Courtesy of Pam Martens.
CNN Front Page, Sunday, June 30, 2013
Yesterday, beginning in the morning, every major online news outlet had a front page article on the breaking story that the NSA had electronically bugged the diplomatic offices of the European Union in Washington, D.C., at the United Nations and in Brussels – every outlet except the paper of record, the New York Times.
The news first broke on Saturday at the online site of the German magazine, Der Spiegel, and went viral thereafter. The details of the story came from new documents leaked by Edward Snowden, the former intelligence contractor now sought by the U.S. for extradition and prosecution. Snowden is believed to be in an airport in Moscow while he seeks permanent asylum from Ecuador or another country.
On Sunday, as hour after hour went by, as more outrage and invective flowed out of Europe, the story was nonexistent on the Times web site. Under the regular headline updates from the Associated Press and Reuters that appear on the Times front page, we learned at 8:46 a.m. that “Thai PM Sacks Commerce Minister After Rice Fiasco.” Around 10ish there was this attention grabber: “UK Parliament Toilets to Get Pricey Refurbishment”; but absolutely nothing on the exploding scandal that the U.S. is bugging its closest allies.
As European officials threatened to cancel trade talks, launch a criminal investigation, and compared the U.S. to the East German Secret Police, the Times remained silent. Finally, at 3:10 p.m. in the afternoon, the Times posted its own brief article headlined:“Report of U.S. Spying Angers European Allies.” There was the nagging suspicion that the Times has some spoken or unspoken agreement with the White House or State Department to get a confirmation or denial before it weighs in on national security or delicate matters of state.
ABC News Front Page, Sunday, June 30, 2013
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