Burning, smashing, property destruction -- anarchists? No, sports fans. A study in media bias.
Notice the difference in the kind of language used to describe similar acts.Thousands of baseball fans took to the streets of San Francisco to celebrate the Giants' World Series victory, with revelers gathering on corners, in parks and at watering holes — and some turning rowdy. (Just "rowdy," you know. Young men having a good time.)
Fans across the city left their televisions and rushed outside, greeting diners, bar patrons and other merrymakers Sunday night after the Giants defeated the Detroit Tigers 4-3 to sweep the Series for their second title in three years. ("Merrymakers")
Some violence and vandalism was reported, with revelers setting a public transit bus on fire, flipping over a vehicle and breaking the windows of several businesses and vehicles, KTVU-TV reported. ("Revelers" -- setting a public transit bus on fire, breaking windows...)
Fans also lit bonfires, fueling them with couches, signs and newspaper racks. Firefighters had to be escorted in by riot police to fight some of the fires. ("Fans" set couches & newspaper racks on fire in the streets, requiring firemen & riot police to extinguish them...no emotional tone used to indicate it's anything but harmless fun....)
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/rowdy-fans-streets-giants-victory-article-1.1194630#ixzz2B4JtNVZU
Notice there's no oft-repeated estimate of the cost of damage done, either.
Meanwhile people who weren't even in town when (a handful of) supposed 'anarchists' broke windows during a largely peaceful demo in seattle are still being jailed for refusing to testify at a grand jury fishing expedition.
Matthew "Maddy" Pfeiffer Subpoenaed for Grand Jury
On October 25, 2012 a fifth subpoena was served to Matthew "Maddy" Pfeiffer to appear before the federal grand jury on November 7, 2012.
Pfeiffer's statement:
On October 25th, the day before my 23rd birthday, two FBI agents wearing ill-fitting khakis and too much gel in their hair, served me a subpoena for 9am on November 7th. I knew my fate right away: 18 months in SeaTac Federal Detention Center. Matt, Kteeo and Leah have all been imprisoned for their refusal and I will be the next. Despite the urgings of lawyers, agents and judges, I only have one option: non-cooperation. Any other option is unthinkable.
I am being asked to testify before a Grand Jury on November 7th and will likely be detained on that date for refusing to cooperate. The vultures of the state will try to imprison my comrades and me until we give in. We will never give in.
From so many different perspectives, for so many reasons, snitching is never an option. I will never betray the people I care about, the ideas which I hold dear, or the commitments I have made. I will never give any information about crimes, should I have any knowledge of them, nor will I give information about my personal relationships. I will never cooperate with this or any attempt to stop struggle. I will never cooperate with the systems of control which I loathe. If the federal government chooses to imprison me for my refusal, then so be it. I expect no less from them.
The official reason the state gives for imprisoning those who refuse to cooperate is to coerce testimony. If they know anything about me or my friends, they know that this will never work. Some have said that this Grand Jury is about trying to repress people's political opinions and free speech. No doubt this is true. My subpoena states that I am being asked to testify about events that took place on May 1st. The state is trying to use broken windows as a reason to ruin people's lives. This is absurd, and I will oppose it to the fullest. This life-ruining system which they call "justice" is organized to defend property and capitalism. This system is against everything I believe in.
http://www.freeleah.org/
Poster girl Leah Plante ("the photogenic one"
has reported given testimony & been released.
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2012/10/30/18724809.php
http://dissenter.firedoglake.com/2012/10/30/grand-jury-resister-released-reportedly-cooperated-with-investigation-into-pacific-northwest-activists/
= new reply since forum marked as read
Everyone was upbeat last night and San Francisco was on Fire… It was on fire emotionally speaking, but within an hour of the Giants winning SF literally was on fire.. All over the city bonfires were being lit.. One was downtown on Market street. Another was on 19th and Mission. Another on 23rd and Mission.. Still another was near the police station on 16th and Valencia which was the scene of raucous Occupy protest a few weeks ago.. With each bonfire came people by the hundreds and wasn’t long before folks were tossing in everything they could get their hands on, couches, card board paint cans and other flammable which caused loud bomb-like explosions. Eventually a bus was lit on fire around 3rd and Market in the heart of downtown. We also saw a security truck flipped over with the driver in it..he got out unharmed.
As each fire was lit and reported on by local newscasts, I couldn’t help but note the tone and wording used to describe the scene. We didn’t hear words like anarchist, outside agitators or thugs to describe those committing wanton acts of vandalism. Instead what we heard was local news outlets like NBC described what was happening as ‘instant street parties’. Others like ABC talked about how exuberant fans and overly joyous fans were celebrating in front of bonfires.
Reporters would utter the word vandalism in the most casual tone and downplay the smashing of bank and storefront windows, crowds chanting ‘F– Tha Police and cars being burned or flipped. The main focus by these local news outlets was about highlighting the excitement around this world series win.
It was hard not to contrast the sanitizing words used to described the destruction happening all over the city of San Francisco with how many of those same news outlets described Occupy, Oscar Grant and anti-war protests where far less damage and mayhem was caused. It was hard not to contrast the way many of those media outlets described spirited celebrations in neighboring Oakland ten years ago (2003) after the Raiders won the AFC Championship...At that time, one car was flipped over on International Blvd and burned and the entire city was described as one that was in turmoil ‘out of control ‘and the scene of a riot. If you don’t believe me take a look at the picture that ran in the same SF Chronicle where the headline this morning reads ‘SF Giant fans Delirious With Joy‘....
http://hiphopandpolitics.wordpress.com/2012/10/29/when-do-we-call-a-celebration-a-riot-the-sf-giants-win-the-world-series/
