Between The Lines - Terry O'Neill: Rush Limbaugh, Contraception, Sandra Fluke and the GOP War on Women (Week Ending March 23, 2012)

Award-winning Investigative Journalist Robert Parry (1949-2018)

Award-winning investigative journalist and founder/editor of ConsortiumNews.com, Robert Parry has passed away. His ground-breaking work uncovering Reagan-era dirty wars in Central America and many other illegal and immoral policies conducted by successive administrations and U.S. intelligence agencies, stands as an inspiration to all in journalists working in the public interest.

Robert had been a regular guest on our Between The Lines and Counterpoint radio shows -- and many other progressive outlets across the U.S. over four decades.

His penetrating analysis of U.S. foreign policy and international conflicts will be sorely missed, and not easily replaced. His son Nat Parry writes a tribute to his father: Robert Parry’s Legacy and the Future of Consortiumnews.

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The Resistance Starts Now!

Between The Lines' coverage and resource compilation of the Resistance Movement

"The man who predicted Trump presidential win now says Trump impeachment could happen," AM Joy with Joy Reid, MSNBC, Jan. 21, 2018
"Sketchy Kazakh money finds its way into Trump dealings," The Rachel Maddow Show, MSNBC, Jan. 15, 2018
"Red flags seen in many Trump real estate deals," The Rachel Maddow Show, MSNBC, Jan. 15, 2018
"Secret Money: How Trump Made Millions Selling Condos To Unknown Buyers," BuzzFeed, Jan. 12, 2018
"The Scandals of Donald Trump: Presidential Edition," The Atlantic, May 15, 2017
"Here's what we know so far about Team Trump's ties to Russian interests," Washington Post's ongoing compilation
"What Comey Was Investigating, Explained," The Moscow Project, Center for American Progress

"Donald Trump's Financial Ties to Russian Oligarchs and Mobsters Detailed In Explosive New Documentary from the Netherlands," Dutch TV documentary, Alternet.org, May 12, 2017
Ongoing compilation of Trump's creeping authoritarianism," MotherJones.com
Full resource list ...

SPECIAL REPORT: "The Resistance - Women's March 2018 - Hartford, Connecticut" Jan. 20, 2018

Selected speeches from the Women's March in Hartford, Connecticut 2018, recorded and produced by Scott Harris

SPECIAL REPORT: "No Fracking Waste in CT!" Jan. 14, 2018

Jen Siskind Jennifer Siskind, local coordinator for Food and Water Watch, describes the campaign to stop fracking waste in Connecticut, which so far has led to fracking waste bans in 34 towns around the state. Interviewed by Richard Hill on Mic Check, WPKN Radio, Bridgeport, CT

SPECIAL REPORT: "Resistance Round Table: The Unraveling Continues..." Jan. 13, 2018

Lindsay Kanaly The panel discusses Trump's long history of racism and the Republican voter suppression juggernaut confronting Democrats leading up to the 2018 elections. Special guest: Lindsay Kanaly, a lead organizer of the Women's Marches planned for Jan. 20, 2018. Panel: Scott Harris, Ruthanne Baumgartner and Richard Hill on Resistance Roundtable, WPKN Radio, Bridgeport, CT.

SPECIAL REPORT: "Capitalism to the ash heap?" Richard Wolff, Jan. 2, 2018

Richard Wolff, Economics professor Richard Wolff declares U.S. capitalism to be beyond repair and suggests the need for a radical alternative. Interviewed by Richard Hill

SPECIAL REPORT: Maryn McKenna, author of "Big Chicken", Dec. 7, 2017

Maryn McKenna, investigative journalist and author of Big Chicken, talks about the widespread use and dangers of antibiotics in commercial poultry, beef and fruit production. Interview by Bill Duesing, Richard Hill and Guy Beardsly on WPKN's Organic Farm Stand.

SPECIAL REPORT: Nina Turner's address, Working Families Party Awards Banquet, Dec. 14, 2017

Nina Turner, president of Our Revolution, talks about the fight ahead for progressives as she receives the Working Families Organization Award for Exceptional Leadership Towards Advancing Progress. The event was held in Meriden, CT. Produced by Richard Hill.

SPECIAL REPORT: Mic Check, Dec. 12, 2017

Working Families Party of CT talks strategy and issues for 2018.
Lindsay Farrell, executive director of the Working Families Party of Connecticut, discusses the state's electoral landscape and lays out the issues and strategies that could lead to progressive victories in 2018. Interviewed by Richard Hill.

