[lbo-talk] Fwd: Post ad story

[joanna bujes]

>X-Sender: dscanlan at pop3.oro.net
>Date:         Sun, 18 May 2003 11:29:39 -0700
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>From: Dan Scanlan <dscanlan at ORO.NET>
>Subject: Post ad story
>To: PEN-L at SUS.CSUCHICO.EDU
>X-OriginalArrivalTime: 18 May 2003 18:30:00.0863 (UTC) 
>FILETIME=[7DF832F0:01C31D6B]
>
>SUBSCRIBER BUYS FTW FULL PAGE AD IN THE WASHINGTON POST
>LEAKED COPY MAY HAVE FORCED RESIGNATION OF ARMY SECRETARY
> From The Wilderness Publications
>May 16, 2003
>
>http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/051603_wash_post_ad.htmlhttp://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/051603_wash_post_ad.html
>
>May 16, 2003, 0500 PDT (FTW ) - From The Wilderness today ran a
>full-page ad in the front section of The Washington Post intended to
>educate the American people, support heroic leaders and promote a
>number of independent media outlets which have made important
>contributions since 9/11. The ad was the direct result of a donation
>from a subscriber who had recently viewed FTW Publisher Mike
>Ruppert's video "The Truth and Lies of 9-11". The ad that ran today
>was actually a second version, the text of which had to be changed
>after the first version apparently caused some nervousness in
>Washington.
>
>It's an interesting story.
>
>The text of the first ad, which reached the Post on April 23 rd ,
>contained two sections of well-supported text that were sharply
>critical of Army Secretary Thomas White. White was suddenly fired by
>Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld three days after the ad reached the
>Post .FTW has not been able to confirm that the ad was leaked but
>publisher Michael Ruppert strongly suspects it.
>
>"It started when we got a call from a retired business executive who
>was so incensed by what he had seen in the 9/11 tape that he decided
>he wanted to do something with his own good fortune to make a
>difference. He specifically said that he wanted to buy us a full-page
>in the Post and that we could write anything we wanted," said
>Ruppert. "His only condition was that he remain anonymous. FTW never
>handled any of the fee - in excess of $20,000 -- to purchase the
>space and not once did our subscriber try to influence its content. I
>wrote the ad and three wonderful human beings contributed to it."
>
>The three contributors who wrote special statements for the ad were
>former Assistant Secretary of Housing and past managing Director of
>Dillon Read, Catherine Austin Fitts, University of Illinois law
>professor Francis Boyle, and former Democratic Congresswoman Cynthia
>McKinney of Georgia .
>
>Ruppert continued, "We knew that if FTW were to try to book the ad
>alone we would likely be turned down. Because the ad and its cartoon,
>conceived by FTW 's General Manager Mike Leon and drawn for us by
>Canadian artist Blaine Machan, was critical of the major media and
>the US economy's corruption and reliance on drug money, we needed an
>edge," Ruppert continued. "So we turned to the L.A.-based More Than
>News agency and its owner Ken Levine for assistance. We had worked
>with Ken - a former L.A. area TV news director -- before and we
>trusted him."
>
>Levine, working in concert with the FTW subscriber purchased the ad
>space through a major New York ad brokerage firm, with which Levine
>has had good relations. That firm actually books most of the Post's
>ad space and that provided the necessary clout to get the ad to the
>next stage.
>
>The text of the ad was submitted to New York on April 15, well before
>White's firing. According to Levine, there was quite a reaction.
>"They had never seen anything like this. They liked it but they
>thought the Post would never approve it even though the Post has a
>decent history of running political ads."
>
>In two places the ad featured statements highly critical of
>now-former Secretary White. In her statement Fitts criticized White
>for his inability to balance the Army's books at a time when the
>Department of Defense has admittedly "misplaced" more that $3
>trillion of taxpayer money. Ruppert observed, "White's claim that
>residual damage from the attacks of September 11 th was the cause for
>unbalanced books in the Army was ludicrous. The attack of 9/11 hit
>the Navy Wing of the Pentagon. How could that affect the Army?"
