Media

Tonight (Wednesday) at 5:30: St. Paul City Council hearing on the RNC. The hearing is open to the public but speakers have been hand-picked by the council. Nonetheless, many Twin Cities residents will want to speak anyway. Come on down! 15 Kellogg Blvd W., Room 300.

UPDATE: click Read More to see the agenda of speakers for the hearing, below.

Beating the western drum

Blogging gives a voice to citizens around the world, but why do their views often go unheard in the west? And is the web really a force for radical change?

Antony Loewenstein, The Guardian, September 15, 2008

This week in St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S. authorities unleashed a vicious, orchestrated, and fascistic assault on alternative media covering the protests outside the Republican National Convention.

These attacks included the manhandling and arrest of internationally known journalist Amy Goodman, the brutalizing and arrest of two producers on the Democracy Now! team, pre-emptive raids—at gunpoint—on the I-Witness Video collective, the confiscation of media equipment, and many other arrests and mistreatment of journalists, both alternative and mainstream.

Dear Self-Proclaimed Media,

Richard and Fay discuss a chaotic street battle they witnessed in downtown St. Paul and the experience of having been struck with a police baton, being detained and later dropped off outside of town -- as well as reflect on their general impression of events over the past week and where they think direct resistance might be headed.

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/09/06/18533522.php

Also see: http://www.zeroriotcop.blogspot.com/

More S1 coverage: http://www.indybay.org/conventions2008

Wendy Binion, who works with Portland Indymedia, was snatched from Mears Park in St. Paul during the rally prior to the March for Our Lives on September 2nd, 2008. She was surrounded by riot cops in the street and was taken away to a special facility for processing. Her detainment is part of a definite pattern by authorities during the RNC to disrupt and intimidate independent media journalists who were covering the demonstrators' perspective from the streets of St. Paul.

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/09/05/18533449.php

[Politicians will have to answer for the abuse and detainment of journalists, which spectacularly escalated on Thursday evening. --TCIMC]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - September 4, 2008
Contact: Nancy Doyle Brown, Twin Cities Media Alliance, (612) 374-9380, Jen Howard, Free Press, (202) 265-1490, x22 or (703) 517-6273

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- On Friday morning, local advocates and independent journalists will deliver more than 50,000 petitions to St. Paul City Hall calling on Mayor Chris Coleman and local law enforcement officials to drop all charges against journalists arrested while covering protests outside the Republican National Convention.

WHAT: Delivery of 50,000 letters demanding charges against journalists be dropped
WHEN: Sept. 5, 10 a.m. CT
WHERE: St. Paul City Hall, 15 Kellogg Blvd.
WHO: Local advocates and independent journalists from KFAI Community Radio, National Lawyers Guild, Twin Cities Daily Planet, Twin Cities IndyMedia, Twin Cities Media Alliance and The Uptake.

On Monday, local law enforcement officials arrested Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman and two producers from her show, Associated Press photographer Matt Rourke and several independent videographers while they were covering protests outside the Republican National Convention. Other independent journalists have also been pepper-sprayed and even held at gunpoint during "pre-emptive" raids aimed at disrupting protesters.

"The targeting and harassment of journalists that we've seen during the RNC sends the message that the Twin Cities don't value the essential role that journalists play in a democracy," said Nancy Doyle Brown of Twin Cities Media Alliance. "From the pre-convention raids to the ongoing harassment and arrests of journalists, these have been dark days for press freedom in the United States. We're bringing Mayor Coleman more than 50,000 letters from people across the nation demanding that all charges pending against these journalists be dropped."

I am so angry and frustrated about what's happening in the Twin Cities this week. Not at the cops - obviously it's horrible what they're doing, but they're just doing what's to be expected of them. If you're surprised by their response to the protests, you've been deluding yourself about the state of civil liberties and freedoms in this country for the last 4 years, at least.

If you are in a jam or have some breaking news call 914.945.0815 and you can record a 4 minute voice mail that goes to Pacifica Station producers at WBAI.

If someone answers just say "Hang Up, I need to be recorded"

then call back. You can call as many times as you need.

UPDATE 4:30 PM: Reports that i-Witness people got released as well as the people at Iglehart House. National blogs are starting to pick up on the situation as it's really unfolding, while police have an aggressive messaging strategy. [Probably developed by contractors :-D ].
http://firedoglake.com/2008/08/30/inside-an-rnc-raid/
http://cliffschecter.firedoglake.com/2008/08/30/video-food-not-bombs-pro...
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2008/08/30/police_raids/

4:40 UPDATE ON Press conferences: Reportedly, NLG Lawyers got tossed from a law enforcement press conference, while attendance by press at important press conferences for all groups needs to be bolstered. The 'press conference mode' seems to be increasingly important in the whole arena - playing out globally over the next days.

We are currently hearing that at least three Indymedia journalists have been detained near Marshall & Snelling Avenues - specifically Snelling & Pascal, near Macalester College. They have been detained for at least an hour.

Additionally Coldsnap has reported that a reporter from Democracy Now! has been detained at the house in St. Paul on Inglehart. There were reports this was because the police had a warrant for the wrong side of the house. Yes, in fact they are still bothering with some paperwork, at least at some occasions. (Coldsnap reports police have just raided the inglehart house) Although sometimes not they are not bothering with the paperwork:

Importantly, there was a break-in into the garage of Communities United Against Police Brutality organizer Michelle Gross, while she was under detainment at the Convergence Center last night. Those who committed this act did not take any things thieves would like, but papers were clearly rifled through. More details at link. We are deeply concerned that this indicates secret political police forces are moving into action.
http://twincities.indymedia.org/2008/aug/activists-convergence-space-rai...

There was a report that at least one Welcoming Committee member was picked up by an unmarked snatch squad of police.

And it STILL isn't 4 PM. At 4 PM there will be a press conference at the Convergence Center on Smith Ave. It is expected that the Welcoming Committee will issue more information at that time.'

It appears that there is an emerging police strategy to eliminate as much 'off message' media as possible in the Twin Cities before the RNC gets underway. In Denver the police were particularly interested in seizing signs and banners - obviously part of a PSYOPS style agenda to remove the TV visuals of our message.

Situation developing - thanks to all our friends both here and away, as the whole damn police state comes down on the Twin Cities.