[Kate Parker Adams]

MoveOn is forming a group to keep the media honest about its portrayal of 
the war against Iraq.  They are looking for folks who are willing to spend 
15 minutes a day e-mailing and calling media outlets that act like 
propaganda factories.

Details below ...


>From: "Eli Pariser, MoveOn.org" <moveon-help@list.moveon.org>
>To: "Kathryn Adams" <kadams@hohp.harvard.edu>
>Subject: Reporting the truth about war.
>Date: Wed, 26 Mar 2003 17:37:16 -0800 (PST)
>
>Dear MoveOn member,
>
>Our country is at war, and many of us continue to feel grief
>and anger that this terrible conflict is being fought on our
>behalf.  It's a hard time.
>
>It's also a critical time for us to stay involved.  As we report
>below, together we've had some amazing successes over the last
>month, both domestically and in opposition to this war.  We
>need to keep this momentum building.  As a next step, please
>consider joining MoveOn's Media Corps -- a group of committed
>online activists who will keep the media accountable.  Help
>make sure that our news media report the war the way it
>happens, not the way the Bush Administration wishes it would
>happen.
>
>You can sign up now at:
>
>    http://www.moveon.org/mediacorps/
>
>American media outlets have chosen to stifle or simply not
>show the most terrible and saddening aspects of this war.
>They are reluctant to air the voices of critics who are raising
>important questions about its effectiveness and purpose.  And
>they appear to have acceded to the Bush Administration's
>desire to black out pictures or footage of civilian
>casualties.
>
>Now more than ever, it's important that the media report the
>full story, unvarnished and unspun.  But all we see on TV are
>retired military officers and Administration officials
>narrating a clean and precise war that bears little resemblance
>to the chaos, bloodshed, and tragedy on the ground.
>
>We need to demand the full picture.  Please consider joining
>the MoveOn Media Corps right now.  The action ideas we send
>you won't generally take longer than 15 minutes, but to be
>part of the Corps we ask that you commit to taking up to one
>action per day.  The actions could include calling media
>outlets when they air especially bad coverage, pushing Clear
>Channel radio to stop censoring anti-war songs, or writing
>letters to the editor.
>
>Sign up right now at:
>
>    http://www.moveon.org/mediacorps/
>
>The MoveOn Media Corps is just a part of our ongoing work.
>Over the last month, we've launched a variety of impressive
>initiatives, thanks to you.  This war is tragic, but there
>really is hope: more of us are active than ever before,
>we're winning domestic policy battles, and we're changing the
>international landscape.  If we stick together, in the end,
>we'll win.
>
>One exciting internal development is the growth of MoveOn.org
>itself.  In July 2002, we had a little over 480,000 folks on
>our domestic list, with another 390,000 MoveOn members in
>other countries around the world.  Today, less than eight
>months later, there are over 1,300,000 of us in the United
>States alone. (Think of it this way -- one out of every 216
>Americans is a MoveOn member.) With our 750,000 international
>members, we're over two million strong.
>
>It's not just that there are a lot of us, of course.  We're
>also getting things done.  In reverse chronological order,
>here are some of our events and campaigns since the beginning
>of March:
>
>  (*) TUESDAY, MARCH 25TH: Big win on tax fairness
>
>Almost 10,000 phone calls from MoveOn members helped Democrats
>win with a razor-thin majority in the Senate, cutting the Bush
>tax cut by half.  The AFL-CIO helped make these calls possible
>by providing a toll-free phone line to Capitol Hill.
>
>  (*) SATURDAY, MARCH 22ND: Hundreds of thousands march in NYC
>
>MoveOn members and many others peacefully marched in one of
>the largest domestic anti-war events in the last thirty years.
>Organizers put the crowd at over a quarter of a million
>folks -- and this wasn't even a nationally promoted march.
>
>  (*) FRIDAY, MARCH 21ST: Raised over $500,000 for Oxfam
>
>Over 6,000 MoveOn members chipped in over half a million
>dollars in a matter of days to help support desperately needed
>humanitarian aid work in Iraq.  If you haven't yet given, your
>contribution would still be put to very good use.  Go to:
>
>    http://www.moveon.org/oxfam/
>
>  (*) WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19TH: Launch of Citizens' Declaration
>
>Our Citizens' Declaration urged folks to pledge a continued
>commitment to opposing the Bush war policy and to resolving
>conflict through international institutions.  The response was
