[Sixstrings]

These women deserve the Medal of Freedom. It was really making me sick at my stomach, watching Brits and Americans stand there and read lies on RT. Thank goodness some have had the courage and dignity to speak out about it, good for these journalists for standing up and not just being Orwellian propaganda Russian state news readers:

"I will not sit here and apologise for, or defend, military aggression," she said.

"cannot be part of a network funded by the Russian government that whitewashes the action of Putin"

former Washington DC RT correspondent Liz Wahl's comments that "personally she cannot be part of a network funded by the Russian government that whitewashes the action of Putin..." At least RT was correct when it said yesterday that "Contrary to the popular opinion, RT doesn't beat its journalists into submission, and they are free to express their own opinions, not just in private but on the air."

Today's drama takes to a entirely new level the statement voiced by another RT presenter who also denounced as "wrong" Russia's military intervention in Ukraine.

"I can't stress enough how strongly I am against any state intervention in a sovereign nation's affairs," Abby Martin declared in her news programme.

RT said it respected Ms Martin's views, and that she would not be reprimanded.

Ms Martin made her remarks at the end of her Breaking the Set show, broadcast from a studio in Washington.

"Just because I work here doesn't mean I don't have editorial independence," she said, adding: "What Russia did was wrong."

The outspoken presenter admitted that she did not possess in-depth knowledge of Ukraine's history or "cultural dynamics", but insisted that military intervention was not the answer.

"I will not sit here and apologise for, or defend, military aggression," she said.
RT responded as follows:

In response to the journalist's on-air statement, the Russian TV channel said: "Contrary to the popular opinion, RT doesn't beat its journalists into submission, and they are free to express their own opinions, not just in private but on the air."

The broadcaster added that it would send Ms Martin to Crimea to "give her an opportunity to make up her own mind from the epicentre of the story".
So far Ms. Martin has not taken up RT's offer to provide unbiased reporting from the "epicenter" of the story.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-03-05/rt-anchor-turns-down-offer-report-crimea-resigns-protest-biased-coverage

Note how RT offered to send one of the women to the "epicenter" in Crimea to do some reporting. Mmmhm. She's wise to pass on that one.

[dorlomin]

She is a 9/11 troofer nutter. RT is not one ounce more trust worthy than other news services.

[davep]

Concerning Abby Martin who made "a clear and unapologetic denunciation of the Russian action in Ukraine" on RT without getting fired, consider the following:

For all the self-celebrating American journalists and political commentators: was there even a single U.S. television host who said anything comparable to this in the lead-up to, or the early stages of, the U.S. invasion of Iraq?

...

In response to my question about whether any U.S. television hosts issued denunciations of the attack on Iraq similar to what Martin just did on RT, Washington lawyer Bradley Moss replied: “Phil Donahue (MSNBC) and Peter Arnett (NBC).”

Leaving aside that Arnett wasn’t a host, this perfectly proves the point I made, since both Donahue and Arnett were fired because of their opposition to the U.S. war. Arnett was fired instantly by NBC after he made critical comments about the war effort on Iraqi television, while a memo from MSNBC executives made clear they were firing Donahue despite his show being the network’s highest-rated program because he would be “a difficult public face for NBC in a time of war”.

During that same time, MSNBC’s rising star Ashleigh Banfield was demoted and then fired after she delivered a stinging rebuke of misleading pro-war TV coverage by U.S. outlets, while Jessica Yellin, at MSNBC during the time of the war, admitted in 2008 that “the press corps was under enormous pressure from corporate executives, frankly, to make sure that this was a war that was presented in a way that was consistent with the patriotic fever in the nation and the president’s high approval ratings” and that executives would change stories to make them more pro-war.

All of that stands in rather stark contrast to the clear denunciation of the Russian intervention by Martin which RT broadcast and this morning is promoting. We’ll see if she suffers any recriminations, but if she does, U.S. media behavior during the attack on Iraq was hardly any better.

https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2014/03/04/rt-host-abby-martin-condemns-russian-incursion-crimea-rt/

[Sixstrings]

She says it makes her feel sick they she ever worked there:

I'm proud to be an American and believe in disseminating the truth, and that is why, after this newscast, I am resigning."

"It actually makes me feel sick that I worked there," Wahl told The Daily Beast exclusively.

She had been planning this move for some time. "When I came on board from the beginning I knew what I was getting into, but I think I was more cautious and tried to stay as objective as I could," she said, explaining that she was repeatedly censured by her superiors.

The Kremlin's influence over RT is subtle, Wahl said, but management manipulates its employees, punishing those who stray from the narrative. "In order to succeed there you don’t question," Wahl explained.

