TRNN Senior Editor Paul Jay: Because we don’t take corporate money or accept funding from either the Democrats or the Republicans, your donation is what makes The Real News possible
Story Transcript
PAUL JAY, CEO, THE REAL NEWS NETWORK: Hi, everybody. Paul Jay at The Real News Network.
Here at The Real News, we consider it our core mission to engage viewers in solving the critical problems of our time. That means we focus on substance, not partisan rhetoric. We’re trying to find real solutions. That’s part of our job. We need to investigate, discuss, and debate public policy from the point of view of what’s best for most people’s well-being.
So we don’t have allegiance to any political party or allegiances to ordinary people. We don’t appeal to one side or the other of the political spectrum. We go where facts lead us.
One of my favorite quotes about all of this is from conservative pundit George Will. Here’s what he said on the George Stephanopoulos show a few years ago.
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GEORGE WILL, PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING JOURNALIST: Surely in a democracy it’s time for us to quit being sentimental and say the question we settle it in an election is not whether elites shall rule but which elite shall rule.
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JAY: Which elite should rule? That may be the question that’s settled in elections, but it’s certainly not the question facing us. We need news that’s independent of either section of the elite. And when we cover elections or when we cover other issues, we try to do it from the point of view of simply one criteria. That’s what’s most effective policy for people’s well-being. When it comes to covering the 2014 elections, that’s what we’re going to take up as well.
If you want that kind of independent view, independent journalism, it’s only possible with independent economics. We don’t accept government or corporate contributions. We don’t sell advertising. But because we take a position independent of both political parties–and, to be honest with you, particularly the Democratic Party–it knocks out a lot of our funding. We know that. But seeking that kind of funding is not what we’re about. What makes this whole model possible is you.
So, please, if you haven’t donated yet during this campaign, click the Donate button. We’re halfway through the campaign. We need to raise another $25,000 before October 3 if we’re going to get this matching grant.
So we’ve got some goodies is to induce you to donate if you need a little bit of inducement. First of all, if you donate $10 a month or $100 or more, you can get some books. You can either get Eddie Conway’s new edition of his book Marshall Law: The Life & Times of a Baltimore Black Panther. And if you haven’t watched any of the Reality Asserts Itself with Eddie Conway, you should. I think it’s quite an amazing series.)
You can also, for that level of contribution, $10 a month or $100 dollars or more, you can get copies of the books The Battle for Justice in Palestine by Ali Abunimah, and you also get Goliath: Life and Loathing in Greater Israel by Max Blumenthal–that’s right, both books, if you donate $10 or $100 bucks or more.
You can also get the DVD The History of the National Security State, which is a long-form interview with Gore Vidal, you can say a mini documentary on the whole history of what has now been referred to as the national surveillance state.
So if you want real news, it’s really urgent. It costs us more than $100,000 a month to run The Real News. So what we’re trying to raise in this campaign covers one month. If you haven’t donated, we really need you to do it now. It’s urgent that we meet this matching grant, and it’s only a few days away. So please donate. It’s tax-deductible in the United States and Canada. You have a possibility of getting all these books. If you can’t donate at that level, any level matters–$5 dollars, $10, $2, $1, all of that makes a difference. So please donate and help us make real news.
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