The Watchdog That Didn't Bark

The Watchdog That Didn't Bark PDF Author: Dean Starkman
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231536283
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 385

Get Book Here

Book Description
The Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter details “how the U.S. business press could miss the most important economic implosion of the past eighty years” (Eric Alterman, media columnist for The Nation). In this sweeping, incisive post-mortem, Dean Starkman exposes the critical shortcomings that softened coverage in the business press during the mortgage era and the years leading up to the financial collapse of 2008. He examines the deep cultural and structural shifts—some unavoidable, some self-inflicted—that eroded journalism’s appetite for its role as watchdog. The result was a deafening silence about systemic corruption in the financial industry. Tragically, this silence grew only more profound as the mortgage madness reached its terrible apogee from 2004 through 2006. Starkman frames his analysis in a broad argument about journalism itself, dividing the profession into two competing approaches—access reporting and accountability reporting—which rely on entirely different sources and produce radically different representations of reality. As Starkman explains, access journalism came to dominate business reporting in the 1990s, a process he calls “CNBCization,” and rather than examining risky, even corrupt, corporate behavior, mainstream reporters focused on profiling executives and informing investors. Starkman concludes with a critique of the digital-news ideology and corporate influence, which threaten to further undermine investigative reporting, and he shows how financial coverage, and journalism as a whole, can reclaim its bite. “Can stand as a potentially enduring case study of what went wrong and why.”—Alec Klein, national bestselling author of Aftermath “With detailed statistics, Starkman provides keen analysis of how the media failed in its mission at a crucial time for the U.S. economy.”—Booklist

The Watchdog That Didn't Bark

The Watchdog That Didn't Bark PDF Author: Dean Starkman
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231536283
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 385

Get Book Here

Book Description
The Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter details “how the U.S. business press could miss the most important economic implosion of the past eighty years” (Eric Alterman, media columnist for The Nation). In this sweeping, incisive post-mortem, Dean Starkman exposes the critical shortcomings that softened coverage in the business press during the mortgage era and the years leading up to the financial collapse of 2008. He examines the deep cultural and structural shifts—some unavoidable, some self-inflicted—that eroded journalism’s appetite for its role as watchdog. The result was a deafening silence about systemic corruption in the financial industry. Tragically, this silence grew only more profound as the mortgage madness reached its terrible apogee from 2004 through 2006. Starkman frames his analysis in a broad argument about journalism itself, dividing the profession into two competing approaches—access reporting and accountability reporting—which rely on entirely different sources and produce radically different representations of reality. As Starkman explains, access journalism came to dominate business reporting in the 1990s, a process he calls “CNBCization,” and rather than examining risky, even corrupt, corporate behavior, mainstream reporters focused on profiling executives and informing investors. Starkman concludes with a critique of the digital-news ideology and corporate influence, which threaten to further undermine investigative reporting, and he shows how financial coverage, and journalism as a whole, can reclaim its bite. “Can stand as a potentially enduring case study of what went wrong and why.”—Alec Klein, national bestselling author of Aftermath “With detailed statistics, Starkman provides keen analysis of how the media failed in its mission at a crucial time for the U.S. economy.”—Booklist

The Watchdogs Didn't Bark

The Watchdogs Didn't Bark PDF Author: Ray Nowosielski
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1510721371
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 434

Get Book Here

Book Description
The shocking reexamination of the failures of US government officials to use available intelligence to stop the attack on American on September 11, 2001. “The authors lay bare…an intelligence failure of historic proportions.”—John Kiriakou, former CIA officer, author, The Convenient Terrorist In 2009, documentarians John Duffy and Ray Nowosielski arrived at the offices of Richard Clarke, the former counterterror adviser to Presidents Clinton and Bush. In the meeting, Clarke boldly accused one-time Central Intelligence Agency director George Tenet of “malfeasance and misfeasance” in the pre-war on terror. Thus began an incredible—never-before-told—investigative journey of intrigue about America’s intelligence community and two 9/11 hijackers. The Watchdogs Didn’t Bark details that story, unearthed over a ten-year investigation. Following the careers of a dozen counterterror employees working in different agencies of the US government from the late 1980s to the present, the book puts the government’s systems of oversight and accountability under a microscope. At the heart of this book is a mystery: Why did key 9/11 plotters Khalid Al Mihdhar and Nawaf Al Hazmi, operating inside the United States, fall onto the radars of so many US agencies without any of those agencies succeeding in stopping the attacks? The answers go beyond mere “conspiracy theory” and “deep state” actors, but instead find a complicated set of potential culprits and an easily manipulated system. Taking readers on a character-driven account of the causes of 9/11 and how the lessons of the attacks were cynically inverted to empower surveillance of citizens, kidnapping, illegal imprisonment, torture, government-sanctioned murder, and a war on whistleblowers and journalists, an alarm is raised which is more pertinent today than ever before.