RT has had some doozies recently, like "Self-defense forces ranks swell in anticipation of Crimea showdown with radicals" and "Tea, sandwiches, music, photos with self-defense forces mark peaceful Sunday in Simferopol."
http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2014/03/05/rt-anchor-quits-on-air.html

[dissident]

http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2014/03 ... g-roberts/

For example, Martin’s denunciation of Russia for “invading” Ukraine is based on Western propaganda that Russia sent 16,000 troops to occupy Crimea. The fact of the matter is that those 16,000 Russian troops have been in Crimea since the 1990s. Under the Russian-Ukrainian agreement, Russia has the right to base 25,000 troops in Crimea.

Martin better be careful, some people in the west may want to off her to make Putin look bad. Such dirty tricks are par for the course for the self-anointed guiding lights of humanity.

[Loki]

http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2014/03/05/propaganda-rules-news-paul-craig-roberts/

For example, Martin’s denunciation of Russia for “invading” Ukraine is based on Western propaganda that Russia sent 16,000 troops to occupy Crimea. The fact of the matter is that those 16,000 Russian troops have been in Crimea since the 1990s. Under the Russian-Ukrainian agreement, Russia has the right to base 25,000 troops in Crimea.

Martin better be careful, some people in the west may want to off her to make Putin look bad. Such dirty tricks are par for the course for the self-anointed guiding lights of humanity.

So you believe Putin's story about local "self-defense" forces occupying the Crimean Peninsula? You find this credible, do you?

How many Ukranian civilians own AK74s with grenade launchers and the latest Russian military optic? Or the latest-issue Russian military Gorka, helmet, body armor, and load-bearing equipment? You seriously think these guys are just part of a local posse?


I'd guess the guy on the left is special operations, or at least the equivalent of our 82nd Airborne.

[dissident]

http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2014/03/05/propaganda-rules-news-paul-craig-roberts/

For example, Martin’s denunciation of Russia for “invading” Ukraine is based on Western propaganda that Russia sent 16,000 troops to occupy Crimea. The fact of the matter is that those 16,000 Russian troops have been in Crimea since the 1990s. Under the Russian-Ukrainian agreement, Russia has the right to base 25,000 troops in Crimea.

Martin better be careful, some people in the west may want to off her to make Putin look bad. Such dirty tricks are par for the course for the self-anointed guiding lights of humanity.

So you believe Putin's story about local "self-defense" forces occupying the Crimean Peninsula? You find this credible, do you?

How many Ukranian civilians own AK74s with grenade launchers and the latest Russian military optic? Or the latest-issue Russian military Gorka, helmet, body armor, and load-bearing equipment? You seriously think these guys are just part of a local posse?


I'd guess the guy on the left is special operations, or at least the equivalent of our 82nd Airborne.

Chirp. Chirp. Chirp.

Kosovo.

[Rod_Cloutier]

That's what I really dislike about RT tv, there are no commercials- how do they pay their bills?? I've heard that they are totally underwritten by the governments of Russia and Iran.

Follow the money is always the first question.

At least PBS has the Gaul to publicly beg for money on TV every 5 months or so. At least you know where PBS gets their money from.

[dissident]

That's what I really dislike about RT tv, there are no commercials- how do they pay their bills?? I've heard that they are totally underwritten by the governments of Russia and Iran.

Follow the money is always the first question.

At least PBS has the Gaul to publicly beg for money on TV every 5 months or so. At least you know where PBS gets their money from.

And the BBC gets it money from a TV tax. So that must make it super duper democratic. Follow the spin.

[Loki]

Chirp. Chirp. Chirp.

Kosovo.

So you do think these are local self-defense groups like Putin says. Where does one get a AK grenade launcher in the Ukraine? Do they have Wal-marts there? Are background checks required?

[Sixstrings]

She's been interviewed on CNN. Anderson Cooper was fair, asked her why did she quit when she must have known RT's viewpoint going in. She said the propaganda just got to be too much. She wanted to be objective and balanced in interviews but the editors would cut things out, like when she asked Ron Paul what he'd do if the conflict escalated.

Anchor quits: I can't be part of network 'that whitewashes' Putin's actions

In a statement, RT said, "When a journalist disagrees with the editorial position of his or her organization, the usual course of action is to address those grievances with the editor, and, if they cannot be resolved, to quit like a professional." "But when someone makes a big public show of a personal decision, it is nothing more than a self-promotional stunt," said the network.
http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/05/world/europe/russia-news-anchor-resigns/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

I said days ago that things are getting so ridiculous on RT that they'll just have to shut it down. But I never expected public defections. So bravo on these journalists, cuz it was getting creepy, like watching zombies or something.

