From Editor Robert Parry: If Web sites could vote, Consortiumnews.com, which is turning 18 years old, would now be eligible. It was launched in mid-November 1995 as the first investigative news Web site on the Internet. You can help it continue.
Frankly, I don’t have a record of the exact day that it first appeared on the World Wide Web, which was then a relatively newfangled creation and far less sophisticated than what we know today. But the date for the launch was on or about Nov. 15.
The reason we started this new journalism outlet on this new medium was to find a way around the neglect that the mainstream U.S. news media was already showing serious investigative reporting. At the time, the mainstream U.S. media was obsessing over frivolous matters, such as people’s sex lives and politically ginned-up “scandals.”
We felt that there had to be another way to get important journalism to the American people and to the world. So from the start, we concentrated on both historical investigations of real importance and topical issues that truly mattered.
Over the past 18 years, we have done much to both rewrite the national American narrative correcting errors and filling in blanks while staying on top of current events that could be a matter of war or peace, life or death.
Our first series of articles were based on government documents that I uncovered relating to the so-called October Surprise controversy, allegations that Ronald Reagan came to power in 1980 after sabotaging President Jimmy Carter’s negotiations with Iran over 52 American hostages.
Ironically, some of our most recent articles deal with current efforts by powerful interests to undermine President Barack Obama’s negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program. What is clear is that without a truthful account of the past and without honest reporting about the present, confrontations with Iran could lead to more suffering in the future.
So, it is important that Consortiumnews.com continues what it has been doing over the past 18 years and, if possible, expand its reporting and its reach. That is where you come in. We could not have survived 18 years without the support of our readers.
If you can, please help celebrate our birthday with a donation to our tax-exempt non-profit. We offer four different ways to help keep Consortiumnews.com going:
First, you can donate by credit card online at the Web site or by mailing a check to Consortium for Independent Journalism (CIJ); 2200 Wilson Blvd., Suite 102-231; Arlington VA 22201. (For readers wanting to use PayPal, you can address contributions to our account, which is named after our e-mail address: “consortnew @ aol.com”).
Second, we can now accept donations of stock or other equities, which I’m told can offer a tax advantage to donors if the stock has appreciated in value since it was purchased. (We are recognized by the IRS as a 501-c-3 non-profit, meaning that contributions may be tax-deductible.)
If this stock-donation option appeals to you, I suggest you discuss it with your broker and then contact me at [email protected] for specific instructions on how to transfer the stock. Or you can write to us at Consortium for Independent Journalism (CIJ); 2200 Wilson Blvd., Ste. 102-231; Arlington VA 22201.
Third, you can buy one of my last four books through the Consortiumnews’ Web site or my latest book, America’s Stolen Narrative, through Amazon.com, either in paper or the e-book version. A portion of each sale will go toward our goal.
Fourth, for only $34, you can get the trilogy that traces the history of the two Bush presidencies and their impact on the world. The three books Secrecy & Privilege, Neck Deep (co-authored with Sam and Nat Parry) and America’s Stolen Narrative would normally cost more than $70.
To get the books for less than half price and help us meet our budget needs just go to the Web site’s “Donate” button and make a $34 “donation” using Visa, Mastercard or Discover. We will read a “donation” of that amount as an order for the trilogy.
If your mailing address is the same as your credit card billing address, we will ship the books to that address. If your mailing address is different, just send us an e-mail at [email protected] and we will make the adjustment. For U.S. orders, we will pay for the shipping. (For non-U.S. orders, add $20 to defray the extra cost.)
You can also take advantage of this special offer by mailing a check for $34 to The Media Consortium; 2200 Wilson Blvd.; Suite 102-231; Arlington VA 22201. Or you can use our Paypal account, “consortnew @ aol.com.” Just make sure you include your mailing address in the message.
Again, thanks for your support and for making 18 years of honest journalism possible.
Robert Parry is a longtime investigative reporter who broke many of the Iran-Contra stories for the Associated Press and Newsweek in the 1980s. He founded Consortiumnews.com in 1995 to create an outlet for well-reported journalism that was being squeezed out of an increasingly trivialized U.S. news media.