Part II The Press

Several Articles:
NYTimes,
Elusive
Black People
Strength

USA Today/LA Daily News
USA Today Anthem
USAT Summary of Rallies

CounterPunch

Soo... Where to start. Here we have several articles in two widely read publications. All approach the idea with skepticism, headlines doubtful. Lets go through them one by one.

Shall we?

OK.

The first article, entitled News Analysis; After Immigration Protests, Goal Remains Elusive, is kinda fucked up. (I really want to use the word caveat right here, but im not going to.) In an article about elusive goals, they ask nothing of a single participant or organizer, deciding to focus more on politicians or "research groups".

This isn't to say they didn't collect some killer quotes:

Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, said: "The protest, I don't think, changes votes on the floor of the Senate. I think what changes votes is coming down, sitting down, talking about it, as opposed to students' staying out of school. I happen to think that students' staying out of school is counterproductive."

"What buttons were pressed?" Roberto Suro, the director of the [Pew HIspanic Center], asked, wondering aloud about what Americans saw when they looked at the protesters. "Was it that there are so many people here outside of government control or was it the hard-working family types? I think that's really imponderable."

After the March rally, Senator Trent Lott, Republican of Mississippi, said he was deeply offended by marchers' waving the Mexican flag.
"I want to be sensitive to human concerns, why they're here and how they're here. But when they act out like that, they lose me," Mr. Lott said.
He suggested a risk of deportation and said, "We had them all in a bunch, you know what I mean?"

Jesus guys, Trent Lott? Is this a joke? I don't even see the qualifier "avowed racist".


The piece itself is pretty screwy. Some choice phrases (I soooo wish I was taking these out of context):

The protesters have discovered that there is a thin and potentially dangerous line between promoting national pride and pushing opponents' buttons. They used tactics — flying the Mexican flag, recording "The Star-Spangled Banner" in Spanish — that have left even some supporters feeling a bit queasy.

Among their biggest allies are employers, large and small, who want assurances that they will continue to have that labor pool.

With Republicans so divided, reaching consensus will be difficult.

I'm not so surprised that this is being said in the New York Times as I am that this masquerades as News Analysis. They are either stupid or complicit.