces among a frighteningly failed American media. Now i & each of us must go forth & respect & follow our animate intellects.

Posted by: George | April 25, 2007 11:57 PM

Thank you Bill Moyers for confirming what I have thought all along, what my Father taught me so long ago. Never believe anything that you hear and damned little of what you see. I stopped reading the newspapers long ago due to the slanted coverage, tainted for profit margins, gaining that all mighty buck. I do believe the irresponsible journalism has cost so many young Americans their lives. Our sons and daughters, America's bright future! I wonder sometimes, if the journalists themselves, will ever be able to wash blood stains from their hands.

Posted by: V. Smith | April 25, 2007 11:50 PM

Thank you Bill Moyers for confirming what I have thought all along, what my Father taught me so long ago. Never believe anything that you hear and damned little of what you see. I stopped reading the newspapers long ago due to the slanted coverage, tainted for profit margins, gaining that all mighty buck. I do believe the irresponsible journalism has cost so many young Americans their lives. Our sons and daughters, America's bright future! I wonder sometimes, if the journalists themselves, will ever be able to wash blood stains from their hands.

Posted by: V. Smith | April 25, 2007 11:50 PM

The American people are lucky to have PBS and Bill Moyer to broadcast truthful,non-biased, non-bought off documentaries!

Posted by: karen | April 25, 2007 11:46 PM

Great work, American people were always blind, they will never think about what is real, what is true, they are too busy paying their rent, working for their bills and enjoing their TV channels. What is a fact for 90% of people around the World, is "better not to know and even not think about" for 90% of americans. Sad. Americans have no freedom. Only talks about rights, only bushshit about true... American goverment was SELLING THE WAR. American people have bought THE WAY. They have paid for this WAR with they own taxes, their own money that were taken from their families, from thir future education for thier kids... The Bushshit about this WAR will be never uncovered by next President and his team :( This is America.... ;( Regards, Rei

Posted by: Rei | April 25, 2007 11:46 PM

Truth is always beautiful and strong. Indeed it is a very patriotic job producing this documentary. I wonder if the winds of Iraq war are blowing northwards, what would be our response to this documentary. Will it be same as the failed media? We should look deep into our hearts and correct ourselves if needed to save the future. This will make us worthy of praising Bill and his courageous team.

Posted by: mai1234 | April 25, 2007 11:43 PM

Thanks again Bill Moyers...It would benifit the everyone if Buying the War was required viewing in every journalism school in the country.

Posted by: Paul Halwe | April 25, 2007 11:37 PM

It is wonderful to hear and see Bill Moyers again. But about the war....why isn't everyone talking about the real reason for going to war. It is ALL about oil. Why is that not being discussed? We know there were lies and mistakes. The press was bad, gullible, blind, protective, etc.. But let's talk about the real issue now. Can Amreicans face themselves if they acknowledge that thruth?

Posted by: Gigi Miele | April 25, 2007 11:36 PM

Let's hope this program is rerun many times. You have made available to many what just a few were aware of.

Posted by: Pat Smith | April 25, 2007 11:13 PM

Dear Bill Moyers I have no way to express to you the extent to which the american public owes you its gratitude. Your work in journalism is honorable, clear, thoughtful, fascinating .... and almost no one else is doing anything like it! You have an enormous responsibility, and we all are hopeful you are preparing successors! So many have so much love and admiration for you... Thank you!!!!!

Posted by: marc | April 25, 2007 11:00 PM

Thank you for saving my sanity. After spending 28 years in Europe & the Middle East and recently returning to the U.S. I am an alien. PBS was my lifeline along with BBC; and now I can include another Knight Ridder's reporters!

Posted by: P. Eriksson | April 25, 2007 10:43 PM

Wow! Thanks so much for this presentation. I was almost finished watching PBS last week with Richard Perle.

Posted by: Jeremiad | April 25, 2007 10:31 PM

Thanks, Bill, for producing such an excellent program - Buying the War!

Posted by: Xiao Li | April 25, 2007 10:29 PM

please listen to what was so subtly and sublimely revealed by the remarkable paul laffoley, (http://www.laffoley.com/) in an interview i did with him on 02/12/07... paul is an extremely accomplished and visionary architect and artist who used to hang out with guys like buckminster fuller and WAS ON THE ORIGINAL WTC DESIGN TEAM UNDER MINORU YAMASAKI...he is considered an absolute polymath and genius by any who encounter him...i had no idea he had worked on the original wtc design team in the early 1960's until i interviewed him in february...i also had no intention of talking about 911 or anything like that...the program was focused on art, imagination and creativity...hah...but this little gem came out when we were talking about his background... they built the charges in to the wtc towers...same with wtc 7... anyhow, here's the clip where he talks about the wtc and what happened on 911... http://www.mikehagan.com/2012/mp3/clips/laffoleywtc.mp3 it breaks the case... and here's the entire interview for reference: http://www.mikehagan.com/2012/mp3/021207_PAUL_LAFFOLEY.mp3 cheers... o) mike

Posted by: mike hagan | April 25, 2007 6:31 PM

For goodness sakes Mazen. Let me start here. However, My point is that the Clinton administration did in fact, in almost all cases, make the very same cases that the Bush administration made. You might find a few specific differences in some technical points. The al Qaeda connection for instance. But the Clinton had made some points in that direction in the past, and there was some additional evidence of that presence in Iraq - true, does not seem to be much suggesting ties with Saddam. However, in the larger picture, Clinton's administration made more outlandish claims than did the Bush administration. The nuclear threat was there for both. Clinton's 1998 "shock and awe" campaign sought to destroy Saddam's nuclear capability. Clinton had ordered the inspectors out - they never went back (4 years) who knows? The war is a good debate. The conduct of the war is a good debate. Iraq invading Iran while Jimmy Carter was President (1 million deaths)is a good debate. How 25 years go by, and there are no global marches amongst humans protesting Saddam, calling for his removal, is a good debate. In my view, and I believe that the evidence shows it (the...

