If the corporate media blatantly spins the debates ?

[kentuck]

What should we do? It is my opinion that we do have more power to speak up now than we had in 2000 and years past. So, if the media spins the debates as many expect them to do, we should be ready to counterspin for the entire week or two until the next debate. If we can expose their spin on the Internet, it would be a great victory for democracy. All we ask is that they report honestly and fairly. Is that too much to ask?

[ClassWarrior]

1. You took the words from my mouth kentuck.

LTTEs, calls to TV stations, emails to everyone we know, loud conversations with strangers in grocery stores, etc.!! If the whores spin the debates, we have only ONE chance - and that chance is US.

23.

[AP]

2. Phone bank and precinct walk. Talk to voters directly about what you saw.

Studies have shown that calling voters and showing up at their houses before and on Election Day substantially increases turnout - and is cheaper per vote than buying a television advertisement. Republicans used the strategy with great success in the 2002 elections.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/26/politics/campaign/26vote.html?hp=&pagewanted=print&position=

[SHRED]

3. You mean "when" they do not "if"

Oh they will spin it. You can count on that!

Just look at Shrub's campaign slogan "Flip-Flop". That is now a term used by all major media news. So now we have the news pimping a campaign slogan of the right.

[patricia92243]

4. IF? What "if"? There is no doubt about it. We've already been show that

in the last debate. If Bush had thumbed his nose at the camera, the press would still have said how wonderful he was. And if Gore had delivered the greatest speech in the history of mankind, the press would ignore it and say his makeup was too dark.

I can't think of one reason it will be any different this time around.

[AnnInLa]

5. If debates go badly for bush, the spin will be....

www.dailykos.com

According to Chris Bowers, the spin will be that the sponsor of the debate was biased against bush. This is the same tactic used against CBS, that moved the attention from the substance of the memos to the authenticity of the memos and bias of Dan Rather. They will move attention from the substance of the debates to whether they were "fairly" presented.

Chris Bowers:

"However, what I really think is going on here is an attempt by the Bush campaign to shift the post-debate focus away from the content of debate itself and toward a "Biased Debate Commission" storyline. This would especially be the case if things do not go well in the debate for Bush..."

[AnnInLa]

6. Also....I have already emailed CNN to thank them

IN ADVANCE for declaring bush the winner in the debates. This was an idea of someone here on DU, and it is a great idea. Will send Scab-borough the same email.

[dave502d]

7. E-mail them now and let them know.

Were not going to take their right-wing spin.

[robbedvoter]

8. We have some voice, they have MORE VOICES since 2000

The cacophony of sounds is much higher than then. The tone, the brashness, the number of outlets. We should do our best (LTTEs can be drafted already - no "ifs" about it) But count on it: we will be overwhelmed with BS!

[KoKo]

9. The liberal internet sites can refute it, but we don't have much effect on

the cable pundits and the Neweek, WaPo and NYT's writers who are partisan, as you know. They seem to be in "Gored" repeat mode of the 2000 election. They keep using the same script of dirty attacks and lies and one wonders how long average americans will tolerate watching the same old stale movie of their election campaigns being repeated over and over.

I'm actually thinking of not watching the debates live, but waiting until they are replayed on C-Span. I might watch a running thread here on DU, though.

I can't handle watching it live, particularly not with the commentators who will rip Kerry apart even if he is magnificent. Waiting or viewing a DU thread removes it from my having to actively curse and throw things at the TV screen when Tweety or Jeff Greenfield, Judy Woodruff go at Kerry because they didn't like his tie.

[Nay]

10. I'm not sure I can watch the debates, either, Koko

I hate the way they are scripted, I hate that Kerry won't be able to get in there and rip Bush a new asshole when he lies, etc., etc.

But I may have to watch just be be able to contribute to the running threads here on DU.

[KoKo]

11. I know...it helps if one has company of one's own rather than the "pundits

I'm going to check out and see if there is a thread here on DU covering it. Better to view in company of one's own!