I mean you're sitting there watching this and you KNOW they know it's full of crap and it's just all really creepy propaganda because they make it look like news.

Americans are too smart for this. You can't fool us, not to this extreme, claiming there aren't any Russian troops in Crimea -- that just totally destroys RT as any kind of news organization and reveals it for what it is: State propaganda, reading State approved facts.

That may fly over in Russia, but not here. As far as I know, Russian TV STILL does not acknowledge there are Russian forces in Crimea.

This other RT anchor didn't quit or get fired for saying Russian aggression is wrong, but watch the vid, she sure seems scared and her voice is trembling. I guess it's a big deal to disagree with Putin on RT:

State-funded network's news anchor: 'What Russia did is wrong'

(CNN) -- Russia Today, RT for short, is funded by its namesake government, even promoted as a top media source on the foreign ministry's website.

Its own site contains story after story defending and explaining Moscow's take on world crises -- chief among them now, what's unfolding in Ukraine. The Columbia Journalism Review notes it is best "known as an extension of former President Vladimir Putin's confrontational foreign policy."

In other words, it's about the last place you'd expect to hear these words: "What Russia did is wrong."
Yet that is exactly what one of RT's anchors, Abby Martin, said Monday night at the end of her "Breaking the Set" program.
http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/04/world/eur ... r-ukraine/

I'll stick to CNN for my TV news, thanks. They have real journalists there doing real journalism. And they separate commentators from journalists. And nobody quits on the air or looks scared to death.

[Sixstrings]

How many Ukranian civilians own AK74s with grenade launchers and the latest Russian military optic? Or the latest-issue Russian military Gorka, helmet, body armor, and load-bearing equipment? You seriously think these guys are just part of a local posse?

Amazing picture. Looks like CGI. Nah Loki, I'm sure Russia is right. These are just "local defense forces" checking that elderly man's "papers." I bet that guy is an ethnic tatar up to no good, threatening Ethnic Russians. Or maybe he's a ethnic Ukrainian who watches Western TV. They'd better take him in for questioning.

[Sixstrings]

The 'aggrieved housewife', the 'soldier's mother' and the 'Kiev resident': Did Russian television 'use actress to portray FIVE different women' as it reported that normal Ukrainians backed Kremlin?


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2574131/How-Russian-television-used-actress-pretend-five-different-people-opposed-revolution-reported-normal-Ukrainians-backed-Kremlin.html

[Sixstrings]

Another RT reporter has quit, says she is tired of lying:

RT never lets such things as basic facts get in the way of crude propaganda.

Last Friday, Sara Firth announced via Twitter that she had resigned as a correspondent for RT, an international, multilingual news network entirely funded by the Russian government. “I couldn’t do it any more,” the London-based reporter told Buzzfeed. “Every single day we’re lying and finding sexier ways to do it.”

One hypothesis, floated insistently by the RT anchors and guests, was that the Ukrainian military shot down MH17, under the erroneous impression it was actually Vladimir Putin’s presidential jet. Forget the absurdity of accusing the Ukrainians of trying to assassinate the Russian president, thus bringing upon themselves a full-on, open invasion of their country (in contrast to the limited and largely covert operation that the Russians have been waging). As the separatists have not been in command of any planes, the Ukrainian military has not deployed air defenses in the area under contestation.

But RT never lets such things as basic facts get in the way of crude propaganda. In one segment I watched, an RT anchor incessantly asked an aviation expert if it was conceivable that the Ukrainians mistook MH17 for Putin’s due to the fact that both aircraft are painted in red, white and blue. That these are the colors of British Airways, Air France, Aeroflot and untold other national carriers did not give the host pause. Nor did the fact that his hypothesis attributes super-human eyesight to the would-be Ukrainian mass murderers, who must have somehow been able to discern President Putin’s plane from 33,000 feet (the height at which MH17 was flying when it was struck). Finally, if they could detect the colors of the plane’s exterior from such a distance, would they not also be able to see the “Malaysia Airlines” lettering?

It has been an embarrassing year for RT, the network formerly known as Russia Today. Founded in 2005 to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars, RT – which broadcasts in English, Arabic and Spanish – aims to counter the influence of what Putin calls the “Anglo-Saxon mass media.”

It does so via a poisonous admixture of hysterical anti-Western propaganda, financial alarmism, conspiracy theorizing and the promotion of political extremists from left and right united in hatred of America and liberal democracy.
http://time.com/3015512/inside-the-bizarro-world-of-russia-today/