Watch Dogs: Stars & Stripes

Watch Dogs: Stars & Stripes PDF Author: Sean Grigsby
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1839081279
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 320

Get Book Here

Book Description
Infamous hacker Aiden Pearce, main protagonist of the Watch Dogs® games, follows a bloody trail of corruption to the highest levels of government in this gritty action adventure from the bestselling videogame Older, but not necessarily wiser, Aiden Pearce, “the Fox”, is a rolling stone, surviving by moving from one shadowy hacker job to the next. While in Baltimore, he’s captured by a mysterious agent who insists finding missing cargo full of transhuman tech is something only Pearce can do. When flattery doesn’t work, he’s blackmailed into taking the job. Worse, he’s partnered again with the unscrupulous Jordi Chin. Soon what looks like a simple investigation spirals into a nefarious plot leading all the way to the White House. Yet why should Aiden help a country that only wants him behind bars? For the Vigilante, no one escapes hard justice – not even Uncle Sam.

Watchdogs of Democracy?

Watchdogs of Democracy? PDF Author: Helen Thomas
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1416548610
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 243

Get Book Here

Book Description
In the course of more than sixty years spent covering Washington politics, Helen Thomas has witnessed a raft of fundamental changes in the way news is gathered and reported. Gone are the days of frequent firsthand contact with the president. Now, the press sees the president only at tightly controlled and orchestrated press conferences. In addition, Thomas sees a growing -- and alarming -- reluctance among reporters to question government spokesmen and probe for the truth. The result has been a wholesale failure by journalists to fulfill what is arguably their most vital role in contemporary American life -- to be the watchdogs of democracy. Today's journalists, according to Thomas, have become subdued, compromised lapdogs. Here, the legendary journalist and bestselling author delivers a hard-hitting manifesto on the precipitous decline in the quality and ethics of political reportage -- and issues a clarion call for change. Thomas confronts some of the most significant issues of the day, including the jailing of reporters, the conservative swing in television news coverage, and the administration's increased insistence on "managed" news. But she is most emphatic about reporters' failure to adequately question President George W. Bush and White House spokesmen about the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq, and on subjects ranging from homeland security to the economy. This, she insists, was a dire lapse. Drawing on her peerless knowledge of journalism, Washington politics, and nine presidential administrations, as well as frank interviews with leading journalists past and present, Thomas provides readers with a rich historical perspective on the roots of American journalism, the circumstances attending the rise and fall of its golden age, and the nature and consequences of its current shortcomings. The result is a powerful, eye-opening discourse on the state of political reportage -- as well as a welcome and inspiring demand for meaningful and lasting reform.

Watchdog

Watchdog PDF Author: Will McIntosh
Publisher: Yearling
ISBN: 1524713872
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 194

Get Book Here

Book Description
Thirteen-year-old twins Vick and Tara have built an incredible machine—a loyal robotic watchdog named Daisy. But, when local crime boss Ms. Alba schemes to add Daisy to her robot army, Vick and Tara must go to great lengths to protect their prized pet. Because Daisy is more than just any robot—she’s their constant protector, and together the three make a great team. Vick and Tara are determined to stop the mob from tearing their little family apart. And they might just succeed! Sure, the evil Ms. Alba has more robot watchdogs, but none are as smart—or as faithful—as their Daisy. Plus, if things get too dangerous, Tara could always upgrade their pet. With her mechanical skills, she could make Daisy bigger, stronger, and a lot more intimidating! A Junior Library Guild Selection A 2019-2020 Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List Selection "Engaging, suspenseful, and with nearly all the vivid fighting confined to robots, this gritty tale is perfect for a younger audience than most post-apocalyptic stories." —Kirkus Reviews "This compelling drama with cool tech themes and bad guys getting their comeuppance is a winner." —SLJ

The Video Watchdog Book

The Video Watchdog Book PDF Author: Tim Lucas
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 420

