The "Born to Slack" Show Finally Covers the Anti-War March Right

The Drudge Report is a subtle right-wing site, and it rarely misses a chance to bolster that side of the argument. That's why it is still running video from Portland even though it is a week old, from the day of the anti-war march. This is the second major story Drudge has run on this group of 50 anarchists, and Drudge's implication is obvious: This is somehow representavtive of the anti-war protesters last week. Those who oppose the war hate the troops because these 50 anarchists hate everything. Way to cover the news.

The local Portland stations ran with the shots of arrests, so the end result was this march of over 10,000 citizens to protest the war, turned into a major media event for a small group of anarchists. That is the power of the media in the wrong hands.

Of course, it bothered me because it was counter-productive to the anti-war effort. It gives the right wing all kinds of ammunition to say, "See, these protesters are so bad!" So what is the Portland Freelancer doing about it?

I also video-taped the march and it will be on TV tonight. I must admit it was interesting to relate to the problems other TV editors face. You can't put it all on, so the networks use the most explosive footage, short of what could offend their audience. Believe me, both the banner and the visuals of this small group of anarchists would have offended most Portlanders. It was truly ugly which is why Drudge jumped on it.

So how did I edit my view of the march? I start with an intro sitting in my car, then I show a confrontation on Pioneer Square. I taped the anarchists and I even included a shot of them without showing their banner. That was my editorial compromise. I also showed a positive shot of the police chief. She was right there and exuded cheerful confidence which came off great.

However for the most part, I just let the camera run as the marchers went past showing their signs. Check out for yourself who actually made up this protest. Over the next two weeks I'm going to show all of them, although the ones on my side of the street come through the best. My cable access show, "Born to Slack", airs Sunday at 10 on 22, Tuesdays at 10 on 23, and Fridays at 11 on channel 11. I know we have some viewers because they told me directly that day at the march.

It's sort of sad really: What turns out to be the best news source on a major event here in Portland? The most fair and balanced by a 100 miles? Not the local network news which emphasized the arrests, nor the Drudge report which gave a huge stage for the anarchists, but my humble little cable access show. Tune in to see what really happened.