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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (July 23, 2003)
Page A4 (Cfyr JJortlanò ©bserlier O pinion The Portland Observer Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f The Portland Observer E o i t o b - i s -C H i e r . P C l u t i n D i u c ro i Paul Neufeldt u b l is h c b Charles H. Washington __________ USPS 9 5 9 - 6 8 0 ________ E a i r o Established 1970 O r n a M a is a a x Kathy Linder b Michael Leighton 4747 NE Martin Luther Hing, Jr. Blvd., D Portland. OR 97211 M a n a b t Mark Washington is t b ib v t io n b b PosTMAtTit: S en d ad d res s changes to P o rtla n d O b s erver PO Box 3 1 3 7 , P o rtla n d , OB 9 7 2 0 8 I______ P e rio d ic » ! luly 23. 2003 Postage paid In P o rtla n d , OR ■ S u b scriptio n s are $ 6 0 .0 0 p e r y e a r __________ | 5 0 3 2 8 8 0 0 3 3 • FAX5 0 3 2 8 8 0 0 1 5 • EMAIL: news&portlandobserver.coiri aubscricition&pQrtlanctabiierver.coni adsi&oorUandQbsen er.com The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompanied by a self addressed envelope. All created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used in other publications or personal usage without the written consent of the general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition o f such ad. © 1996 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART W ITH OU T PERM ISSION IS PROHIBITED. The Portland O bserver-Oregon's Oldest Multicultural Publication-is a member of the National Newspaper Association-Founded in 1885, and The National Advertising Repre sentative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black Publishers Association • Serving Portland and Vancouver. H. & B. Too NOW OPEN Oregon’s Oldest Licensed Pawnshop 4709 N.E. Martin Luther King Blvd. 2 blocks south o f Alberta Weekdays til 6 p.m. - Saturdays til 4 p.m. Media Mishandles Iraq Story Complicity worse than a problem of bias or passivity Free Parking - State Controlled Rates - Se Habla Espanol www.hbloan.com Oregon Family Business for over 50 years Lie. #306 Bv M ark W eikbkut .. n The U.S. m edia’s mishandling o f the Iraq war — including the build-up and aftermath — has brought an unusually wide range o f criticism and condemnation. . The most obvious evidence o f this fail ure is a “results-based” measure. A Gallup « If It’s New or Informative, You Probably Saw It In ‘ri?r JJo rtlan h (Obsi'ruer The Portland Observer is Oregon s Oldest and Largest Multi-Cultural Newspaper. T he P ortland O b se rv e r’s d istribution o f nearly 4 0,000 papers encom passes a w ide c ro s s -s e c tio n o f re s id e n tia l an d sta te read ersh ip , as w ell as a large percentage o f the local b u sin ess com m unity. Become a part of our community. Read the Portland Observer News. poll last August found that 53 percent o f Americans believed that Saddam Hussein was “personally involved” in the massa cre o f Sept. 11,2001. Where did they get this idea, for which no evidence exists? They got this idea from hearing it implied not even stated outright — repeatedly by the Bush administration. The broadcast media transmitted this information over and over again, with only occasional rebuttals, if any. Regardless o f their own views on the war, American journalists became the Bush administration's major means ofpromoting it, even through misinformation. This misin formation included the alleged weapons o f mass destruction, the forged documents and aluminum tubes put forth as evidence ofan Iraqi nuclear program, and other false hoods. The broadcast media is most important, because that is the main source o f informa tion for the “swing voters” and Americans whose views are not determined by party affiliation. This media will have to be re formed. Journalists must begin to treat government lying as any other fonn o f malfeasance such as bribery or stealing: It is something to be exposed to the public as news, not glossed over and reinforced with endless repetition. In a political move beginning last Au gust that was as transparent as it was cynical, the Bush team used a manufac tured threat from Iraq to remove from the electoral agenda all the domestic issues on which it was politically vulnerable. Among these: a series o f scandals involv ing the adm inistration’s highest officials (including President Bush and V ice Presi dent Dick C heney), the economy, the bud get, Medicare and Social Security. The strategy worked, and helped them win both houses o f Congress for the Re publican Party. They then invaded Iraq, causing the media and the public to rally even more around the president, and lift ing his approval ratings. Now the press is Journalists must begin to treat government lying as any other form o f malfeasance such as bribery or stealing. talking about whether he can “use the capital from the military success to push forward his domestic agenda.” That is not likely, as the economy con tinues to sputter and unemployment rises. The odds are therefore very high that we will find ourselves confronting another “security threat" before the next election — North Korea, Iran, Syria... there are many to choose from. Yes, it can happen again. The media's complicity in such scams is therefore much worse than a problem ofbias or passivity. It is one o f the greatest threats to democracy — and security — that this country faces. Mark Weishrot is co-director o f the Centerfor Economic and Policy Research in Washington. D.C. Predatory Lending Targets Homeowners of Color Price of S ubscriptions 1 Year $60.00 2 Years S100.00 Make check payable to the Portland Observer News or pay by Visa or Master Card. Renewal $60.00 Online subscriptions a rj also available at subscriptionsfrtiportlandobsener.com Subscription Form Name ______ ____ _________ A dd ress__________________________ ______________ ___ ____ __ ____________ _____________ C ity------------------------------------------------------------------------ S tate__________________ Zip Code P hone________________________________________ ____ Fax ____________________________________ Company Name ___ ___ ____ __________________ Gift subscriptions are also available for half price with your renewal. ( . i l l Subscription Form Name A dd ress_____ __ C ity-------------------------------------------------------------------— S tate_________________ Zip Code Phone_______________________________________ _ Fax ‘ri’1 |Jn rtIa n ò (iftbacrucr P.O. Box 3137 Portland. OR 97208 503.288.0033 or Fax 503.288.0015 portlandobserver.com I Bv M aude H vrd T w o y ea rs ag o , C e le stin e an d Earl Ja ck so n alm o st c o m p le te ly ow n ed th e ir hom e. A fter tw o d ec ad e s o f m ak in g m o rtg ag e p ay m en t s, they looked fo rw ard to en jo y in g th e ir re tire m en t in a sta b le n eig h b o rh o o d . But in the upside-down world o f preda tory lending, dreams turn into nightmares and African-Americans like the Jacksons are often targeted for loans that flip them over, from owning almost all o f their home to virtually none o f it. While the media spotlight has recently Maude Hurd shined on predatory lending and politicians are responding to communities outraged by can homeowners looking to refinance were the abuses, destructive loans continue to m ore likely than low -incom e w hite be made in our neighborhoods. Some o f the homeowners to receive a subprime loan - country’s biggest home mortgage lenders an outrageous commentary on how our - includingthe Jacksons’ lender. Wells Fargo country’s financial system really works. - are raking in big bucks making predatory Only when homeowners w ho’ve been loans to unsuspecting borrowers. hurt step forward and join together will we The past decade's explosive growth in ever stop these loan sharks from preying on subprime lending has been particularly our neighborhoods. hard on our neighborhoods, as subprime If you may have received a predatory loans are heavily targeted to African- loan, or to get involved in the fight against American homeowners. In 2001, African- predatory lending, please contact the local American homeowners wert-4.4 times more Association for Community Organization likely to receive a subprime refinance loan and Reform Now office at 503-788-4362. than whites. And it’ s not ju st an income Maude Hurd is the national president o f issue, since upper-income African-Ameri- ACORN A