Dallas Police Shooting, Elian Gonzalez and Media Bias
In 1999 as the Clinton administration was coming to an end a young boy was rescued of the coast of Florida and brought to Miami. That young boy (Elian Gonzalez) was a survivor of a group of Cubans who were fleeing the oppression of the Communist/Socialist government on the island. Among the dead was his mother, who had not had a drink of water, to save it for the boy. In the days that followed the boy was cared for by family members in Miami. Soon after that, the communist government in an unprecedented move started a media campaign, hired top U.S. attorneys and a “supposed custody battle” to have the boy returned to the island. The “official” representative was the boy’s father who was shown on government run media requesting that his son be returned. Those of us in the Cuban community in Miami smelled a rat and spoke up as loud as we could. We knew this was not the boy’s father but rather the communist government who had decided the boy must return.
As an exiled community of Cubans, familiar with Communism/Socialism, we looked for sympathetic persons in the press and in the government to protect the boy from being returned to the Communists. There were not many who were sympathetic to the plight of the boy and the sacrifice of his mother for the boy’s freedom. The Media in the U.S. had already decided the boy must be returned to his father on the island, communists and all. Soon after that, the Clinton administration in an overwhelming show of force, raided the family’s home in Miami took the boy and sent him to the Communists on the island.
In the aftermath of that event there were a few outbursts in Miami of citizens taking to the streets and showing their frustration for what had just occurred. As I searched the various cable channels for news of the situation I saw an image that totally incensed me and has stayed with me. The media narrative was very simple, however inaccurate, “the crazy Cubans in Miami were going to burn the city down”.
One of the images was of a “great fire” in the street and the backdrop of the Miami skyline burning. In the image there was a pile of rubbish in the middle of the street on fire, you could see the protesters chanting and the skyline behind them. The image was certainly very impressive and the message was now clear to the rest of the nation. These Cubans in Miami were unreasonable, crazy, not respecting American law and they were starting to burn a great city. This image and narrative was transmitted by non-other than CNN. This time however they were doing it in Miami my backyard, and there was something fishy about the whole thing. I grew up in this city and know it well. The image and the story didn’t fit, so I started looking and also called around. The whole city was calm and there were no great demonstrations, disturbances or fires. So what the hell is going on. I kept changing channels and ran into what was for me a new channel at the time. They happened to have an image of the same location as CNN. Their image however was taken from a distance with a wide angle and then it became obvious. The “great fire” was indeed a pile of rubbish in the middle of one street with a handful of “idiots” trying to create a riot. There was no riot, the city was the not burning, the Cubans had not gone crazy and burned Miami down. So what happened? The reality did not match the narrative, so CNN had taken their news-feed camera put it on the ground near the pile of burning rubbish and angled it upward towards the fire and the backdrop of the city. To look at their news-feed, you would have no choice but to think, Miami as we knew was coming to an end.
It was this event that has forever tarnished the image of the media for me (I do not trust them anymore). They are the first members of this society protected by The Constitution of the United Sates in the first amendment. The founding fathers believed in a free press so much that they gave “The Press” a place of honor in that hallowed document. They have failed us miserably; because for many of them the agenda has become more important than the facts. I have told you this story of the press so that you know where I am coming from and also to make you aware of just how long we have been dealing with this lack of respect for The Constitution and the rights it renders upon this special group called “The Press”.
Fast forward to the present day and this most recent event of the continued violence in our country and the most recent execution of several police officers in Dallas; brought this whole issue of media bias back to me. I simply visited two news sites and just the Home Page drove the point home again for me. Once again CNN led the way with a distortion and “omission” that is not insignificant. I clipped the images of the two websites and placed them below, if they don’t drive the point home that we are all being played for fools then I don’t know what does.
In 1999 as the Clinton administration was coming to an end a young boy was rescued of the coast of Florida and brought to Miami. That young boy (Elian Gonzalez) was a survivor of a group of Cubans who were fleeing the oppression of the Communist/Socialist government on the island. Among the dead was his mother, who had not had a drink of water, to save it for the boy. In the days that followed the boy was cared for by family members in Miami. Soon after that, the communist government in an unprecedented move started a media campaign, hired top U.S. attorneys and a “supposed custody battle” to have the boy returned to the island. The “official” representative was the boy’s father who was shown on government run media requesting that his son be returned. Those of us in the Cuban community in Miami smelled a rat and spoke up as loud as we could. We knew this was not the boy’s father but rather the communist government who had decided the boy must return.
