Mickey Huff

Andy Lee Roth

As the United States grapples with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the nation’s living legacy of systemic racism, and partisan threats to the foundations of democracy, the integrity of news and Project Censored's survey of underreported news stories has never been more important. This 2022 edition of Project Censored's State of the Free Press offers a comprehensive survey of the most important but underreported news stories of 2021 and a comparative analysis of the current state of corporate and independent news media, and its effect on democracy. The establishment media sustains a decrepit post-truth era, as examined the lowlight features: "Junk Food News"-frivolous stories that distract the public from actual news-and-"News Abuse"-important stories covered in ways that undermine public understanding. The alternative media provokes a burgeoning critical media literacy age, as evaluated in the highlight feature: "Media Democracy in Action"-relevant stories responsibly reported on by independent organizations. Finally, in an homage to the history of the annual report, the editors reinstate the "Déjà vu News" feature-revisited stories from previous editions. State of the Free Press 2022 endows readers with the critical thinking and media literacy skills required to hold the corporate media to account for distorting or censoring news coverage, and thus, to revitalize our democracy.

Project Censored's State of the Free Press 2022

sourcebook for the media revolution : the top censored stories and media analysis of 2010-2011

Censored 2012

Nolan Higdon

In an age defined by divisive discourse and disinformation, democracy hangs in the balance. Let’s Agree to Disagree seeks to reverse these trends by fostering constructive dialogue through critical thinking and critical media literacy. This transformative text introduces readers to useful theories, powerful case studies, and easily adoptable strategies for becoming sharper critical thinkers, more effective communicators, and critically media literate citizens.

A Critical Thinking Guide to Communication, Conflict Management, and Critical Media Literacy

Let’s Agree to Disagree

Shealeigh Voitl

Highlighting the year’s most significant independent journalism—including reports on toxic chemicals, climate disinformation, and union victories—Project Censored’s State of the Free Press 2025 illuminates issues and raises voices that the establishment press have throttled. State of the Free Press 2025 shows how independent journalism can promote civic engagement and reconnect people who have otherwise lost interest in sensational “news” that distracts and polarizes us. Balancing critical analysis with optimistic vision, the book’s diverse contributors champion press freedom and critical media literacy to hold the powerful accountable and promote a more just and inclusive society. State of the Free Press 2025 is a joint production of The Censored Press and Seven Stories Press.

Project Censored's State of the Free Press 2025

Project Censored

Every year since 1976, Project Censored, our nation's oldest news-monitoring group—a university-wide project at Sonoma State University founded by Carl Jensen, directed for many years by Peter Phillips, and now under the leadership of Mickey Huff—has produced a Top-25 list of underreported news stories and a book, Censored, dedicated to the stories that ought to be top features on the nightly news, but that are missing because of media bias and self-censorship. A perennial favorite of booksellers, teachers, and readers everywhere, Censored is one of the strongest life-signs of our current collective desire to get the news we citizens need--despite what Big Media tells us.

Inspiring We the People; The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2013- 2014

Censored 2015

Every year since 1976, Project Censored, our nation’s oldest news-monitoring group—a university-wide project at Sonoma State University founded by Carl Jensen, directed for many years by Peter Phillips, and now under the leadership of Mickey Huff—has produced a Top-25 list of underreported news stories and a book, Censored, dedicated to the stories that ought to be top features on the nightly news, but that are missing because of media bias and self-censorship. Seven Stories Press has been publishing this yearbook since 1994, featuring the top stories listed democratically in order of importance according to students, faculty, and a national panel of judges. Each of the top stories is presented at length, alongside updates from the investigative reporters who broke the stories. Beyond the Top-25 stories, additional chapters delve further into timely media topics: The Censored News and Media Analysis section provides annual updates on Junk Food News and News Abuse, Censored Déjà Vu, signs of hope in the alternative and news media, and the state of media bias and alternative coverage around the world. In the Truth Emergency section, scholars and journalists take a critical look at the US/NATO military-industrial-media empire. And in the Project Censored International section, the meaning of media democracy worldwide is explored in close association with Project Censored affiliates in universities and at media organizations all over the world. A perennial favorite of booksellers, teachers, and readers everywhere, Censored is one of the strongest life signs of our current collective desire to get the news we citizens need—despite what Big Media tells us.

The Top 25 Censored Stories of 2010-11

Peter Phillips

The yearly volumes of Censored, in continuous publication since 1976 and since 1995 available through Seven Stories Press, is dedicated to the stories that ought to be top features on the nightly news, but that are missing because of media bias and self-censorship. The top stories are listed democratically in order of importance according to students, faculty, and a national panel of judges. Each of the top stories is presented at length, alongside updates from the investigative reporters who broke the stories.