Posted by: Gary Hall | April 25, 2007 5:52 PM

In response to your question "What do we do now? The most important thing I believe we must do is demand our Congress and the Senate to demand answers from the FCC as to why they sold the American people out and gave our air waves to five corporations. Now these same corporations want to take over the internet. They say if you don't learn from history you are doomed to repeat it. When Hitler took over Germany what was the first thing he did. He took over the press, and we all know how well that worked out. The reason Bush is president, why we are in Irag, the reason people still believe Irag was the ones who attacked us on 9/11 is because of the media. Until we have a free press again, Americans will never see the realities of the war and what Bush's plan really is. If the internet goes to these 5 corporation giants, we can go ahead and kiss our freedoms goodbye. The United States of America might as well change our name to The United Corporations of America. Posted by: Kitty Swartz and Family |

Posted by: Kitty Swartz and family | April 25, 2007 5:52 PM

In response to your question "What do we do now? The most important thing I believe we must do is demand our Congress and the Senate to demand answers from the FCC as to why they sold the American people out and gave our air waves to five corporations. Now these same corporations want to take over the internet. They say if you don't learn from history you are doomed to repeat it. When Hitler took over Germany what was the first thing he did. He took over the press, and we all know how well that worked out. The reason Bush is president, why we are in Irag, the reason people still believe Irag was the ones who attacked us on 9/11 is because of the media. Until we have a free press again, Americans will never see the realities of the war and what Bush's plan really is. If the internet goes to these 5 corporation giants, we can go ahead and kiss our freedoms goodbye. The United States of America might as well change our name to The United Corporations of America. Posted by: Kitty Swartz and Family |

Posted by: Kitty Swartz and family | April 25, 2007 5:50 PM

Herb Kline made some valid points in his post. Here are two websites that I believe EVERY AMERICAN WHO VALUES FREEDOM AND LIBERTY SHOULD VISIT AND EXPLORE THOROUGHLY. In my honest opinion, they provide VERY STRONG CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE that 9/11 WAS AN INSIDE JOB: http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/9-11secretservice.html http://www.newamericancentury.org Remember this--conspiracy theories don't necessarily have to be wildly concocted stories created by leftist journalists out to smear Bush and Cheney--that's what the White House WANTS you to believe. WAKE UP, AMERICA! Here's something else to think about: if the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago White Sox can each win a World Series in the same decade, ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE TODAY!

Posted by: Richard Santalone | April 25, 2007 5:24 PM

In response to the post by "a second David": It is not useful or informative to lay the blame on previous administration officials. The brutal effect of sanctions and the belief that Iraq had WMDs were clearly mistakes of the Clinton administration. However, Saddam's willingness to use these weapons was never misrepresented in the manner of the Bush administration. Not to mention repeated and continued attempts to link Iraq to bin Laden. Repeated statements suggesting that Saddam would give WMDs to terrorists, or we would only discover his nuclear capability with a mushroom cloud were irresponsible war-mongering tactics that did not serve the interests of the American people. It seems that the Clinton administration either did not have the courage to confront Saddam or fully understood that he would never endanger himself by using WMDs for anything else than to prevent loss of control of Iraq. The most critical discriminator is that the Bush administration chose to take this country to war. The validity of the intelligence used to justify that action is debatable but the outcome is not. It is common for those who attack "liberals" to retroactively assign blame for mishaps of this administration. This is an extremely...

Posted by: Mazen | April 25, 2007 4:40 PM

Welcome back Bill. In regards to some of the comments below, the question is not whether Saddam had MWD's. That's a no brainer. We helped him acquire them during the Iraq/Iran war. It is whether Saddam was an imminent threat (or any threat) to the U.S. and was he collaborating with Al Qaeda. The Bush lovers cry that Bill Clinton/DEMs agreed with the pre-war evidence that Saddam had MWD's, so Bush is vindicated. That is an intellectually weak argument. The whole world could have agreed that Saddam possesed MWD's. It still didn't justify rushing to war (Clinton rightly didn't call for an invasion). The mere possession of MWD's does not validate an invasion, if so we would have invaded the Soviet Union/France/China/Israel/India/Pakistan etc. a long time ago.... and none of us would be alive debating the Iraq fiasco today.

Posted by: Hans Six Pack | April 25, 2007 3:37 PM

New Element in Periodic Table Debunked and Discredited Empire Thrust into Cradle of Civilization. Robert Fisk, The War for Civilization, Anthony Hopkirk,The Great Game and 1933 National Georgraphic article 'Make Haste Slowly in Afghanistan" RMA doctrine dissolved for Greater Middle East and End Timers and 'raptured' Civilization seekers. A major research institution has just announced the discovery of the densest element yet known to science. The new element has been named "Bushcronium." *********** and, of course,the font of density... "If this Virginia Tech shooter had an ideology, what do you think it was? This guy had to be a liberal. You start railing against the rich and all this other -- this guy's a liberal. He was turned into a liberal somewhere along the line." Rush Limbaugh

Posted by: a second David | April 25, 2007 2:54 PM

Thanks Gary. Your comments are worth this repost. Now if only these forum members had the courage to read past the first line. ------------------------------------ Buying the War - yet another brattish rant by Moyers. In the revisionist revisit of history - which will omit all of the obviously demanded rebuttals, "oh, cheese, what about...", Moyers will say things like: 'A video clip shows a Fox anchor saying "A former top Iraqi nuclear scientist tells Congress Iraq could build three nuclear bombs by 2005." ' But, will Moyers play the role of an objective journalist and share the video clip of Senator Carl Levin (D.), Senate Intelligence Committee, telling Chris Matthews on Hardball in Nov. 2005, that - "look there was plenty of evidence that Saddam had nuclear weapons, by the way. That is not in dispute. There is plenty of evidence of that." In Nov. of 2005, folks. Either we get to make fun of Sen. Levin here, or we have to give Pres. Bush a little slack. Levin is on TV being interviewed almost every day. Are there any real journalists out there any more? Moyers will spend much effort in trying to make the case that it was...

Posted by: Mark | April 25, 2007 2:15 PM

the left has rosie, rosean, michael mooreon, alec baldwin, those are sane people i want talking for me. NOT

Posted by: stewart smalley | April 25, 2007 2:13 PM

The left has rosie, rosean, dirty harry, michael mooreon,alec baldwin those are sane people I want speaking for me. Not

Posted by: stewart smalley | April 25, 2007 2:11 PM

"If this Virginia Tech shooter had an ideology, what do you think it was? This guy had to be a liberal. You start railing against the rich and all this other -- this guy's a liberal. He was turned into a liberal somewhere along the line." Rush Limbaugh Thanks for returning to PBS, Bill. You are a reliable voice of sanity in an often shrill and hectoring media. And you're probably responsible for turning out two to three liberals each year. We are so easily manipulated, dontchaknow...

Posted by: Julie | April 25, 2007 1:45 PM

Thank God people like Bill are here to shed light on the truth and not just suck up to the powers that be!

