In what has become commonplace in advance of demonstrations that involve anarchist or anti-authoritarian groups, the corporate media in the Twin Cities has been using the involvement of anarchists as a way to build opposition to the protests. A recent report on WCCO-TV in Minneapolis is representative of the type of coverage that appears in the local media. The story talks about how "anarchists and anti-authority groups" are hoping to "cause chaos." It features video footage of acts of vandalism--none of it at previous convention protests--to portray anarchists as violent and bent on destruction. Moreover, the story never explores why anarchists reject the state and the two party system, leaving out an important piece of information necessary to contextualize the protest.

An article published by the Minnesota Independent reveals that this is not the first time that a local media outlet has engaged in such reporting. Reporter Andy Birkey writes:

"In July, Fox News accused the anarchists of setting up a "red sector" devoted to clashing with police, a charge the group denies. The Star Tribune's Katherine Kersten has devoted three columns to whipping Twin Citians into a frenzy over anarchists. In July, the Pioneer Press recounted the destructive World Trade Organization protests of 1999 and stated that "a group of Twin Cities anarchists now is making similar threats against the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul.""

So what do "the anarchists" think? While the political philosophy of anarchism is broad and anarchists have many different views, the RNC Welcoming Committee--a group of anarchists and anti-authoritarians--has granted two lengthy interviews with independent media outlets in which they outline an anarchist critique of representative democracy and outline plans to "crash the convention:"