The Top 25 Censored Stories of 2009-10

Censored 2011

The annual yearbook from Project Censored features the year's most underreported news stories, striving to unmask censorship, self-censorship, and propaganda in corporate-controlled media outlets. Featuring the top 25 most underreported stories, as voted by scholars, journalists, and activists across the country and around the world, as well as chapters exploring timely issues from the previous year with more in-depth analysis.

The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2015-2016

Censored 2017

“For more thanforty years, Project Censored has been our watchdog on the establishment media, casting its eye on how the information that we receive––and don’t receive––shapes our democracy. We need it more than ever today!” —Christopher Finan, Executive Director, National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) THESE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE STORIES PRESENTED IN CENSORED 2019: --“Open-Source” Intelligence Secrets Sold to Highest Bidders --ICE Intends to Destroy Records of Inhumane Treatment of Immigrants --Indigenous Communities around World Helping to Win Legal Rights of Nature --FBI Racially Profiling “Black Identity Extremists” --The Limits of Negative News and Importance of Constructive Media DID YOU KNOW THAT SINCE 1998 THE US GOVERNMENT SPENT $21 TRILLION IT CAN’T ACCOUNT FOR? Or that Internet co-ops are mobilizing poor communities to resist net neutrality rollbacks? How about the health risks of wireless tech that cell phone companies have covered up, or the opiate crisis that Big Pharma knowingly unleashed? Haven’t heard the news? Neither did the rest of the world. That’s because these and countless other news items are suppressed or ignored by our nation’s “free press” every day. For the past forty-three years, Project Censored has been unearthing the buried stories that corporate media deem unfit to print—and debunking the “fake news” governments and corporations use to consolidate their power—to promote well-informed citizen action and critical media literacy. This year’s Project Censored yearbook features: -- “Vetting Free Speech” by Sally Gimson, Layli Foroudi, and Sean Gallagher -- “#TimesUp: Breaking the Barriers of Sexual Harassment in Corporate Media for You and #MeToo” by Julie Frechette -- “Data Activism through Community Mapping and Data Visualization” by Dorothy Kidd -- “How Mainstream Media Evolved into Corporate Media” by Peter Phillips -- “Campus–Newsroom Collaborations” by Patricia W. Elliott -- “The Public and Its Problems” by Susan Maret Plus Junk Food News, News Abuse, and Media Democracy in Action. In a time of decline in the rule of law and democratic safeguards, Project Censored offers a constructive alternative to the “fake news” blues, holding the corporate media to account for its negative bias, propaganda for wealth and power, and outright censorship.

The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2017-2018

Censored 2019

Every year since 1976, Project Censored, our nation's oldest news-monitoring group--a university-wide project at Sonoma State University founded by Carl Jensen, directed for many years by Peter Phillips, and now under the leadership of Mickey Huff--has produced a Top-25 list of underreported news stories and a book, Censored, dedicated to the stories that ought to be top features on the nightly news, but that are missing because of media bias and self-censorship. Seven Stories Press has been publishing this yearbook since 1994, featuring the top stories listed democratically in order of importance according to students, faculty, and a national panel of judges. Each of the top stories is presented at length, alongside updates from the investigative reporters who broke the stories. Beyond the Top-25 stories, additional chapters delve further into timely media topics: The Censored News and Media Analysis section provides annual updates on Junk Food News and News Abuse, Censored Deja Vu, signs of hope in the alternative and news media, and the state of media bias and alternative coverage around the world. In the Truth Emergency section, scholars and journalists take a critical look at the US/NATO military-industrial-media empire. And in the Project Censored International section, the meaning of media democracy worldwide is explored in close association with Project Censored affiliates in universities and at media organizations all over the world. A perennial favorite of booksellers, teachers, and readers everywhere, Censored is one of the strongest life signs of our current collective desire to get the news we citizens need--despite what Big Media tells us.

The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2011-2012

Censored 2013

The annual yearbook from Project Censored features the year's most underreported news stories, striving to unmask censorship, self-censorship, and propaganda in corporate-controlled media outlets. Censored 2016 features the top-25 most underreported stories, as voted by scholars, journalists, and activists across the country and around the world, as well as chapters exploring timely issues from the previous year with more in-depth analysis.

The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2014#15

Censored 2016

The new and improved "Censored," detailing the top censored stories and media analysis of 2020. Our nation's oldest news-monitoring group, Project Censored, refreshes its longstanding yearbook series, Censored, with State of the Free Press 2021. This edition offers a more succinct and comprehensive survey of the most important but underreported news stories of 2020; in addition to a comparative analysis of the current state of corporate and independent news media, and its effect on democracy. The establishment media sustains a decrepit post-truth era, as examined the lowlight features: "Junk Food News"-frivolous stories that distract the public from actual news-and-"News Abuse"-important stories covered in ways that undermine public understanding. The alternative media provokes a burgeoning critical media literacy age, as evaluated in the highlight feature: "Media Democracy in Action"-relevant stories responsibly reported on by independent organizations. Finally, in an homage to the history of the annual report, the editors reinstate the "Déjà vu News" feature-revisited stories from previous editions. State of the Free Press 2021 endows readers with the critical thinking and media literacy skills required to hold the corporate media to account for distorting or censoring news coverage, and thus, to revitalize our democracy.