Posted by: Bob | April 25, 2007 1:26 PM

Bill --- please check out various alternative points of view regarding what happened, and what did not happen, on 9-11; in particular, consider the evidence presented by Professor Steven Jones (if Brigham Young University)indicating that World Trade Center Buildings 1, 2, and 7 were brought down by controlled demolition, not by planes hitting them --- in fact, Building 7 was never hit by any plane at all --- note, in particular, that no steel-framed building, like WTC 1, 2, and 7, before or after 9-11, ever collapsed due to fire and (localized) structural damage alone --- so, controlled demolition looks most plausibly to be the reason --- Islamic terrorists would never have been able to orchestrate such controlled demolition --- by default, as well as by other evidence (see, for example, "9-11 Synthetic Terror: Made In USA" by Webster Griffin Tarpley), plausible evidence (at least to me) point to "rogue elements" within the Bush Administration itself as being responsible for orchestrating 9-11, and then blaming it on Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda, so as have an excuse to wage a bogus never-ending pre-emtive "war on terrorism", and all for what --- how about OIL and EMPIRE --- concommitantly, the...

Posted by: Herb Kline | April 25, 2007 12:47 PM

Hey John Laraway, Lee and Elaine Abbate--may I suggest you all do some REAL FACT CHECKING about today's mainstream media ownership--you will find that most of it is controlled by only 5 HUGE CONGLOMERATES (Time Warner, Disney, Viacom, News Corporation, and General Electric) THAT ALWAYS HAVE AND ALWAYS WILL BE PRO RIGHT-WING! For starters, have any of you looked carefully at the peacock head in the NBC logo? IT POINTS TO THE RIGHT! For your information, here are a few COLD HARD FACTS about who owns what in the media: CBS--is owned by Viacom--its chairman is Sumner Redstone, who has publicly stated in the past that he is a HUGE Bush supporter. This conglomerate also owns Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, and is a co-owner of UPN. NBC, MSNBC, and CNBC--these are all owned by General Electric. They also own Universal Pictures, Bravo, and the Universal Studios theme parks. FOX--is owned by News Corporation, whose CEO is "Ruthless" Rupert Murdoch. He also owns 20th Century Fox, Direct TV, TV Guide, the New York Post, HarperCollins books and is a co-owner (along with Viacom) of UPN. ABC--is owned by Disney. They also own ESPN. Disney is the 2nd biggest media conglomerate. Only Time...

Posted by: Richard Santalone | April 25, 2007 9:54 AM

Regarding the 'Lee's' of the world a good piece of advice I learned the hard way is, "Never argue with fools". Only people with open minds are capable of learning from mistakes, theirs or those of others. "Ignorance is bliss", eh?

Posted by: PaulMagillSmith | April 25, 2007 8:51 AM

Wouldn't a Moyers/Ivins ticket have been just what this country needs. Sadly Molly is no longer with us. I've held them as beacons of truth shining in a darkness of lies for many years now. I'm glad, after the flak shot at him by the (now) very worried Neo-CONservatives, that Bill had the temerity to take a lyric from a Steppenwolf song to heart, "Turn around/Don't back down/Go back the way you came". You just keep on going the way you are going, Bill; the vast majority of the disenfranchised & unable to be heard (previously) Americans are behind you 100%. BTW, don't pay any mind to negativity by some of the propagandized rubes who posted before me, because they are just that---propagandized rubes. Goebbels & Rove sure learned how to do their jobs well, didn't they, but we have the trump card, "You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all........."

Posted by: PaulMagillSmith | April 25, 2007 8:43 AM

I am overjoyed that you are back. My husband served 22 years in service for this country, but we feel this war has been ludicrous since the onset based on lies and half truths at best.I wonder at this point if we have not killed more innocent Iraqi's than Saddam did.

Posted by: Lore Frighetti | April 25, 2007 7:51 AM

It is a shame that the isle's of the world believe those who don't drink the kool-aid with them must be silenced. There is no shame in opposing the hypocrisy of Bill and his ilk....typical leftist, can't debate the facts, only acts on emotions...

Posted by: Lee | April 25, 2007 2:12 AM

Welcome back, Bill! I hope that the Lees of America will be silenced in shame.

Posted by: ilse | April 25, 2007 12:42 AM

Bill - Time to go back to sleep, senility has set in and affected you worse than any of us ever thought it would....

Posted by: Lee | April 24, 2007 11:18 PM

Buying the War - yet another brattish rant by Moyers. In the revisionist revisit of history - which will omit all of the obviously demanded rebuttals, "oh, cheese, what about...", Moyers will say things like: 'A video clip shows a Fox anchor saying "A former top Iraqi nuclear scientist tells Congress Iraq could build three nuclear bombs by 2005." ' But, will Moyers play the role of an objective journalist and share the video clip of Senator Carl Levin (D.), Senate Intelligence Committee, telling Chris Matthews on Hardball in Nov. 2005, that - "look there was plenty of evidence that Saddam had nuclear weapons, by the way. That is not in dispute. There is plenty of evidence of that." In Nov. of 2005, folks. Either we get to make fun of Sen. Levin here, or we have to give Pres. Bush a little slack. Levin is on TV being interviewed almost every day. Are there any real journalists out there any more? Moyers will spend much effort in trying to make the case that it was the Bush administration that was making up all of the threat stuff and the WMD's - but he will not bother to remind us...

Posted by: Gary Hall | April 24, 2007 10:58 PM

A warm welcome, Bill! You are one of those rare few in this world of rifts and conflicts, who could win peace in this war of words without slitting the throats of countless unfortunate ones who are being slaughtered each day insanely and mercilessly.

Posted by: farzana | April 24, 2007 9:42 PM

We know there was a lie and the American public bought into it with their collective silence. Now we want to blame the press? Haven't wee all sold out in this big lie? The truly important story right now is how our enlisted military men and women are being held hostage in our own armed forces. Where is the rage? Many are injured and not being given proper follow up care on their bases. Many of them will be redeployed for longer times and are not allowed to leave even when their time is up. "Stop Loss" is a vague term but in reality, it is nothing more than indentured servitude! For God's sake, do a story on this! NOW. Please! What is happening to our service men and women is immoral.