As an exiled community of Cubans, familiar with Communism/Socialism, we looked for sympathetic persons in the press and in the government to protect the boy from being returned to the Communists. There were not many who were sympathetic to the plight of the boy and the sacrifice of his mother for the boy’s freedom. The Media in the U.S. had already decided the boy must be returned to his father on the island, communists and all. Soon after that, the Clinton administration in an overwhelming show of force, raided the family’s home in Miami took the boy and sent him to the Communists on the island.
In the aftermath of that event there were a few outbursts in Miami of citizens taking to the streets and showing their frustration for what had just occurred. As I searched the various cable channels for news of the situation I saw an image that totally incensed me and has stayed with me. The media narrative was very simple, however inaccurate, “the crazy Cubans in Miami were going to burn the city down”.
One of the images was of a “great fire” in the street and the backdrop of the Miami skyline burning. In the image there was a pile of rubbish in the middle of the street on fire, you could see the protesters chanting and the skyline behind them. The image was certainly very impressive and the message was now clear to the rest of the nation. These Cubans in Miami were unreasonable, crazy, not respecting American law and they were starting to burn a great city. This image and narrative was transmitted by non-other than CNN. This time however they were doing it in Miami my backyard, and there was something fishy about the whole thing. I grew up in this city and know it well. The image and the story didn’t fit, so I started looking and also called around. The whole city was calm and there were no great demonstrations, disturbances or fires. So what the hell is going on. I kept changing channels and ran into what was for me a new channel at the time. They happened to have an image of the same location as CNN. Their image however was taken from a distance with a wide angle and then it became obvious. The “great fire” was indeed a pile of rubbish in the middle of one street with a handful of “idiots” trying to create a riot. There was no riot, the city was the not burning, the Cubans had not gone crazy and burned Miami down. So what happened? The reality did not match the narrative, so CNN had taken their news-feed camera put it on the ground near the pile of burning rubbish and angled it upward towards the fire and the backdrop of the city. To look at their news-feed, you would have no choice but to think, Miami as we knew was coming to an end.
It was this event that has forever tarnished the image of the media for me (I do not trust them anymore). They are the first members of this society protected by The Constitution of the United Sates in the first amendment. The founding fathers believed in a free press so much that they gave “The Press” a place of honor in that hallowed document. They have failed us miserably; because for many of them the agenda has become more important than the facts. I have told you this story of the press so that you know where I am coming from and also to make you aware of just how long we have been dealing with this lack of respect for The Constitution and the rights it renders upon this special group called “The Press”.
Fast forward to the present day and this most recent event of the continued violence in our country and the most recent execution of several police officers in Dallas; brought this whole issue of media bias back to me. I simply visited two news sites and just the Home Page drove the point home again for me. Once again CNN led the way with a distortion and “omission” that is not insignificant. I clipped the images of the two websites and placed them below, if they don’t drive the point home that we are all being played for fools then I don’t know what does.
CNN - Tells us he is just a regular guy.
No Criminal Record.
No Criminal Record.
FOX - Tells us he hates white people.
Shows the raised fist.
Shows the raised fist.
In the second image of the alleged shooter we see a raised fist in a manner reminiscent of the radical groups of yesteryear (black panthers, etc.), however CNN chose to crop the picture and tell us all that he had no arrest record. In other words, “this is just a regular guy who had access to guns” and this could have all been prevented if we didn’t have the second amendment. How about just reporting the news event with all its content, the good the bad and the ugly. What we have here is a deliberate (long standing) campaign by that special group protected by the first amendment to take away the rights of that other group protected by the second amendment. In this fight the first group has the upper hand and they are not playing fair,
“The Constitution be damned”.
Keep your eyes and ears open, read and listen to different news sources and most of all think for yourselves, our very freedom is at stake. Finally, and most important of all pray for all these families who have lost loved ones and pray for the country.
“The Constitution be damned”.
Keep your eyes and ears open, read and listen to different news sources and most of all think for yourselves, our very freedom is at stake. Finally, and most important of all pray for all these families who have lost loved ones and pray for the country.
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