Podcast appearances and mentions of Robert W Mcchesney

PART IITune in for 'The Media Democracy Blues' hosted by Roger Smith during Crazy Words, Crazy Tune on WRFI Community Radio.This special two-hour interview with the eloquent media scholar and historian Victor Pickard originally aired on Friday, October 3, from 12-2pm in the regular time slot of “⁠Crazy Words, Crazy Tune⁠.”⁠Victor Pickard⁠ teaches mass communication and political economy at the Annenberg School at U Penn. His first major book, ⁠America's Battle for Media Democracy⁠ (2015), concentrates on the key decisions made in the 1940s that set in stone the foundations of the commercial, corporate-dominated media system that continues to bedevil us today. Pickard is also the current board chair of the media policy reform group Free Press, which was co-founded by his mentor, Robert W. McChesney. ⁠America's Battle for Media Democracy⁠ makes a great bookend to ⁠McChesney's first book⁠, which covers the spirited radio reform movement of the 1920s and ‘30s that tried and failed to secure a non-commercial space for labor and civic groups on the airwaves.Because the ⁠Crazy Words, Crazy Tune⁠ weekly show is devoted to the popular culture of that period of history—and because the politics of media has been a lifelong obsession of show host Roger Smith, he was especially excited and proud to interview Victor and delve into this narrative as well as its present-day ramifications.

The societal ramifications of the death of local journalism in the United States are as widespread as they are depressingly predictable. As Robert W. McChesney and John Nichols recently wrote in the Columbia Journalism Review, “It is not simply that functional self-government is impossible without credible journalism with all that forebodes; it is that local newspapers have provided the social glue that brought communities to life, as places where people see themselves as participating in a joint enterprise with people they know and understand and care about. That is disintegrating.”In this segment of The Marc Steiner Show, Marc speaks with McChesney and Nichols about how the slow death of America's journalism ecosystem in the digital age has corresponded with the disintegration of the social fabric of the American republic. They also discuss McChesney and Nichols's proposal of a Local Journalism Initiative and how it could improve life for communities around the country. Robert W. McChesney is Professor Emeritus at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. John Nichols writes for The Nation and the Capital Times of Madison, Wisconsin. Along with cofounding Free Press with Josh Silver and Kimberly Longey in 2003, McChesney and Nichols have written several books on media and politics together, including most recently The Death and Life of American Journalism: The Media Revolution That Will Begin the World Again.Tune in for new episodes of The Marc Steiner Show every Monday and Thursday on TRNN.Pre-Production/Studio: Cameron GranadinoPost Production: Stephen FrankHelp us continue producing The Marc Steiner Show by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer:Donate: https://therealnews.com/donate-pod-mssSign up for our newsletter: https://therealnews.com/nl-pod-stGet The Marc Steiner Show updates: https://therealnews.com/up-pod-stLike us on Facebook: https://facebook.com/therealnewsFollow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/therealnews

The societal ramifications of the death of local journalism in the United States are as widespread as they are depressingly predictable. As Robert W. McChesney and John Nichols recently wrote in the Columbia Journalism Review, “It is not simply that functional self-government is impossible without credible journalism with all that forebodes; it is that local newspapers have provided the social glue that brought communities to life, as places where people see themselves as participating in a joint enterprise with people they know and understand and care about. That is disintegrating.”In this segment of The Marc Steiner Show, Marc speaks with McChesney and Nichols about how the slow death of America's journalism ecosystem in the digital age has corresponded with the disintegration of the social fabric of the American republic. They also discuss McChesney and Nichols's proposal of a Local Journalism Initiative and how it could improve life for communities around the country. Robert W. McChesney is Professor Emeritus at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. John Nichols writes for The Nation and the Capital Times of Madison, Wisconsin. Along with cofounding Free Press with Josh Silver and Kimberly Longey in 2003, McChesney and Nichols have written several books on media and politics together, including most recently The Death and Life of American Journalism: The Media Revolution That Will Begin the World Again.Tune in for new episodes of The Marc Steiner Show every Monday and Thursday on TRNN.Pre-Production/Studio: Cameron GranadinoPost Production: Stephen FrankHelp us continue producing The Marc Steiner Show by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer:Donate: https://therealnews.com/donate-pod-mssSign up for our newsletter: https://therealnews.com/nl-pod-stGet The Marc Steiner Show updates: https://therealnews.com/up-pod-stLike us on Facebook: https://facebook.com/therealnewsFollow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/therealnews

This is the free weekly edition of TMBS. To support the Michael Brooks Show on Patreon and receive hours of weekly members-only content, subscribe at Patreon.com/tmbs  We can end hunger for everyone. Robert Mcchesney joins us to talk about lessons from the Bernie campaign and how to move forward.  During the GEM David breaks down why we need to watch the banks not the stock market.