Posted by: Marjorie Gallece | April 24, 2007 9:30 PM

On Fresh Air I listened to Bill Moyers describe, in great detail, the flaws of the intelligence system which provided most of the information the Bush Administration used to formulate its decision to go to war. He outlined how different countries propogated the same information in circular fashion to reinforce the belief that Saddam had, and sought to manufacture WMD. In this scenario he finds a Bush conspiracy It's amazing the very short memories of people with an agenda (on both sides). One post here lamented the fact that the IAEA wasn't allowed back in - one more time. Even the French (no friend of Bush) believed Saddam had (and would seek) WMD. Does anyone remember 14 UN resolutions that were flaunted? My God people, lighten up. The Clinton's supported the war, along with a majority of prominent D's, including Harry Reid & Nancy Pelosi. If Bush lied. Have Reid & Pelosi begin impeachment procedures, now. Otherwise, find a more productive way to pass the time. I understand partisan passions. It's sad to see so many debilitatingly blinded. When State Department insiders leak info on the Intl surveillance program - that's good. When someone in the Bush Admin leaks...

Posted by: Greg Harrold | April 24, 2007 6:18 PM

In his comment Dave wrote, "Until our congress and senate are prepared to step forward and take control, and remove this administration from office, all of the talking in the world does no good. Our Representatives are so morally corrupted, that the likelihood of any action being taken is in serious doubt. The majority of the senate will defend this administration until the end. They will defend the killing of our troops to the end. They have taken an oath that means nothing to them." I don't blame Congress as much as I blame the 2004 voters who gave Bush a "stay the course" second term and now disapprove of the job he is doing. The voters now seem to expect our Legislative Branch to fix the problems with the Executive Branch. Congress does have some checks and balances, but they are not the President. They are not the Commander-in-Chief. We don't have the parliamentary system of changing the head of government when the majority changes. The country gave Bush a second 4 year term and its only half over. He is not doing anything different than he was doing in 2004. The people who voted for him are now...

Posted by: B.T. Mendelsohn | April 24, 2007 2:35 PM

Regarding the media's uncritical coverage of the War in Iraq, there were two issues at the start of the war that I don't recall the media discussing at all. One had to do with the report of the IAEA's weapons inspectors that was supposed to be made but the war short circuited. The other was the need for a strong Iraqi military to remain as a counter to Iran's ambitions. As I recall, in the weeks or days just prior to Pres. Bush’s preemptive strike announcement, the United Nations nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), had sent its weapons inspectors back to Iraq to learn whether Saddam was going to do as he was now saying, i.e., complete cooperate with the IAEA “Additional Protocol.”[http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Documents/Infcircs/1998/infcirc540corrected.pdf] The US had massed troops in the Mideast that could attack Iraq at a moments notice. As a result of our "showing" what Teddy Roosevelt had called "the big stick," Saddam said he had changed his mind about denying access to IAEA inspectors. The IAEA was going to see if he would live up to his renewed promise. USA Today reported (2/21/03) that the IAEA had "a list of more than 35 outstanding issues...

Posted by: B.T. Mendelsohn | April 24, 2007 2:15 PM

There are a few of us free thinkers in America who did not buy into any of this administrations assertions about the Iraq war in the first place. There never has been any critical questioning of the motives for going to war. Things have been surfacing that points to the White House lying to the American people about the facts used to get our country into war. I guess my question is "so what"? This program about to air, is like so many other news articles I have read. Still nothing gets done. Until our congress and senate are prepared to step forward and take control, and remove this administration from office, all of the talking in the world does no good. Our Representatives are so morally corrupted, that the likelihood of any action being taken is in serious doubt. The majority of the senate will defend this administration until the end. They will defend the killing of our troops to the end. They have taken an oath that means nothing to them. No one asks questions: Why are we in Iraq? Why do we need contractors feeding our troops – something wrong with KP? It worked in WWI...

Posted by: Dave | April 24, 2007 10:49 AM

The mass media today wield an enormous influence over daily life in this country. While they do not mold minds in the fashion once suspected, they do provide the information upon which persons in a democratic society can base their decisions, both in the polling place and the marketplace. It is essential that this information be as pure and untainted as human beings can make it. When the press errs, all of society lives with the mistake. - Ferguson & Patten, 1993 Maintaining unbiased coverage is essential to our credibility...Our credibility is in jeopardy if we pander to a certain group. Asking us to do so is nothing short of insulting. If a newsworthy event occurs, the integrity of journalism calls us to cover it, whether the circumstances are negative or positive. News happens every day, and it's important to understand that we work hard to present a balanced view of what happens. To put it simply, journalism speaks the truth. The role of journalism Kate Drolet, thecurrentonline.com I'm impressed to see that all of us care regardless of any political leveraging and emotion. Journalism has and will always be a noble but imperfect profession. We want to know the...

Posted by: Ickes | April 23, 2007 9:53 PM

Bill Moyer, I am glad that you are back on duty! I don’t know who will read this from your staff but whoever does please pass this on to your program director. I would like to see you discuss and even air the three part BBC Series called The Power Of Nightmares by Adam Curtis. It has been kept off American TV, yet it has been screened at the Cannes Film Festival in 2005, broadcast in England in 2004, Australia in 2005, Canada on CBC Newsworld in 2006, in Denmark on DR2 in March of this year. Even HBO will not touch it. After you watch it you will see why. It does dovetail with your current project this Wednesday. Like so much of this 911 and Iraq war stuff, it really is old news to anyone who went through the Vietnam War and the tragedy of that lie.

Posted by: Dan Stevenson III | April 23, 2007 9:43 PM

Knight-Ridder did the best reporting about the war, then Wall Street called to break up the newspaper chain. Coincidence?

Posted by: Pirko | April 23, 2007 4:43 PM

Welcome back ... you're one of the best! Buzz

Posted by: Buzz McCabe | April 23, 2007 4:22 PM

Welcome back, Bill! Many of us never believed the ever-changing stories to begin with. Any good judge will tell you that a changing story means... well, fibbing:) The Right Wing will try to say this is all out of pure hate for Bush... as if we had nothing real upon which to base our bad feelings. The truth is the truth is the truth. There is no such thing as "fair and balanced" when it comes to the truth. If you try to "balance" truth, you will have less than pure truth. It's about time to hear the real deal. Thanks, Bill.

Posted by: Juniper Lea Woodruff | April 23, 2007 4:08 PM

What can I say, It's great to have you back doesn't even come close!

Posted by: Doug in FLA | April 23, 2007 4:01 PM

Well, his blog opened for one week with less than 24 hours of wellwishing before the attack dogs landed. Robert plays pure Rush on the 22nd and Joe slides deeper on the 23rd. thick soup out there. Still, my favorite for honest insightful: A year ago a friend asked "How do you keep an idiot in suspense?" She never gave me the answer and I'm still waiting, Welcome Back Bill. Keep pointing out the idiots in self discoveries.

