In a budget notable for cutting hospitals for the poor and indigent while not raising taxes for billionaires, the Bush budget proposal contains the familiar assault on domestic public TV and radio. The foreign broadcasting arm, long a home for a strange mix of dedicated professionals and far-right propagandists, is slated for a hefty increase. (See MediaCitizen: Bush Calls for Propaganda Surge, Slashes PBS.)
Here's my modest proposal: given how generally lousy so much of foreign propaganda is, why not outsource the job to the BBC World Service, which, despite its effectiveness, continues to suffer the death of a thousand cuts.
I am so mad that even $1 of my tax dollars are being spent to “counterbalance” outstanding news outlets like Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera is the best way for the world to learn about America and who Americans really are. Their reporting is the best, most honest, and most in-depth in the world.
What is Bush thinking?!