>tremendous -- by now, over 550,000 signers from virtually
>every country in the world have signed.
>
>We still encourage folks to sign up -- you can do so now at:
>
>    http://www.moveon.org/declaration/
>
>The Citizens' Declaration was also highlighted as the
>centerpiece of a Washington Post editorial. "The sentiments in
>that statement could be endorsed by much of the American
>foreign policy establishment," wrote Robert Kuttner, the
>author.  You can read the whole editorial at:
>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A8220-2003Mar21.html
>
>  (*) WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19TH: We win Senate vote on ANWR
>
>Here's what Peter Schurman, MoveOn's executive director, wrote
>to the members from key states who participated in this fight:
>
>"The Senate voted 52-48 today to protect the Arctic National
>Wildlife Refuge from oil drilling, by removing from  the
>budget bill a provision that would have permitted drilling
>there.  More than 2,000 MoveOn members helped make this
>possible by calling key Senators since yesterday.  It may have
>made all the difference: two of the swing votes on whom we
>focused most attention, Senators Norm Coleman (R-MN) and Mark
>Pryor (D-AR), both voted to protect the Refuge.  They made up
>the margin of victory today."
>
>  (*) MONDAY, MARCH 17TH: Thousands of lights in windows.
>
>Following on our global candlelight vigil, we asked folks to
>put a light in their window every night:
>
>"It could be a Christmas string or candle, a light bulb, or a
>lantern. It's an easy way to keep the light of reason and hope
>burning, to let others know that they are not alone, and to
>show the way home to the young men and women who are on their
>way to Iraq."
>
>By now, over 96,000 of us in over 200 countries have
>registered that we're keeping the light burning.
>
>  (*) Sunday, March 16th: Over 6,700 vigils in 141 countries.
>
> >From our follow-up message on the global candlelight vigils:
>
>"People came together in thousands of towns and villages
>around the world -- a truly global vigil for peace. The vigils
>came in all shapes and sizes.  There were vigils with ten
>people and vigils with thousands.  There were vigils in homes,
>in churches, and in open fields.  People joined together to
>share their commitment to making a better world."
>
>For some amazing pictures of vigils around the world, go to:
>
>    http://www.moveon.org/vigil/
>
>  (*) MONDAY, MARCH 10TH: U.N. emergency petition delivered.
>
>In less than a week, MoveOn members in the United States and
>around the world gathered over a million petition signatures
>to deliver to the members of the U.N. Security Council.  Our
>message was simple: "The U.N. Security Council should back
>tough inspections, not war."  Along with actors Jessica Lange,
>Steve Buscemi, and Ethan Hawke, we delivered the petition in a
>press conference at the U.N.  And it appears that we had an
>impact -- the United States and Britain abandoned their push
>for a second resolution because they could not get the
>necessary votes.
>
>The final count on our emergency petition was 1,030,775.
>
>  (*) THURSDAY, MARCH 6TH: Dems filibuster Estrada
>
>With the support of more than 40,000 phone calls from
>MoveOn members, the Democrats are now taking a stand against
>a far-right judiciary.  A filibuster against Miguel Estrada,
>a stealth right-wing nominee, has held for six weeks now, and
>survived three attempts to end it.  Senate Democrats are
>learning the power of unity, proving to themselves that they
>can prevent the right wing from taking even greater control
>over our lives.  This filibuster has stiffened Democrats'
>resolve across the board, enabling other victories as well.
>
>For a tactical report on our domestic work from Peter Schurman,
>go to:
>
>    http://www.moveon.org/otherside.html
>
>We'll keep on working -- there's a lot to do, both
>domestically and internationally.  For now, take a moment to
>thank yourself for being a part of this tsunami of action.
>We really are changing the country and the world.
>
>With great appreciation from all of us,
>
>--The MoveOn Team
>   Carrie, Eli, Joan, Peter, Wes, and Zack
>   March 26th, 2003
>
>P.S.  We do this work with only four paid staff; the folks on
>our list pay for our operating expenses and salaries. If you'd
>like to chip in, you can contribute by credit card or check
>at:
>
>    http://www.moveon.org/support.html
>
>P.P.S. If you're looking for other ways to help out, think
>again about the Media Corps.  You can sign up right now at:
>
>    http://www.moveon.org/mediacorps/
>
>________________
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