Posted by: David Wiles | April 23, 2007 3:50 PM

Welcome back Bill. your coming back is an act of extraorinary generosity. Your's in better journalism. Charles

Posted by: charles conlan | April 23, 2007 3:37 PM

I think it's pathetic, the cliton administration went around telling us that sadam had weapons of mas destruction and we should think about going into Iraq and taking him out. Then we had 9/11 which changed the why we looked at the world. Bush even went to the U.N., for yet again one more amendment. Were you guys saying anything about clinton going into Kosovo, for what the killing of 2000 people. He didn't even go to the U.N. to ask if he could go to war with Kosovo. you on the left are hypocritical. The democrats have the constitution authority to cut of the funding for the war, get out from under your desk and do it. I can't believe the greatest country on earth, can't defeat the taliban.

Posted by: joe | April 23, 2007 1:58 PM

I think everyone with the capability of some rational thought can agree that we should not be in Iraq right now. My only hope is that we can now move to the real issue at hand which is to bring the young men and women of this country- who are paying for Bush's mistake- home.

Posted by: Austin Real | April 23, 2007 12:22 PM

Here's a great topic. Why don't you use my tax dollars then, to look into how sandie burgler stoled documents from the national archives. or I don't know use your so called influence to have pbs show the documentary on the taliban.

Posted by: joe | April 23, 2007 11:14 AM

What a marvelous infusion of hope to see the return of Bill Moyers on PBS again informing the public on the issues important to maintaining a democracy! The 'fourth estate' still has a pulse. Thank you Mr. Moyers for keeping that pulse alive. Pat Heenan

Posted by: Pat Heenan | April 23, 2007 11:06 AM

It's great to be proud of our accomplishments and courage - but foolish not to be open to learning from mistakes. There are many ways to show courage. A surgeon who loses a patient on the table is no less couragous for his effort. If he doesn't allow himself to learn from new information in the medical field however, I would not want to have to rely on him when I get sick. I for one would hope that my pride in my past accomplishments would not stop me from examining all the evidence available in moving forward with current challenges.

Posted by: Jill | April 23, 2007 9:15 AM

Judging from the varied, yet always passionate responses on this board, Mr. Moyers has again shown his journalistic prowess. This is a topic Americans need to pay attention to, regardless of their political convictions.

Posted by: Ryan | April 22, 2007 11:38 PM

Dear bill, Thanks for drinking the koolaid. Why don't you go back and ask pelosi, clinton, kerry, dodd, schumer. Why were they telling the american people that Irac had weapons of mass destruction before 9/11. And we should think about going into Irac. This was pre Bush. I don't know maybe bias

Posted by: Joe | April 22, 2007 9:16 PM

Bill, I am so looking forward to the Documentary "Buying The War" I am going to try to put an editorial in my local paper, The Waycross Journal Herald to urge people to watch it. Thanks, Robert Willis

Posted by: Robert Willis | April 22, 2007 8:10 PM

Its a shame taxpayer money is spent for left wing crap like Moyers. Its long past time to yank that status. The real slime machine is CBS, NBC, ABC, Reuters, MSNBC, PBS(via Moyers). These networks and Moyers, personally, are a total disgrace and ripoff of the public trust. This Gulf War vet, 2 bronze star recipient, is tired of these posers feigning support of troops. You do not.

Posted by: Robert Potts | April 22, 2007 5:37 PM

Thank God you are back. You have given many great speeches while you've been away from TV. David has done a good job on NOW. If the right wingers can be kept out of the management of PBS maybe we will have you for a while yet.

Posted by: Betty Lockyear | April 22, 2007 5:32 PM

It’s good to see that Mr. Moyers is back. I wish commercial television had the mentality to air such quality but I know that is beneath them. PBS is and always will be my connection to the world issues there are no other sources. Commercial television is just that… Commercial. PBS Mind in an MTV world!

Posted by: Richard Ryan | April 22, 2007 3:56 PM

To what would the troops be coming home? Most of us don't know what caused Tower 7 of the WTC to fall (some aren't even aware there's any mystery in it), and the towers are a big part of what led to the war...and to everything that happened to the troops. What can we tell them we've done while they were gone? "Buying the War"? I don't know what we bought.

Posted by: JB in PA | April 22, 2007 2:37 PM

May Wednesday's show be the first effective review of the Book of Boomers. As Woodstock was to Viet Nam, so has Iraq become our Altamont. We Boomers thought it we were different, certainly not "Germans," but now it turns out we can't smell smoke either. No story about Iraq should go fifty words without mentioning what our president correctly calls our addiction, oil. And in the next fifty words, we should admit that the generation who globalized our own image will have to recognize that the whole world chokes on our smoke. Let's hope we turn to follow the lights of Moyers, Gore, and other brave teachers.

Posted by: Rex Heftmann | April 22, 2007 12:54 PM

Would it be possible to post this as a webcast? It would be an invaluable classroom resource (I teach American History)and a realistic alternative to the tripe served up by the mainstream media.

Posted by: Jim | April 21, 2007 3:38 PM

Thank God for PBS and for real and ethical journalisim. If there's any hope for our country, it lies in the hands of journalists like Mr. Moyers.

Posted by: Shannon Riggs | April 21, 2007 10:56 AM

For David: Any person that links to an argument by Ann Coulter is not interested in a serious debate. Bill Moyers is a respected journalist, while Ann Coulter is a foul-mouthed agitator with no credibility. Any rational person could care less what her opinion of Mr. Moyers is. Likewise, the WSJ editorial page is a cesspool with little to no journalistic credibility whatsoever. A sensible person would be just as interested in their critique of Mr. Moyers as they would be interested in Ann Coulter's comments about him. Unfortunately, you seem to be the sort of person that appears interested in sensationalism rather than journalism. As to your question: Why won't Thomas Friedman, Bill Kristol, Roger Ailes, Charles Krauthammer, Judith Miller, and William Safire talk to you? What do you think they know about you? The question isn't what these sophists know about Bill Moyers - it is what Bill Moyers knows about them. It pains me that there are people like yourself out there that think the likes of Coulter, Kristol and Krauthammer are the real journalists, but then again you probably think FOX is the most trusted name in news.

Posted by: John S. | April 21, 2007 9:32 AM

This is a story that must be told. Funny how so many people are going to the worn out complaint of the "liberal" media bias. This is the usual garbage you hear from "conservatives" when they do not like what they are hearing. Ouch. If you are unhappy with Moyers, just go back to Limbaugh and Colter to be spoon-fed your daily intelligence. Moyers and PBS have my vote.