“Facts tell, stories sell,” is a principle known to every top-tier ad writer.Stories change people while statistics give them something to argue about. People remember stories long after bullet-points are forgotten. Tom Robbins said, “I mean we are all, as human beings, caught up in a web of narration, this great narrative web, and we have always defined ourselves, human beings, through narration, through stories.” In his final speech to broadcasters on March 8, 2003, Paul Harvey said, “And should you visit my skyscraper offices in Chicago – and you're always welcome – your attention will focus first on a large portrait on the reception room wall. It's a portrait of a young boy. His clothing dates itself to a generation past, the plus-fours are wretchedly wrinkled, the misshapen shoes are worn out. One of them is worn through. But the boy, leaning forward on one elbow, is listening enrapt to a 1930s-vintage cathedral-shaped, multi-dial radio. The boy does not resemble any person in particular, except to me. The artist is an Oklahoman named Jim Daly, whom I have never met, but with his painting he included this note. He said, ‘There is no way for me to express the pleasure I received from listening to the old radio programs. In my mind, those wonderful heroes were magnificent. No movie, no television program, not even real-life could have equated what my imagination could conjure up. Amazingly, all of those heroes' he says, ‘looked a bit like me… And all of those heroes,' he described, ‘looked a bit like me.'” The first American census was taken in 1790, fourteen years after the nation declared its independence from Britain; 3,893,635 persons were in that final count, which included 694,280 slaves. In other words, the total population of the United States was slightly smaller than today's metropolitan Atlanta, slightly bigger than modern Detroit. 1790 was just 228 years ago. Only 6 or 7 generations. I could say, “America became America because of the stories we told ourselves,” but that might lead you to believe that America has become what it will always be. But the new and different stories we are telling ourselves today are reshaping us, making us a different America. We become what we tell ourselves. “Those who tell the stories hold the power in society. Today television tells most of the stories to most of the people, most of the time.” – George Gerbner “Whether you read a newspaper, watch TV or follow the news online, only 14 percent of the stories you hear about were developed by journalists defining an issue and pursuing it. A staggering 86 percent of the stories were fed to broadcasters by official sources and press releases. In 1960 the PR agent-to-journalist ratio operating in the US was 0.75 to 1. Today the ratio is 5 to 1.” – John Nichols and Robert W. McChesney, The Death and Life of American Journalism  Paul Harvey concluded his speech in 2003 by saying, “Isn't it a shame that with noisy, distressing, depressing news hour after hour, day-in and day-out; by our emphasis on all of the bad things, crime and inflation and pollution and floods and fires and discord and discontent; by our persistent preoccupation with negatives, we tend to un-sell ourselves and our children on a way of life which in fact is the envy of the rest of the world. And that repetition is effective. I tell you, repetition is effective. Repetition is effective.” You and I speak a world into existence every day.And the kind of world we create Depends only On the kinds of stories We tell. Roy H. Williams

Today I'm talking with Dr. Robert W. McChesney about his most recent book that he co-authored with John Nichols. The book is called, “People Get Ready”: The Fight Against a Jobless Economy and a Citizenless Democracy.  Bernie Sanders said, “John Nichols and Robert W. McChesney . . . call us, as Tom Paine did more than…

The Social Network Show welcomes Dr. Robert McChesney to the February 10, 2015 episode. Robert McChesney, PhD, Professor in the Communications Department at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, talks about democracy and capitalism and his new book, Blowing the Roof off the Twenty-First Century: Media, Politics, and the Struggle for Post-Capitalist Democracy. Hear what Dr. McChesney has to say about what is happening in the world today, the media and social media's reporting of world events and the populations lack of awareness. Robert W. McChesney, PhD  is the Gutgsell Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. His work concentrates on the history and political economy of communication, emphasizing the role media play in democratic and capitalist societies. Dr. McChesney has a particular interest in the state of journalism, and the relationship of media systems and structures to effective self-governance. He is the co-founder of Free Press, a national media reform organization. From 2002–2012 Dr.  McChesney hosted the “Media Matters” weekly radio program every Sunday afternoon on WILL-AM Dr. McChesney is among the most widely read and honored communication scholars in the world today. His work has been professionally translated into 31 languages. Utne Reader in 2008 listed him as one of their "50 visionaries who are changing the world." Since launching his academic career in the late 1980s, McChesney has made some 800 conference presentations and visiting guest lectures as well as more than 1,000 radio and television guest appearances. He has been the subject of more than 130 published profiles and interviews. Learn more about Dr. Robert McChesney on Wikipedia, and check out his books on Amazon.                    

