In theory, many people hail the idea of independent thinking and praise the courage of speaking truth to power. In practice, however, the pressure of “group think” and the penalties inflicted on dissidents usually force people into line even when…
In 2011, a coalition of U.S. neocons and “humanitarian” war hawks pushed for and got a military intervention in Libya with the goal of eliminating Muammar Gaddafi, but the ouster and murder of Gaddafi has only led to worse chaos…
Some of our special stories from April looked behind the Ukraine crisis, challenged the conventional wisdom on the Syria-Sarin dispute, exposed U.S. hypocrisy on Iran, explained the hard truth about Israeli “apartheid,” and explored Oklahoma’s rush to a ghoulish execution.
From Editor Robert Parry: We are wrapping up our spring fund drive at Consortiumnews.com, but we are still more than $10,000 short of our $25,000 goal. If you value the independent journalism that we provide, please help us get closer…
Iran’s insistence on having its own capability to enrich uranium for its nuclear reactors stems from its bitter experience when forced to rely on outside suppliers that were susceptible to international political pressures, Gareth Porter reports for Inter Press Service.
Exclusive: Last year, Saudi intelligence chief Bandar bin Sultan was swaggering around the world boasting of Saudi influence over radical jihadists from Syria to Chechnya and collaborating with Israel against Iran. But Bandar is gone and the Saudis may be retrenching, writes Andres…
Despite the public furor over NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden’s revelations about U.S. government surveillance, the process rolls on unabated with few prospects of significant reform, writes Danny Schechter.
Neocons and other hardliners are still fanning the flames of confrontation with Iran, but the recent thawing of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia is making the hawks’ work more difficult, writes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.
The battle lines over “Net neutrality” are taking shape, between an approach that would let providers offer pricier fast lanes and an alternative plan that would regulate the Internet as a utility to protect consumers, reports Michael Winship.
Official Washington’s hardliners are back at it, pushing unrealistic demands about Iran’s nuclear program to ensure that a comprehensive agreement is scuttled and the military option is put back on the table, as Gareth Porter explains at Inter Press Service.
Oklahoma’s ghoulish killing of convicted murderer Clayton Lockett on April 29 has brought new attention to America’s continued use of the death penalty, a politically popular issue in some states but a practice that has many reasons justifying its abolition, writes…
Exclusive: The U.S. mainstream media portrays the Ukraine crisis as a case of Russian “imperialism,” but the reality is that Moscow has been reacting to aggressive moves by Washington to expand NATO to Russia’s border in violation of a post-Cold…
From the Archive: Official Washington dismisses any reference to Ukraine’s neo-Nazis as “Russian propaganda” because everyone knows that no respectable U.S. leader would get in bed with such people. But Wall Street bankers didn’t have such qualms, Jerry Meldon reported…
From the Archive: The key role of neo-Nazis in Ukraine’s U.S.-backed coup is denied by the mainstream U.S. press, which can’t believe the U.S. government would collaborate with such unsavory characters, but that isn’t the real history, as Robert Parry…
The battle over the FCC’s plans for limiting “Net Neutrality” and giving a speed advantage to the people who can pay a premium is heating up as protesters bring the fight to Washington, writes Michael Winship.
Official Washington’s neo-Cold War hysteria over Ukraine, including predictions of an imminent Russian seizure of the east, has prevented a cold-eyed appreciation of what is actually happening as Russian President Putin keeps signaling a willingness to negotiate, ex-CIA analyst Paul…
Exclusive: There’s an odor of prejudice in how the mainstream U.S. news media treats the ethnic Russians in eastern Ukraine, as if they are mindless beings, easily duped “minions” of Vladimir Putin. But this bias reflects more negatively on the…
Over the years, U.S. “public diplomacy” has pulled reputable NGOs into the U.S. propaganda orbit, sometimes via funding, sometimes by creating a revolving door to government jobs, as a letter from over 100 scholars suggests happened to Human Rights Watch.…
Official Washington’s new conventional wisdom is that the Obama administration is weak because it won’t launch military strikes against every adversary around the world. But the reality is that military force has done little to project U.S. power since World War II, writes…
Exclusive: Voters in two eastern Ukrainian provinces showed strong support for secession from the coup regime in Kiev, but the U.S. State Department and other regime supporters reject the outcome and vow to press ahead with a special presidential vote…