Posted by: Winston Smith | April 21, 2007 1:10 AM

I respect Moyers commitment on this issue because a lot of dialog will be generated. Just hope we don't go off on a tangent. The topic of war is so wide and tall that it is always a convoluted concept to justify. Are we still debating the war or discussing journalism? Can we separate the topics? Journalism has a role in war that is powerful; i.e.: have we forgotten Vietnam? Was this achieved in the coverage of our role in Irag? So we as the public need to appeal to each journalist, editor or corporate magnet who runs the press machine to lean clearly so we know who they are...like Bill Moyers. You know who he is and what he stands for even if you are struggling with the bigger picture. The press is and always will be swayed by popular opinion and we need to question it's content. Influence, bad sources, tilted politics and world objectives are part of the journalist's research but finding a voice that you can count on is difficult in the face of war, we need leaders in journalism as well as in politics. We filter with our own bias'. War is so large and...

Posted by: ickes | April 20, 2007 10:05 PM

Way to go Jill. Wouldn't it be grand if the dialog could be bridged with factual reporting and without political partisanship or bias?

Posted by: Ickes | April 20, 2007 4:44 PM

I hope that the excerpt is somewhat deceptive, because it suggests that Moyers buys into the "Beltway Bubble" theory of the failure of the press. The job of a news media executive is not just to oversee the content of their own product(s), but to be aware of what "the competition" is saying -- and that includes not just the work done by Knight-Ridder, but foreign news sources. And it was glaringly obvious to anyone who read those sources that the Bush regime was grossly and consciously manipulating that facts that formed the basis of the case for war. Its simply not credible for reporters and editors to assert "we were fooled". They weren't. They instead made conscious decisions to NOT report the facts that were readily available to anyone with an internet connection. E&P has a piece up that probably explains why. They include a quote from the CNN's head honcho Walter Isaacson: '[Isaacson said] "We didn't question our sources enough." But why? Isaacson notes there was "almost a patriotism police" after 9/11 and when the network showed civilian casualties it would get phone calls from advertisers and the administration and "big people in corporations were calling up and...

Posted by: paul lukasiak | April 20, 2007 3:35 PM

The Left in this country is dangerously sick. Their virtual stranglehold on the media (ABCNNBCBS News, NPR/PBS, The NYTimes, Wash Post, etc., etc.) is obvious to everyone but themselves. The unthinking, reactionary and blind arrogance of people like Mr. Moyers is reaching a dangerous critical mass. The real danger of dissent being stifled today comes from the increasingly intolerant, increasingly irrational left, not the right. Like Walter Conkrite, I feel this country is in grave danger, but the danger is from an increasingly fascist, almost Nazi-like left. I just wonder how long it will be before it (the Left) begins to enact it's own version of the Final Solution, and moves to make conservative opinion punishable by imprisonment, or even death.

Posted by: John Laraway | April 20, 2007 2:52 PM

I have the same sense of anger I feel from Rex's message - and yet it's pointed at a different source. I suspect that most people feel some amount of anger (there is certainly some rage for my part) at how the government chooses to spend our hard earned tax money. Given the reality that we all must choose to accept the decisions of a democratic society - I think a place like this, where differences of opinion can be expressed is a fantastic gift. It's time we spent more effort at understanding each others values, and even some willingness to question our own, than in venting our rage without the willingness to examine its root causes. I've had enough of people defining themselves with some label (political party, religion, race, or whatever...), and then expressing hatred of others who don't share that label. I'm very concerned about the lack of dialog in this country - and very glad to have found a place like this where people can share their views with respect and a desire to make this country a better place.

Posted by: Jill H | April 20, 2007 2:38 PM

Welcome back Bill. One of the few really truthful journalists out there. I'm not surprised Kristol et al weren't prepared to show up.

Posted by: John | April 20, 2007 2:08 PM

Hello David, Thank you for sharing those web sites. Setting aside the possible the sentiments of others (Thomas Friedman, Bill Kristol,...), what is your opinion about the NOW show regarding Ms. Rice? I'd really like to look at that again. I'm not certain, but I think I may have seen part, or all of it when it came out. But I'd have to look for it again (maybe on this web site?) to recall what was said. Do you feel there were unfounded allegations made against Ms. Rice that were not appropriate for a news show? It's great that technology makes a dialog like this possible. I'd love to hear your views.

Posted by: Jill H | April 20, 2007 12:52 PM

Mr. Moyers needs to think. Not who sold the war, but who lied until it became almost a truth against the war. Mr. Moyers and his ilk are plainly rememicent of Goering. Tell a big enough lie, long enough and every one will believe it. PBS today exists from donations of my tax money, but it certainly has never reflected the opinions of the vast majority of the people whom are paying its bills. Speak the truth or forever hold your peice. Opinionated editorializing is a freedom, but when it isn't balanced as does Fox whom they decry, it is propiganda. PBS is but an arm of BBS anyway.

Posted by: Rex Whitmer | April 20, 2007 12:45 PM

You are a true American hero. I've always had enormous respect for you. There's not a pedestal high enough to put you on that wouldn't endanger your life! I have your documentary down on my calendar.

Posted by: Joanne | April 20, 2007 12:23 PM

For Bill Moyers: Why won't Thomas Friedman, Bill Kristol, Roger Ailes, Charles Krauthammer, Judith Miller, and William Safire talk to you? What do you think they know about you? Have you read http://peacecorpsonline.org/messages/messages/467/2032594.html? From James Taranto http://www.opinionjournal.com/best/?id=110006045 What Liberal Media? From an Associated Press dispatch on Bill Moyers's retirement from his PBS show, "Now": One example of typically good journalism on "Now" not long ago: an in-depth look at the record of President Bush's nominee for secretary of state, Condoleeza Rice, who in her post as national security adviser "dreadfully misjudged the terrorist threat leading up to 9/11, and then misled America and the world about the case for invading Iraq," Moyers concluded. We have nothing against opinionated journalism, as you might expect, but the AP is supposed to be a straight news source. Does Moyers's attack on Rice really meet its definition of "good journalism"?

Posted by: David | April 20, 2007 11:38 AM

As Jeeves once said, "you're lucidity itself." I would say, you are rainbows in storms with clarity as a Texas summer day. How we need your voice now.

Posted by: Byron Golden | April 18, 2007 11:21 PM

NO FAIR! Now I got to wait a week before I can get the rest of the story!This reminds me of a question a friend once asked me A year ago a friend asked"How do you keep an idiot in suspence?" She never gave me the answer and I'm still waiting.(Why do people do that to me?) Mr.Moyer,there are a few 'real reporters'left. I seriously worry about the future of the truth when guys like you and Bob Shieffer(?)hand up the crumpled hat,note pad and steely determination to get to the bottom of a story. You really can't understand how much you are missed when you go. We cry when you leave,we cry when you come back! Just read.