Get Book Here

Book Description
Read What You've Been Missing! This profusely illustrated video consumer guide is a must for all fans & collectors of Horror, Science Fiction & Fantasy films on tape & disc. A companion to the popular VIDEO WATCHDOG Magazine, THE VIDEO WATCHDOG BOOK contains witty & informative descriptions of 100s of titles, including out-of-print rarities, alternate versions, foreign language & import releases, continuity errors... even detailed descriptions of missing (& censored) scenes! Written by video authority Tim Lucas, whose work has appeared in numerous books & magazines in the United States & Europe. Also includes an indispensible list of more than 650 retitled videos, a book index, plus a complete index to the first 12 issues of VIDEO WATCHDOG Magazine! Features a Foreword by cult Director Joe Dante (GREMLINS, THE HOWLING), a striking full-color cover by Stephen R. Bissette (SWAMP THING), & spot illustrations by Brian Thomas (TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES). Here's what the experts say about VIDEO WATCHDOG: "Fascinating... the best effort of its kind I've seen!"--Vincent Price. "A thorough, accurate, & knowledgeable source that's as good as anything I've read!"--Christopher Lee. "Intriguing, thought-provoking, & marvelously obsessive!--USA TODAY.

Watchdogs on the Hill

Watchdogs on the Hill PDF Author: Linda L. Fowler
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400866464
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 279

Get Book Here

Book Description
An essential responsibility of the U.S. Congress is holding the president accountable for the conduct of foreign policy. In this in-depth look at formal oversight hearings by the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, Linda Fowler evaluates how the legislature's most visible and important watchdogs performed from the mid-twentieth century to the present. She finds a noticeable reduction in public and secret hearings since the mid-1990s and establishes that American foreign policy frequently violated basic conditions for democratic accountability. Committee scrutiny of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, she notes, fell below levels of oversight in prior major conflicts. Fowler attributes the drop in watchdog activity to growing disinterest among senators in committee work, biases among members who join the Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, and motives that shield presidents, particularly Republicans, from public inquiry. Her detailed case studies of the Truman Doctrine, Vietnam War, Panama Canal Treaty, humanitarian mission in Somalia, and Iraq War illustrate the importance of oversight in generating the information citizens need to judge the president’s national security policies. She argues for a reassessment of congressional war powers and proposes reforms to encourage Senate watchdogs to improve public deliberation about decisions of war and peace. Watchdogs on the Hill investigates America’s national security oversight and its critical place in the review of congressional and presidential powers in foreign policy.

Mr. and Mrs. Button's Wonderful Watchdogs

Mr. and Mrs. Button's Wonderful Watchdogs PDF Author: Janice
Publisher: Lothrop, Lee and Shepard Books
ISBN: 9780688418489
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 36

Get Book Here

Book Description
Mr. and Mrs. Button have a difficult time finding a fierce watchdog because each one they bring home takes on the happy spirit of their friendly household.

Bertie was a Watchdog

Bertie was a Watchdog PDF Author: Rick Walton
Publisher: Candlewick Press
ISBN: 9780763613853
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 56

Get Book Here

Book Description
Bertie, a dog as small as a watch, outsmarts an overconfident robber.

Watchdog

Watchdog PDF Author: Richard Cordray
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0197503012
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 305

Get Book Here

Book Description
Every day across America, consumers face issues with credit cards, mortgages, car loans, and student loans. When they are cheated or mistreated, all too often they hit a brick wall against the financial companies. People are fed up with being run over by big corporations, and few have the resources or expertise to fight back on their own. It is no wonder consumers feel powerless: they are outgunned every step of the way. Since 1970, the financial industry has doubled in size. It is the biggest source of campaign contributions to federal candidates and parties, spending about $1 billion annually on campaigns and another $500 million on lobbying. The four biggest banks each now has more than $1 trillion in assets. Financial products have become a mass of fine print that consumers can hardly even read, let alone understand. Growing problems in the increasingly one-sided finance markets blew up the economy in 2008. In the aftermath, Congress created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Sharing the stories of individual consumers, Watchdog shows how the Bureau quickly became a powerful force for good, suing big banks for cheating or deceiving consumers, putting limits on predatory lenders, simplifying mortgage paperwork, and stepping in to help solve problems raised by individual consumers. It tells a hopeful story of how our system can be reformed by putting government back on the side of the people, to strengthen our families, safeguard the marketplace, and establish a new baseline of fairness in our democratic society.