SPECIAL REPORT: Resistance Roundtable, Dec. 9, 2017

Disturbing developments in the Trump/Republican Agenda
Focus on the tax bill, destruction of our public lands, North Korea and Trump's private CIA. Panel: Scott Harris, Ruthanne Baumgartner and Richard Hill. Special guest: Jo Macallero of Rise and Resist.

SPECIAL REPORT: On Tyranny - one year later, Nov. 28, 2017

Professor Timothy Snyder, author of the highly acclaimed resistance manual On Tyranny, discusses his book and offers a fresh assessment of the state of our beleaguered republic. Timothy Snyder, history professor at Yale, is introduced by Stanley Heller, administrator of Promoting Enduring Peace, a Connecticut-based organization that sponsored this event at the United Church Parish House in New Haven on Nov. 28. A brief interview with Snyder conducted by WPKN radio producer, Richard Hill, follows his talk.

SPECIAL REPORT: Mic Check, Nov. 12, 2017

Lynne Ide, director of program and policy with the Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut, talks about the current state of health care coverage in Connecticut. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Resistance Roundtable, Nov. 11, 2017

Focus on the Republican tax plan, the just-released autopsy on the Democratic Party, and Internet censorship by Google, Facebook and Youtube. Including an interview with Hilary Grant, a lead organizer with Action Together Connecticut, who discusses the local results of the recent election, with hosts Richard Hill, Scott Harris and Ruth Baumgartner WPKN producers

SPECIAL REPORT: Rainy Day Radio, Nov. 7, 2017

Two leaders from Redneck Revolt, an anti-racist, anti-capitalist movement, talk about their work organizing with white working class people in Suffolk County, New York. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Rainy Day Radio, Nov. 7, 2017

Bruce Gagnon, coordinator for the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space, describes the extent of -- and motives underlying -- the vast US network of military bases around the globe. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Resisting U.S. JeJu Island military base in South Korea, Oct. 24, 2017

Joyakol, South Korean peace activist and singer, discusses the crisis on the Korean peninsula and focuses on the resistance to the U.S. huge military base being constructed on Jeju Island. The event was sponsored by the Greater New Haven Peace Council and this audio was recorded by Richard Hill, WPKN producer.
Joyakol discusses Americans' biggest misconceptions about the conflict between North and South Korea and the U.S., Interview by Richard Hill, WPKN producer.

SPECIAL REPORT: John Allen, Out in New Haven

John Allen, founding director of the New Haven Pride Center, Connecticut, talks about his new LGBTQ television show, Out in New Haven, which presents a range of political and cultural issues to the community. Interviewed by Richard Hill on WPKN's Rainy Day Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2018.

2017 Gandhi Peace Awards

Promoting Enduring Peace presented its Gandhi Peace Award jointly to renowned consumer advocate Ralph Nader and BDS founder Omar Barghouti on April 23, 2017.

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THANK YOU TO EVERYONE...

who helped make our 25th anniversary with Jeremy Scahill a success!

For those who missed the event, or were there and really wanted to fully absorb its import, here it is in video

Jeremy Scahill keynote speech, part 1 from PROUDEYEMEDIA on Vimeo.

Jeremy Scahill keynote speech, part 2 from PROUDEYEMEDIA on Vimeo.

Between The Lines on Stitcher

Between The Lines Presentation at the Left Forum 2016

"How Do We Build A Mass Movement to Reverse Runaway Inequality?" with Les Leopold, author of "Runaway Inequality: An Activist's Guide to Economic Justice,"May 22, 2016, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, The City University of New York, 860 11th Ave. (Between 58th and 59th), New York City. Between The Lines' Scott Harris and Richard Hill moderated this workshop. Listen to the audio/slideshows and more from this workshop.

Listen to audio of the plenary sessions from the weekend.

JEREMY SCAHILL: Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker "Dirty Wars"

Listen to the full interview (30:33) with Jeremy Scahill, an award-winning investigative journalist with the Nation Magazine, correspondent for Democracy Now! and author of the bestselling book, "Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army," about America's outsourcing of its military. In an exclusive interview with Counterpoint's Scott Harris on Sept. 16, 2013, Scahill talks about his latest book, "Dirty Wars, The World is a Battlefield," also made into a documentary film under the same title, and was nominated Dec. 5, 2013 for an Academy Award in the Best Documentary Feature category.

Listen to Scott Harris Live on WPKN Radio

Between The Lines' Executive Producer Scott Harris hosts a live, weekly talk show, Counterpoint, from which some of Between The Lines' interviews are excerpted. Listen every Monday evening from 8 to 10 p.m. EDT at www.WPKN.org (Follows the 5-7 minute White Rose Calendar.)

Counterpoint in its entirety is archived after midnight ET Monday nights, and is available for at least a year following broadcast in WPKN Radio's Archives.

