‘When National Public Radio was launched in 1971, it promised to be an alternative to commercial media that would “promote personal growth rather than corporate gain” and “speak with many voices, many dialects.”

In 1993, when FAIR published a study of NPR’s guestlist that challenged the network’s alternative credentials (Extra!, 5/93), incoming NPR president Delano Lewis was still boasting about being a place where the unheard get heard (The Humanist, 9/93): “Our job is to be a public radio station. So therefore the alternative points of view, the various viewpoints, should be aired.”

Today, current NPR president Kevin Klose insists that diversity and inclusivity are among NPR’s top priorities (Syracuse Post-Standard, 7/31/02): “All of us believe our goal is to serve the entire democracy, the entire country.”

NPR, which now reaches 22 million listeners weekly on 750 affiliated stations, does frequently provide more than the nine-second-soundbite culture of mainstream news broadcasts. But is the public really heard on public radio? And is NPR truly an alternative to its commercial competition? A new FAIR study of NPR’s guestlist shows the radio service relies on the same elite and influential sources that dominate mainstream commercial news, and falls short of reflecting the diversity of the American public.’ (FAIR)

“Dating is hard enough, but when you’ve got kids, the stakes go through the roof.

The danger of ‘lethal child abuse’ rises dramatically, especially for the youngest children, when there’s an unrelated man in the household, according to recent studies. Academics call this the ‘Cinderella effect’ – the propensity of stepparents, whether married or just live-in partners, to hurt offspring who aren’t blood relations.” (azcentral.com)

“A handgun that Saddam Hussein was clutching when U.S. forces captured him in a hole in Iraq last December is now kept by President Bush at the White House, a spokesman confirmed on Sunday.” (Yahoo! News)

Do you suppose Bush is captivated by the spam email ads promising enlargement of his private parts as well?

I wrote about the controversy over Ted Rall’s cynical take on Tillman’s death when it happened. Here’s the crowning blow on Tillman’s tragic misguided patriotism:

“Pat Tillman, the former Arizona Cardinals football player who died in April while a U.S. soldier fighting in Afghanistan, likely was killed by friendly fire, an Army investigation has concluded.” (azcentral.com)

The St. Petersburg Times continues to rake up the muck in its backyard about the Co$:

“A 7-year-old wrongful death lawsuit filed by the estate of Lisa McPherson against the Church of Scientology reached a surprise settlement this week, ending one of the most fiercely contested and enduring legal battles in Pinellas County history.

The out-of-court agreement ends the last remaining legal threat facing the church after the widely publicized 1995 death of McPherson, a Scientologist who died after 17 days in the care of church members in Clearwater.”

“Ashcroft cites al-Qaida plan, but how credible

is the information?” (MSNBC)

Bob Herbert: “The treatment of the detainees in Iraq was far from an aberration. We routinely treat prisoners in the U.S. like animals.” (The New York Times Op-Ed)