This article is part of a series of articles by Media Mouse covering the 2007 National Conference for Media Reform. We believe that these will be of value to those organizing for social change in the Grand Rapids and West Michigan area.
On the first day of the 2007 National Conference for Media Reform, civil rights activist Jesse Jackson discussed the state of the media system in the United States and the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Jackson charged that "too few people own too few" media outlets and that this has prevented people of color from gaining places on the media networks. He asked the audience when they had last seen a leader of the Congressional Black Caucus, the National Organization of Women, or a Latino organization on the Sunday morning talk shows, and explained that their absence has enabled the war policies of President George W. Bush. Using a football metaphor, Jackson said that there is a need for a level playing field to overcome racism and move to the next level, replacing the current system where black guys run 12 yards for a first down and white guys run 7 yards.
Jackson drew on his personal experience working with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to share insights about the way in which the corporate media "minimizes the struggle" each year when it reduces King's legacy to his "I have a dream" speech. Jackson explained that King address a multitude of issues in the United States, challenging the tax structure, the legacy of slavery, laws restricting the right to vote, war, and privilege at the expense of rights. The media's romanticizing of the "I have a dream" speech ignores the fact that, according to Jackson, it is really a "broken dreams" speech in which King explains how the promises of Abraham Lincoln and the Congress to African-Americans had not secured them with the basic necessities of life. Jackson reminded the audience that in 1966 King was meeting to plan civil disobedience in order to end poverty and war, a move the Jackson connected to the present by mentioning job loss, the prioritizing of jails over schools, deficit, and war. King was attacked for focusing on war, with critics saying that he did not understand foreign policy. Despite these attacks, King remained focused and as he came to Memphis in 1968, he was continuing to campaign against militarism and its wars abroad and poverty at home.
The legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. leaves the movements of today with many challenges according to Jackson, especially with a media system that limits democracy and our view of the world. Jackson cited the fact that the media routinely covers movements with anecdotes rather than facts and explained how many in the country--shaped by erroneous views in the media--have come to believe that they are for civil rights while opposing affirmative action. The media has the capacity to play a role in achieving social change, but the concentration of the media has limited this capacity according to Jackson, especially when one considers the fact that corporations controlling the media, including General Electric and Disney, are profiting immensely from the war and the status quo. Jackson argued that the media system has also been instrumental in maintaining racism in the United States. He described CNN as "white all night, white all day" with hosts determining guests and content in a media system that excludes people of color. Jackson explored the recent appointment of Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House, explaining that many of the reforms touted by the Democrats--raising the minimum wage or lessoning interest rates on loans--did little for those who have been systematically denied job training, access to college, housing, and healthcare. He further pointed out that the Democrats made no mention of Hurricane Katrina in their first 100 hours, despite the fact that it had become "a metaphor for urban America" according to Jackson. He also called on Democrats to stop funding the Iraq War and to reinvest the billions of dollars currently being spent on the war in schools and job programs in the United States.
Jackson closed by stating that the media reform movement has the power to redeem America. He implored the audience to tell their story and reminded them that, like Martin Luther King, Jr., the movement must keep marching. He stressed the importance of "fighting the right fight" and explained that he would rather lose the right fight than to fight the wrong fight.