The Social Network Show welcomes Dr. Robert McChesney to the September 26, 2014 episode. The focus of The Social Network Show interview is McChesney's recent book, Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism is Turning the Internet Against Democracy (2013).  The book is a political economic examination of the digital revolution based upon 15 years of research. The book aims to help scholars and citizens be informed participants, and to see that the revolutionary democratic potential of the digital revolution be realized.  The show reveals how "Net Neutrality" protects against privatization of the Internet.  To learn about what the consequences of policy decisions now being made will be for you, listen to Dr. McChesney's answers to Dr. J's questions.  Visit Freepress.net to see what the average Joe can do. Robert W. McChesney, PhD  is the Gutgsell Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. His work concentrates on the history and political economy of communication, emphasizing the role media play in democratic and capitalist societies. Dr. McChesney has a particular interest in the state of journalism, and the relationship of media systems and structures to effective self-governance. He is the co-founder of Free Press, a national media reform organization. From 2002–2012 Dr.  McChesney hosted the “Media Matters” weekly radio program every Sunday afternoon on WILL-AM Dr. McChesney is among the most widely read and honored communication scholars in the world today. His work has been professionally translated into 31 languages. Utne Reader in 2008 listed him as one of their "50 visionaries who are changing the world." Since launching his academic career in the late 1980s, McChesney has made some 800 conference presentations and visiting guest lectures as well as more than 1,000 radio and television guest appearances. He has been the subject of more than 130 published profiles and interviews. Learn more about Dr. Robert McChesney on Wikipedia, and check out his books on Amazon.                

Robert W. McChesney, Gutgell Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, speaks about his recent books, Dollarocracy: How the Money and Media Election Complex […] The post The Solution to Dollarocracy is Democracy appeared first on KKFI.

Robert W. McChesney, Gutgell Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, speaks about his recent books, Dollarocracy: How the Money and Media Election Complex […] The post The Solution to Dollarocracy is Democracy appeared first on KKFI.

The cost of American democracy is the most expensive in the world. In the 2012 elections billions of dollars were spent on political campaigns. But there's a growing consensus that big business and wealthy individuals are buying power. Authors John Nichols and Robert McChesney have a name for the state we're in: Dollarocracy. Thanks to Pirate TV for use of their recording. Featuring:   John Nichols, Washington, DC correspondent, Nation magazine; Robert W. McChesney, Gutgsell Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. More information: Robert McChesney and John Nichols   Dollarocracy The post Making Contact – Dollarocracy: Corporate Cash in Politics appeared first on KPFA.