Posted by: Robert J Webb | April 18, 2007 4:55 PM

I look forward to seeing this series about the war,but I must confess I am a little apprehensive! I am pretty sure I am going to find out what I think already to be the case.That is that a very few cabalists inside the Bush Administration Hi-Jacked My country as sure as the 9-11 hijackers did those planes!!!

Posted by: Tommie27 | April 18, 2007 4:01 PM

I am so glad--and relieved--to see you back. I learn a lot every time I view your programs.

Posted by: Barbara Weinbaum | April 18, 2007 3:07 PM

Since Bill Moyers is a big liberal, I guess we will only get one side of the story, that is, Bush is a liar, etc. We already get plenty of that on ABC, NBC, CNN and MSNBC!!! If you post this, I will be more than shocked.

Posted by: Elaine Abbate | April 18, 2007 1:57 PM

Welcome back. I am delighted that, among others, you are using Knight Ridder as one example of those in the media who employed the skepticism and measured analysis that is the necessary precondition to responsible reporting. That news organization has remained my most constant source for fair, illuminating and considered news on the war in Iraq. I applaud them, as I do you, for a your importance to journalistic excellence.

Posted by: Cherie | April 18, 2007 1:45 PM

Dear Bill-- I was one of the people that took Molley Ivins' suggestion to write you and suggest you run for president of the U.S. I understand your reasons for not running. It looks like I got my wish anyway ( and so did Molley). It is a delight to see you in action once again and very visible. Thank you. Your voice of reason gives me strength to carry on fighting the imperial White House et al. I will spread the news that you are back on the TV twice a week!

Posted by: James L. Wrolstad | April 18, 2007 1:12 PM

Dear Bill, I am delighted that you are coming back to pbs on a regular basis. I have greatly enjoyed your programs over the years. They have always been intelligent, thought provoking and on the mark. I will be watching with great interest. I'm happy that you are again "following your bliss". Respectfully yours, Jim McMeans

Posted by: jim mcmeans | April 18, 2007 12:44 PM

SO good to have you back, Mr. Moyers! When I saw nothing in print and on the major networks that alleviated my anger and anxiety over the 2000 "fudged" (the President's word describing some irregularities on Wall Street, remember?) election and this administration's leadup to war in Iraq, Bill Moyers and Amy Goodman of Democracy Now were my life preservers bringing sanity in an insane situation. Giving us information that validated that nagging feeling in your gut that told you how wrong things were. We need to become a fully conscious society again.

Posted by: JoanE | April 18, 2007 12:30 PM

welcome back! when are you going to do an investigative report on psychotronics?

Posted by: j rymond | April 18, 2007 12:25 PM

I agree with your comments Tom. I think that some of our 'Buying' of this war is not yet fully conscious in our society. I also think if people could see the effects we have on others in the world, they would truly be disturbed by it. It is not in our corporate interest to shed light on these issues however. What I find more disturbing is what we DO accept as valid argument. When pandering to our fears with the 'mushroom cloud' talk was exposed as erroneous, then the talk switched to: "better that we have the violence in their neighborhoods, if that might prevent it in ours". First, I disagree with the validity of this logic, and in fact I believe it makes violence in our country more likely instead of less. But more fundamentally, what does this say about us? It seems to me that a majority of Americans have 'bought' this notion that it's OK to destroy a society, and kill hundreds of thousands of innocent people, because it might teach a lesson of fear that could somehow make us safer. I have a son who will soon be returning for his second deployment to Falluja...

Posted by: Jill H | April 18, 2007 9:10 AM

What great news...Bill Moyers is back. Unfortunately, there is likely even now plans being formulated to discredit him and undermine him just as in the past. Things must be humming in the Cheney-Rove-Rice-Bush White House propaganda department to move their leading media stooges into action whose efforts will foment red-faced, sputtering hatred among the Dupes across the Country.

Posted by: Janus | April 18, 2007 9:04 AM

Do we have objective, thorough jounalism? Why did the press "machine" buy it the spin and why didn't the seasoned, professional jounalist who opposed the war have more influence in sorting out the facts? Can the American people rely on jounalism in the future regardless of who is in the White House?

Posted by: Ickes | April 18, 2007 8:52 AM

Welcome back!!!! I hope PBS is wise enough to let you comment on anything you please without any interference from them. Besides you, I listen only to Ted Koppel,David Branccio, Lou Dobbs, and the (BBC for political and war news only) all of whom are well informed, respectful of their listeners and their opposition but are by no means pushovers. Most reporters now are trying to entertain you, insult you or your intelligence and comply with the ideas of their corporate owners. Sounds like our politicians--oops,Im' not being respectful. Funny thing, I could care less about what goes on in Hollywood on Idol shows,rappers in jail or on drugs etc, and our news commentators seem to be obsessed with these nitwits. If this is the only thing that the general public is concerned with, this country is in big trouble.

Posted by: Jeannie Norris | April 18, 2007 5:49 AM

In a day and time when there is little history on 'The History Channel', few arts on A&E, no discernible music on MTV, less weather on 'The Weather Channel' and very little journalism at the 24-hour "News" Channels, thank God for PBS and for your return to the airwaves.

Posted by: David A Gregory | April 18, 2007 3:45 AM

Welcome back! And THANK YOU for returning to the airwaves! I look forward to many interesting interviews and to your depth and sincerity.

Posted by: Frances Malamud-Roam | April 18, 2007 1:34 AM

In "Buying the War", we "Bought the Farm", so to speak, right?

Posted by: Georgia L. Foster | April 18, 2007 1:10 AM

Welcome back, Mr. Moyers. You are the journalist I respect most. Actually, I respect you more than any other prominent person. I have been inspired by your eloquent and compelling speeches calling citizens to act to save our democracy. You have exceptional wisdom, honesty and courage. You are a hero to millions of Americans. I am so grateful that you are returning to television. Thank you.

Posted by: Arlene Joyce | April 18, 2007 1:00 AM

It will be good to see Bill Moyers back on PBS. I'm also looking forward to discussions about clean money elections. I know he's interested in this from reading his speeches on CommonDreams.org.

Posted by: Gary Kimball | April 18, 2007 12:01 AM

Thank God you're back, Bill--we've missed you and we've needed you like never before!

