Murdoch

On Oct. 2, the Program on International Policy and Attitudes (PIPA), an ultra-respectable, non-partisan research institute, released a study titled "Misperceptions, The Media, and the Iraq War." The report concluded that "a substantial portion of the [American] public had a number of misperceptions that were demonstrably false, or were at odds with the dominant view in the intelligence community." The three biggest misperceptions were the beliefs that:

1) Iraq either was directly involved in 9/11 or provided substantial support to Al Qaeda;
2) weapons of mass destruction have been found in Iraq or even used during the war itself; and 
3) world public opinion supported the war.

Call it the American Al Jazeera. Call it the Bush News Agency. Call it whatever you want, but don't call it fair and balanced.

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It's becoming clearer every day that moderates and progressives need a more effective way to get their message out. The reason the Right has been so effective at getting their message out, and getting their politicians elected, and getting their policies enacted, is that they've established an extremely well-funded idea-development and communications infrastructure that has been called "The Mighty Wurlitzer." This infrastructure consists of think tanks like the Heritage Foundation and the American Enterprise Institute; radio talk-show hosts like Rush Limbaugh; TV pundits on Fox News; newspapers like the Washington Times and New York Post, publishing houses like Regnery; and a variety of other organizations.  

All of this constitutes an "infrastructure" because it is already set up and in place, ready to amplify and disseminate any message that the conservative movement's ideological leaders feed into it. Moderates and progressives, meanwhile, don't have anything comparable in place. That has to change!  

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