Robert W. McChesney, the celebrated political economist of communication, takes the Internet, industry and government head-on in his latest book, Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism is Turning the Internet Against Democracy (The New Press, 2013). Digital Disconnect builds on McChesney’s previous works, spinning forward his scholarship to construct a remarkably current look at the Internet’s corporate and political landscape. “Almost all of the other books on the Internet, some of which are very good, sort of try to take a larger view of it,” McChesney says during the interview. “Because of where I’m coming from, because of my interests, I think that’s the one thing I could inject that draws from my past research, where I can speak with greater authority, that’s really not talked about by anyone else.” McChesney uses the book to argue that the Internet has become a hub of “numbing commercialism,” largely the result of failed government policies. Writes McChesney: “When the dust clears on this critical juncture, if our societies have not been fundamentally transformed for the better, if democracy has not triumphed over capital, the digital revolution may prove to have been a revolution in name only, an ironic, tragic reminder of the growing gap between the potential and the reality of human society.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Robert W. McChesney, the celebrated political economist of communication, takes the Internet, industry and government head-on in his latest book, Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism is Turning the Internet Against Democracy (The New Press, 2013). Digital Disconnect builds on McChesney’s previous works, spinning forward his scholarship to construct a remarkably current look at the Internet’s corporate and political landscape. “Almost all of the other books on the Internet, some of which are very good, sort of try to take a larger view of it,” McChesney says during the interview. “Because of where I’m coming from, because of my interests, I think that’s the one thing I could inject that draws from my past research, where I can speak with greater authority, that’s really not talked about by anyone else.” McChesney uses the book to argue that the Internet has become a hub of “numbing commercialism,” largely the result of failed government policies. Writes McChesney: “When the dust clears on this critical juncture, if our societies have not been fundamentally transformed for the better, if democracy has not triumphed over capital, the digital revolution may prove to have been a revolution in name only, an ironic, tragic reminder of the growing gap between the potential and the reality of human society.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Robert W. McChesney, the celebrated political economist of communication, takes the Internet, industry and government head-on in his latest book, Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism is Turning the Internet Against Democracy (The New Press, 2013). Digital Disconnect builds on McChesney’s previous works, spinning forward his scholarship to construct a remarkably current look at the Internet’s corporate and political landscape. “Almost all of the other books on the Internet, some of which are very good, sort of try to take a larger view of it,” McChesney says during the interview. “Because of where I’m coming from, because of my interests, I think that’s the one thing I could inject that draws from my past research, where I can speak with greater authority, that’s really not talked about by anyone else.” McChesney uses the book to argue that the Internet has become a hub of “numbing commercialism,” largely the result of failed government policies. Writes McChesney: “When the dust clears on this critical juncture, if our societies have not been fundamentally transformed for the better, if democracy has not triumphed over capital, the digital revolution may prove to have been a revolution in name only, an ironic, tragic reminder of the growing gap between the potential and the reality of human society.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Robert W. McChesney, the celebrated political economist of communication, takes the Internet, industry and government head-on in his latest book, Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism is Turning the Internet Against Democracy (The New Press, 2013). Digital Disconnect builds on McChesney’s previous works, spinning forward his scholarship to construct a remarkably current look at the Internet’s corporate and political landscape. “Almost all of the other books on the Internet, some of which are very good, sort of try to take a larger view of it,” McChesney says during the interview. “Because of where I’m coming from, because of my interests, I think that’s the one thing I could inject that draws from my past research, where I can speak with greater authority, that’s really not talked about by anyone else.” McChesney uses the book to argue that the Internet has become a hub of “numbing commercialism,” largely the result of failed government policies. Writes McChesney: “When the dust clears on this critical juncture, if our societies have not been fundamentally transformed for the better, if democracy has not triumphed over capital, the digital revolution may prove to have been a revolution in name only, an ironic, tragic reminder of the growing gap between the potential and the reality of human society.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Robert W. McChesney, the celebrated political economist of communication, takes the Internet, industry and government head-on in his latest book, Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism is Turning the Internet Against Democracy (The New Press, 2013). Digital Disconnect builds on McChesney’s previous works, spinning forward his scholarship to construct a remarkably current look at the Internet’s corporate and political landscape. “Almost all of the other books on the Internet, some of which are very good, sort of try to take a larger view of it,” McChesney says during the interview. “Because of where I’m coming from, because of my interests, I think that’s the one thing I could inject that draws from my past research, where I can speak with greater authority, that’s really not talked about by anyone else.” McChesney uses the book to argue that the Internet has become a hub of “numbing commercialism,” largely the result of failed government policies. Writes McChesney: “When the dust clears on this critical juncture, if our societies have not been fundamentally transformed for the better, if democracy has not triumphed over capital, the digital revolution may prove to have been a revolution in name only, an ironic, tragic reminder of the growing gap between the potential and the reality of human society.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aired 05/28/08 Executive Director Josh Silver co-founded Free Press with Robert W. McChesney and John Nichols in 2002. He oversees all programs, campaigns, fundraising and special projects. Josh previously served as campaign manager for the successful statewide ballot initiative for public funding of elections in Arizona and as the director of development for the cultural arm of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. He has served as the director of an international youth exchange program and as a development and management consultant. Josh publishes frequently on media, campaign finance and other public policy issues. http://www.freepress.net/ Free Press is a national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media, and universal access to communications. Our work focuses on the following core issues: Media Consolidation is about the takeover of our country's media by a handful of massive corporations and the increasing control these firms exert over the flow of news and information we need to hold our leaders accountable. Through our StopBigMedia.com campaign, Free Press aims to block further media consolidation and to promote diverse, local ownership and the vibrant press that sustains our democracy. The Future of the Internet is being decided right now. We're fighting to preserve the open Internet and make sure all Americans have affordable access to high-speed networks, free from discrimination or interference by would-be corporate gatekeepers. Through SavetheInternet.com, a diverse coalition of millions of people who have banded together with thousands of organizations, small businesses and bloggers, Free Press is working to make sure the free and open Internet stays that way. Public Media includes broadcasting networks like NPR and PBS, community and Low Power FM (LPFM) radio stations that provide local coverage not available elsewhere, public access TV, and independent publications and Web sites. Free Press supports a vibrant and sustainable public and noncommercial media sector that offers diverse fare and serves local communities. We're committed to finding long-term solutions that protect public media from the political whims of Washington and policies that create more opportunities for new voices to be heard. Quality Journalism is essential to providing Americans with the information they need to understand what's happening in their communities, to hold elected leaders accountable, and to serve as a check on government and corporate power. Free Press stands with working journalists who have been squeezed by runaway media consolidation; advocates for a vibrant independent press; and supports efforts to foster investigative reporting, substantive coverage of public affairs, and critical, high-quality journalism. Media is one of the most pressing Civil Rights issues of our time. People of color, women, youth and other disenfranchised communities have long been shut out of our country's media. They own few of our media outlets, and aren't represented on the public airwaves. Free Press supports the struggle for media justice and works to strengthen laws to expand minority ownership, support new independent and ethnic media outlets, and close the digital divide. Free Press is Building a Movement for better media in the United States. We want the American people -- not just big corporations and their high-priced lobbyists -- to have a say in crafting the policies that shape the media system. We're making the media a bona fide political issue that no politician can afford to ignore. Join us.