Project Censored's State of the Free Press 2021

Truthout’s Progressive Pick of the Week Ralph Nader’s 10 Books to Provoke Conversation in 2014 Every year since 1976, Project Censored, our nation's oldest news-monitoring group--a university-wide project at Sonoma State University founded by Carl Jensen, directed for many years by Peter Phillips, and now under the leadership of Mickey Huff--has produced a Top-25 list of underreported news stories and a book, Censored, dedicated to the stories that ought to be top features on the nightly news, but that are missing because of media bias and self-censorship. Seven Stories Press has been publishing this yearbook since 1994, featuring the top stories listed democratically in order of importance according to an international panel of judges. Beyond the Top-25 stories, additional chapters delve further into timely media topics: The Censored News and Media Analysis section provides annual updates on Junk Food News and News Abuse, Censored Deja Vu, signs of hope in the alternative and news media, and the state of media bias and alternative coveragearound the world. In the Truth Emergency section, scholars and journalists take a critical look at the US/NATO military-industrial-media empire. And in the Project Censored International section, the meaning of media democracy worldwide is explored in close association with Project Censored affiliates in universities and at media organizations all over the world. A perennial favorite of booksellers, teachers, and readers everywhere, Censored is one of the strongest lifesigns of our current collective desire to get the news we citizens need--despite what Big Media tells us.

Fearless Speech in Fateful Times; The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2012-13

Censored 2014

"Mickey Huff and Nolan Higdon emphasize what we can do today to restore the power of facts, truth, and fair, inclusive journalism as tools for people to keep political and corporate power subordinate to the engaged citizenry and the common good."—Ralph Nader The role of news media in a free society is to investigate, inform, and provide a crucial check on political power. But does it? It's no secret that the goal of corporate-owned media is to increase the profits of the few, not to empower the many. As a result, people are increasingly immersed in an information system structured to reinforce their social biases and market to their buying preferences. Journalism’s essential role has been drastically compromised, and Donald Trump’s repeated claims of "fake news" and framing of the media as “an enemy of the people” have made a bad scenario worse. Written in the spirit of resistance and hope, United States of Distraction offers a clear, concise appraisal of our current situation, and presents readers with action items for how to improve it. Praise for United States of Distraction: "A war of distraction is underway, media is the weapon, and our minds are the battlefield. Higdon and Huff have written a brilliant book of how we’ve gotten to this point, and how to educate ourselves to fight back and win."—Henry A. Giroux, author of American Nightmare: Facing the Challenge of Fascism "A timely and urgent demand re-asserting the central importance of civic pursuits—not commercialism—in U.S. media and society."—Ralph Nader "Higdon and Huff have produced the best short introduction to the nature of Trump-era journalism and how the 'Post-Truth' media world is inimical to a democratic society that I have seen. The book is provocative and an entertaining read. Best of all, the analysis in United States of Distraction leads to concrete and do-able recommendations for how we can rectify this deplorable situation."—Robert W. McChesney, author of Rich Media, Poor Democracy: Communication Politics in Dubious Times "The U.S. wouldn't be able to hide its empire in plain sight were it not for the subservient 'free' press. United States of Distraction shows, in chilling detail, America's major media dysfunction—how the gutting of the fourth estate paved the road for fascism and what tools are critical to salvage our democracy."—Abby Martin, The Empire Files "Nolan Higdon and Mickey Huff provides us with a fearless and dangerous text that refuses the post-truth proliferation of fake news, disinformation, and media that serve the interests of the few. This is a vital wake-up call for how the public can protect itself against manipulation and authoritarianism through education and public interest media.”—George Yancy, author of Backlash: What Happens When We Talk Honestly about Racism in America and Professor of Philosophy at Emory University "United States of Distraction challenges our hegemon-media’s ideological mind control and the occupation of human thought. … Huff and Higdon correctly call for mass critical resistance through truth telling by free minds. Power to the people!"—Peter Phillips, author of Giants: The Global Power Elite

Media Manipulation in Post-Truth America (And What We Can Do About It)

United States of Distraction

"[Censored] should be affixed to the bulletin boards in every newsroom in America. And, perhaps, read aloud to a few publishers and television executives."--RALPH NADER The annual yearbook from Project Censored features the year's most underreported news stories, striving to unmask censorship, self-censorship, and propaganda in corporate-controlled media outlets. Featuring the top 25 most underreported stories, as voted by scholars, journalists, and activists across the country and around the world, as well as chapters exploring timely issues from the previous year with more in-depth analysis.

Mickey Huff

Books

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