A hero of real news: Amy Goodman and Democracy Now! celebrate 20 years of fearless journalism...

[demmiblue]

Source: Salon

On Monday night in Harlem about 2,000 people zigzagged in lines outside Riverside Church. It felt like the wait before a rock concert and it kind of was: Patti Smith was scheduled to play, along with Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello. But the headliner was not a rock star but an unassuming journalist named Amy Goodman, founder and host of the independent news program “Democracy Now!”

Rolling Stone’s Matt Taibbi recently called Goodman “as close to the ideal of what it means to be a journalist as one can get in this business.” In this age of fake news and a president-elect whose pathological lying is thoroughly documented, ordinary people, revered journalists and celebrities alike turn to Goodman because they see her as a guardian of truth. Goodman also has something akin to the outsider appeal and integrity of Sen. Bernie Sanders: Her daily news program is 100 percent supported by listeners, viewers and foundations, not by advertising or corporate sponsorship.

I squeezed between church pews, asking regular people what brought them to the 20th anniversary celebration of “Democracy Now!” Two young artists said Goodman “gives voice to struggling people from all over the world.” A middle-aged teacher explained that Goodman offers “relevant information you can’t find anywhere else.” Working people, retirees and folks of various ages, gender identities and races seem to say the same thing: “Democracy Now!” is one of the few strongholds of “real news.”

The recent victory of Native Americans against the Dakota Access pipeline — conditional or otherwise — can be directly traced back to Goodman’s early reporting from the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota. Weeks before the mainstream media bothered to take notice, she and the “Democracy Now!” team filmed security guards unleashing dogs and pepper spray on the peaceful “water protectors.” The footage went viral, receiving more than 14 million views, and was shared on nearly all the mainstream media outlets, including CNN, NBC and CBS, once they had no choice but to cover it.

Read more: http://www.salon.com/2016/12/10/a-hero-of-real-news-amy-goodman-and-democracy-now-celebrate-20-years-of-fearless-journalism-in-the-age-of-lies/

[underpants]

1. I catch her show almost every morning on local indie radio

Very good program.