NNDB.com: Leftists Launch Stealth Propaganda Site Disguised as a "Who's Who" Database
"Has this reclusive Qwest billionaire embarked upon a secret plan to propagandize us with Christian films?" asks the front page of NNDB.com, a new Web site now in beta release.
Eager to find out, I clicked the proffered link which led to a profile of Philip Anschutz, the multibillionaire founder of Qwest Communications. The second paragraph of the two-graph bio informed me that:
"…Anschutz has pulled back from Qwest… and… is now dabbling in moralistic filmmaking. He made Holes which quickly grossed $67M, and Because of Winn-Dixie, which grossed over $30M. An upcoming A Sound of Thunder is to be released in 2005. Additionally he purchased the rights to C. S. Lewis' highly-allegoric Narnia works, and has great hopes for the first film from that series, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, which will be made with Disney's help. None of these films receive `R' ratings, and some of them have strong religious undertones. Anschutz thinks this is exactly what the `red states' want right now.I gather that NNDB's editors view with deep suspicion any film rated lower than "R."
"Intelligence Aggregator"
On its front page, NNDB.com describes itself as an "intelligence aggregator" whose purpose is to "document the connections between people, many of which are not always obvious. A person's otherwise inexplicable behavior is often understood by examining the crowd that person has been hanging out with."
Hmmm… sounds a lot like our own DiscovertheNetworks.com. It even has a blog called NNDB Decalogue.
There's an important difference, however, between us and them. We at DTN make no bones about our opposition to the organized left. The editors of NNDB.com — in the time-honored tradition of leftwing agitators — try their best to keep us guessing as to their political allegiance. But they need to try harder. As the aforementioned profile of Mr. Philip Anshutz makes clear, you won't fry too many synapses trying to figure out from which side of the political divide these folks hail.
And yes, they do have an entry for our very own David Horowitz. To read it, go here.
By the way, NNDB.com is registered to Soylent Communications of Mountain View, California, which also publishes something called rotten.com.
14 Comments:
"Soros gang" and its money move fast.
The Left is sure good at throwing boomerangs, but not so good at catching them are they? Sheesh. I don't think I'd want to be within 100 miles of rotten.com, but birds of a feather...
Heh. First they take advantage of our fascination with disgusting things, and then they move on to politics. No surprise there.
J
And as for their "leftist" spin, here's their take on Cornel West:
Cornel West's family moved to Sacramento, California when he was three years old. When his third grade teacher tried to force Cornel to recite the Pledge of Allegiance, he punched the pregnant woman in the face. They expelled him. "He was very violent as a young kid," explained his brother Clifton. As a high schooler, Cornel was philosophically attracted to the Black Panthers, but couldn't join due to the Panthers' insistence on atheism.
Dr. West taught at Union Theological Seminary, Yale Divinity School, and the University of Paris. Next he landed a gig as professor of Religion and African-American Studies at Harvard, then Princeton. West reads biblical Hebrew and Aramaic.
Somehow he got a role in both Matrix sequels.
You'll have to excuse me if that sounds a little less than laudatory : )
I'll check some other folks on the left and right and see how their bios match up
J
Mr. Tremlett writes: "And as for their `leftist' spin, here's their take on Cornel West…"
Interesting. The gratuitous references to Cornel West's religious convictions in this profile suggest that NNDB.com has anathematized him specifically for being a Christian.
This represents a new level of intolerance on the left for religious faith. In the past, Movement radicals welcomed the Christian Left into their big tent. Now perhaps leftwing Christians such as Dr. West will suffer the fate of Trotsky.
Interesting. The gratuitous references to Cornel West's religious convictions in this profile suggest that NNDB.com has anathematized him specifically for being a Christian
What, you mean this?
"Gender: Male
Religion: Baptist
Ethnicity: Black
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Activist, Author"
That just looks like a rundown of his known personal stats to me, and I tend to doubt they singled him out for his being a Baptist, anymore than Horowitz was singled out for being Jewish, as they noted.
This represents a new level of intolerance on the left for religious faith.
Perhaps we should really take the time to "discover" their network before jumping to conclusions. ; )
J
Mr. Tremlett asks: "What, you mean this?
"Gender: Male
Religion: Baptist
Ethnicity: Black
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Activist, Author"
No, actually, I meant this: "Dr. West taught at Union Theological Seminary, Yale Divinity School, and the University of Paris. Next he landed a gig as professor of Religion and African-American Studies at Harvard, then Princeton. West reads biblical Hebrew and Aramaic."
No, actually, I meant this: "Dr. West taught at Union Theological Seminary, Yale Divinity School, and the University of Paris. Next he landed a gig as professor of Religion and African-American Studies at Harvard, then Princeton. West reads biblical Hebrew and Aramaic."
That's a list of his accomplishments. You'll notice the distinct lack of such tell-tale words and phrases as "theocratic," "conservative," "anti-liberal" or the like.
I continued my exporation of their network last night, and was shocked - shocked - to discover that there isn't much in the way of leftist advocacy there. if there is a bias, it seems pro-sleaze rather than anything else.
Check W's entry and Gore's entry. Then compare it with Garafolo and Dean.
J
Mr. Tremlett writes: "You'll notice the distinct lack of such tell-tale words and phrases as `theocratic,' `conservative,' `anti-liberal' or the like."
Since the evident purpose of NNDB.com is to masquerade as an objective "WHO's WHO" database, hurling words of opprobrium such as "theocratic" at its targets would be highly counterproductive.
I accused NNDB of being deceptive. I did not accuse them of being stupid.
So how do you figure this site is leftist, other than their unflattering portrayal of Horowitz?
J
Mr. Tremlett asks: "So how do you figure this site is leftist, other than their unflattering portrayal of Horowitz?"
Why ignore some of the best evidence? I suggest that we start by examining NNDB's profile of David Horowitz.
You call it unflattering. But it is more than unflattering. It is uninformative.
It tells us little about Mr. Horowitz's life beyond a few hand-picked anecdotes plainly meant to taint him with an odor of sleaze.
If the creators of this site were moved by nothing more pointed than a "pro-sleaze" bias — as you earlier suggested — one would think they would applaud Mr. Horowitz for marrying a woman with a crack addiction.
Yet instead they are trying to demonize him. Why?
It tells us little about Mr. Horowitz's life beyond a few hand-picked anecdotes plainly meant to taint him with an odor of sleaze.
Exactly. And that's probably the same reason they ignored J. Garafolo's post-9/11 political "career", and chose to talk about the breast reduction surgery she had done before she went into comedy. It's dirty, icky and personal stuff, and they think we all ought to know, just like they want us to know about Horowitz' wife and her crack problems.
This seems more like the sleazier cousin of the Skeleton Closet than some kind of crypto-leftist outfit. I'm willing to bet the people who run and maintain it aren't Frontpage fans, but I don't see a "cause" being pushed, here, other than just linking people up to their connections.
J
ps: I discovered you're not on there. Maybe you should email them and rectify that situation. ; )
Tremlett's the only reasonable one among you
Perhaps, one day far away, when David Horowitz does something constructive and stops trying to dedicate himself to using falsehoods, propaganda, unsubstantiated sleaze and blatant lies to smear people, he will then be worthy of a more detailed entry. For the moment I would say that the NNDB entry is generous in failing to present more of the mountain of condemning evidence that there is against David Horowitz, Discover the Network, Front Page, Moonbat Central and indeed your good self.
If you really want to find a "Stealth Propaganda Site Disguised as a Who's Who Database", then look no further than the travesty that is 'Discover the Network'.
Your whines are both vacuous and disingenuous.
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