>
>In the text of the ad itself White was also criticized for his role
>as an Enron executive which provided him with millions of dollars in
>income while stockholders were being defrauded. White was
>subsequently investigated for insider trading of Enron stock.
>
>Boyle, a professor of international law has been the leader in a
>growing movement to impeach President George W. Bush for high crimes
>and misdemeanors related to his prosecution of the Iraqi invasion.
>Recently, articles of impeachment drafted by Boyle were reviewed by
>several members of congress. McKinney, widely criticized in the press
>for asking important questions about Bush administration
>foreknowledge of the 9/11 attacks and the possibility of excessive
>profiteering by corporations allied with the Bush administration, has
>since been vindicated by congressional intelligence hearings and
>recent major media stories concerning the Carlyle Group. She lost her
>2002 primary election to a newcomer in what is now being labeled in a
>Georgia lawsuit as a demonstrably-illegal Republican crossover vote.
>
>"I asked these three heroes to participate in the ad because they
>have all shown great courage in acting as responsible public servants
>and citizens and they have all suffered punishment as a result. Yet
>they are still standing, still in the ring and they deserve
>recognition for their perseverance," said Ruppert.
>
>But there was to be more drama before the ad was printed.
>
>The Washington Post advertising department approved the text of the
>first ad just a day after White's firing. According to Ruppert and
>Levine it was not possible after that to change the text of the ad
>without reopening the entire approval process and risking a rejection
>after the ad had apparently been leaked to government circles in
>Washington.
>
>"And all we had was a window of about two weeks when the ad was
>supposed to run under the contract. We had no control over the exact
>day. So we decided to let the first ad run without trying to update
>it in the wake of White's firing," Ruppert observed. "It was just too
>risky otherwise. The only thing that could have blocked the ad --
>which was purchased at a discount rate through the ad brokerage --
>would have been if there was a sudden flurry of late advertisers who
>suddenly decided to purchase full-price ads."
>
>"We were told that this was highly unlikely but, as it turns out,
>that's exactly what happened," said Ruppert with a chuckle. "One of
>our subscribers in the Washington area told us that he had never seen
>so many full-page ads in his life."
>
>When the two week contract period was not met by the Post ,FTW then
>had the opportunity to change the text to what ran today without
>risking a rejection. On Levine's advice the ad was rebooked for
>another week and the second version was published today.
>
> From the start Ruppert was skeptical that the ad would be allowed to
>run under any circumstances. He views it's publication today as
>something of a much needed miracle.
>
>"When people see the kind of reaction this ad produces and the power
>that they have to stir the public and get real responses out of
>government, I think we're going to see a lot more efforts like this.
>It's one thing when one individual in a position to do it pays for an
>ad like this. But twenty thousand dollars isn't an unreachable amount
>for a hundred or a thousand people. Pretty soon you might see people
>forming coalitions to purchase commercials on television or blocks of
>ads in major newspapers. That's how you reach the people and keep
>good and accurate information from being marginalized.
>
>"It was also extremely important that we recognized and gave energy
>to a number of independent media sources that have made great
>contributions since 9/11. While much of America may not know how much
>these organizations have influenced events, they should. Independent
>media is filling a huge vacuum left by the needlessly obedient
>mainstream press.
>
>"It's called taking full advantage of those aspects of free speech
>that the government hasn't taken away yet. It's learning how the
>money works and using it to your advantage. As Fitts always says,
>'Vote with your money.'"
>
>Click here to download the ad in PDF format:
>
>http://www.fromthewilderness.com/PDF/Washpost_2003_05_16_p25.pdfhttp://www.fromthewilderness.com/PDF/Washpost_2003_05_16_p25.pdf
>--
>--------------------------------------------------
>"You can fool some of the people all of the time,
>and those are the ones we need to concentrate on."
>George W. Bush, Washington DC, March 2001
>
>---------------------------------
>
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