Posted by: Margaret Jones | April 17, 2007 11:59 PM

I knew you couldn't stay away. The huge errors of judgment and potential crimes committed by the Bush administration are just too juicy. This administration has created such a target-rich environment for a good journalist, how could you possibly NOT get back in the game. Your biggest problem may be where to start. Investigationg Bush and his neo-conservatives can be considered job-security for a good investigative journalist who is not afraid to turn over the rocks where these guys work. Good hunting Bill. Sincerely, Tom Guzman

Posted by: Thomas Guzman | April 17, 2007 11:38 PM

This is my first time to comment. I'm so glad Bill Moyers is back on PBS. Thank God for people like him. Keep up the great work. We want and need people working for our great country to try and keep it great. Sandra Zanchetti

Posted by: Sandra Zanchetti | April 17, 2007 10:05 PM

I think we have all been buying this war in a very different, subtle and insidious way. We have a foreign trade policy that has allowed China to subsidize their currency, abuse their labor pool and their human rights, and steal important manufacturing information. We have all benefited from this by the cheap prices of the likes of Walmart and other major importers while selling out domestic producers. China has had a sorry record in relation to its workers and big business has benefited off of this. Importers are arbitraging these differences between the U.S. and China while putting no pressure on opening up their political system. To add insult to injury, the extra money China makes off of us helps subsidize our government and enslave our children with promises to pay on the debt. Our interest rates are lower, sure, but it is part of the fake economy while we sell out domestic producers. Bill needs to do a story on what is happening in our trade with other nations. The citizens workers who are producing for us are not getting their fair share and we are setting up oligopolies across the globe. I read an article the other...

Posted by: Tom | April 17, 2007 7:50 PM

Thank goodness you are back. I'm sure there is a part of you that wants a little rest and less aggravation but we are grateful that you have seen fit to return. We need you to help us put the pieces together for the nation and get back on the right path before we destroy ourselves. Thanks to you, Judy and the rest of the team we have come to depend on for crisp critical thinking and honesty. Both are a hard commodity to come by in journalism these days.

Posted by: Rain 39 | April 17, 2007 7:40 PM

I'm Glad to see you back Bill! I missed your uncompromising honesty in your reporting of the facts. I hope nothing has changed in this. It would be nice to get all the evidence against Bush and proceed to impeach him. Bush, as far as I'm concerned, has been the worst president in history. If anyone has deserved impeachment and a prison sentence in The Hague, it's Bush. He has done more to harm this world and our place in it than anyone else. Presidents are supposed to try to get along with other counties, not make enemies of most of the people in the world.

Posted by: linda meyer | April 17, 2007 6:14 PM

I would like to recommend Amy Goodman as a trusted news source. She is willing to speak with people that are not heard on the corporate media. Try visiting her at: www.democracynow.org

Posted by: Jill H | April 17, 2007 6:13 PM

Bill, thank God your back. You survived the assault on PBS by the right-wing and, like the mythical Phoenix, rose from the ashes. We all can celebrate the return of a trusted national journalistic source. I was getting tired of government propaganda and entertainment exposés masquerading as journalism; a sad state of affairs when you have to rely on the BBC and The Guardian for something resembling the truth !

Posted by: Richard | April 17, 2007 6:09 PM

Mr. Moyers credits his audience with intelligence and seems to welcome thoughtful opposing views. I have believed PBS was dedicated to this sort of journalism. Why then was Mr. Moyers suddenly absent from the NOW program? Was PBS compromised? If so, how and by who and for what reason? By what method do we, the readers, listeners and viewers, insure a free and open press? In looking at media influences, an answer to those questions is central.

Posted by: Larry McDowell | April 17, 2007 5:32 PM

The question of how the press dropped the ball is interesting - but I think it's much more pressing to ask: Why, with all the evidence that Bush lied to get us into this war, are we not impeaching this man? He has broken laws, and lied to the American people. Why do we continue to allow him to destroy our country?

Posted by: Jill | April 17, 2007 5:24 PM

Moyer's integrity quotient dwarfs most of his colleagues so I will be waiting with anticipation to see how he handles this issue. He has direct experience to explain the media's complicity, but another interesting question is how a majority of our leaders mouthed the same propaganda. Still more interesting is why some leaders didn't. Tivo set.

Posted by: Mark | April 17, 2007 5:24 PM

Welcome back, Bill. It is a blessing to see a lighthouse in such a stormy time of contention and media manipulation. You and your interviewees have always provided beacons--and, if I remember--always insisted that we find our own way with the new information. Thank you for the illumination and I'll be watching. Scott Berry Orlando, FL

Posted by: Scott Berry | April 17, 2007 5:18 PM

I am so glad that Bill is back on the air addressing the important topics. At least in my opinion, nobody speaks to my mind and my heart quite like Bill Moyers. During these troubling times I am glad he is back to speak to both. Thanks!

Posted by: Brett Thomason | April 17, 2007 4:43 PM

Thank God!!! We need honest and hardworking journalists like Bill and his team to light a fire under the entire profession. There is now a bit more hope that Democracy can rise to meet the challenges we face together as a species. Welcome back Bill and team!

Posted by: Avi | April 17, 2007 4:34 PM

If the claim that facts were being stretched to justify Bush's position on this war is true and it swayed jounalists to look the other way or not do their jobs thoroughly, then we could make an intelligent discussion based on each of these facts. Couldn't we? We've heard the faulty data on Weapons of Mass Destruction but there must have been a reaction from the "seasoned reporters" mentioned here. I wonder what failed? There must have been a political influence from each side of the press. The role of jounalism is challenged by their role in this part of our history because if Saddam was "wrongfully attacked" by our country because of a hidden agenda in Bush's Administration to influenced the press, where does the role of journalism lie now? Is it really unbiased?

Posted by: Ickes | April 17, 2007 4:30 PM

good to see you back, bill

Posted by: peter brant | April 17, 2007 4:15 PM

its our good fortune to have a journalist of such a high caliber, a man with principals, an intellectual with a conscious, its why I will never lose the hope that the USA will eventually become the true leader of this world in peaceful solutions to old problems, to lead on protecting the enviroment,a leader in fighting for liberty and civil rights all over the world, to be a center of human love and kindness

Posted by: ghassan mike samara | April 17, 2007 4:08 PM

Great to have Mr. Moyers back on the air regularly. I hope there will be discussions in this blog about Capitol Crimes.

Posted by: Jeannon Kralj | April 17, 2007 3:39 PM

Welcome back, Bill!

Posted by: Chet Scoville | April 17, 2007 3:03 PM

Preview: BUYING THE WAR

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