You can also listen to full unedited interview segments from Counterpoint, which are generally available some time the day following broadcast.

Subscribe to Counterpoint bulletins via our subscriptions page.

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Rush Limbaugh’s Attack on Law Student Sandra Fluke Provokes Campaign to Shut Down His Show

RealAudio MP3

Posted March 14, 2012

Interview with Terry O'Neill, president of National Organization for Women, conducted by Melinda Tuhus

On his Feb. 29 nationally syndicated radio program, Rush Limbaugh attacked a female law student named Sandra Fluke, who had volunteered to testify before a congressional committee about the need for birth control to be covered under the Affordable Care Act. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chairman, Darrel Issa, had earlier prevented Fluke from testifying before his committee, because he said, the focus of the hearing was not on women's health, but on religious persecution.

In his broadcast, Limbaugh called Fluke a slut and a prostitute, then followed that up with a demand that she videotape herself having sex and post it on the Internet. The attack set off an immediate call by outraged women and men for advertisers to drop their support for his three-hour daily show. On March 12, ThinkProgress.org reported that 140 advertisers, including dozens of major national corporations, had requested their ads no longer air on Limbaugh’s program. Lifelock and Lear Financial are among the companies continuing to stand by Limbaugh.

NOW, the National Organization for Women has called on Premiere Networks, the largest radio syndication company in the U.S., and a wholly owned subsidiary of Clear Channel Communications, to fire Rush Limbaugh. Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus spoke with NOW president Terry O'Neill about the controversy and what her organization is doing to increase the pressure on Limbaugh’s advertisers and stations to drop the conservative talk show.

TERRY O'NEILL: I have said that the words "slut" and "prostitute" are not the problem with what he said. His first diatribe against Sandra Fluke was very long and involved an extraordinary, basically, fantasy, a sexual fantasy about her sex life. He insisted that she was having so much sex that she needed more and more birth control, which -- hello -- that's not how birth control works. But he said she was having so much sex he couldn't believe she could still walk -- and, by the way, it's clearly defamatory. I don't know if she intends to file a lawsuit against him, but he absolutely crossed the line. She's a private figure, she's not a public figure. So it wasn't the slut word or the prostitute word, it was the whole diatribe against her when her only crime was to go to the U.S. Congress to offer testimony about the importance of birth control as basic preventive health care for young women.

In response to the first diatribe...we now have a media hall of shame. We call out people in the media when they launch misogynistic attacks on women who are in the public sphere. And when Rush Limbaugh attacked Sandra Fluke, we called that out on our media hall of shame and encouraged our activists to contact Clear Channel and encouraged Clear Channel to dump him, take him off the air, because we felt he should have been fired. There followed two days by Rush Limbaugh on his radio show where he doubled down against Sandra Fluke. The second radio show was the one where I believe he engaged in the sexual fantasy about watching her have sex on a video; he did it again the next day. So for three solid days, three hours a day, he was viciously attacking Sandra Fluke.

Since then, we have renewed our call for Clear Channel to fire him. Our allied organizations...I know that Crystal Ball from northern Virginia put up a website called www.BoycottRush.org, and there's another website called www.StopRush.org. So there are a number of organizations that are mobilizing. So it's up to 140 advertisers, and I think the next wave is going to be the stations. I have said publicly on a number of occasions that the stations need to drop him, and I believe that will continue to happen. This thing is not going to end; it's continuing to roll along. In fact, we're going to be speaking with Media Matters, a non-profit organization that has followed Rush's very shameful history of attacking women, people of color, immigrants, lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender people, you name it. Media Matters has been really great at tracking his history of bigotry on the air, and we're working with them to continue to exist that Rush Limbaugh doesn't belong on the air.

BETWEEN THE LINES: Terry O'Neill, it was reported on March 12 that, without explanation, Premiere Networks told its affiliate radio stations that they are suspending national advertising for two weeks. These spots are how Premiere makes its money from Limbaugh's show and other shows it syndicates. Some stations are running free public service announcements in those slots.

TERRY O'NEILL: That's a significant dent in the profitability of that show, but it's not enough. And as long as Clear Channel has decided to stand by their man, the individual stations need to drop him. So far, only two out of 600-odd stations have dropped him, but my expectation is that you'll begin to see more and more as pressure begins to build on stations to drop him. I think the reality is that stations have not personally felt a lot of pressure. I think the activists around the country are still focused on advertisers. And you can see that, because only a few days ago it was at 50, and now it's 140.

BETWEEN THE LINES: So what are NOW's grassroots activists doing to try to get Rush off the air?

TERRY O'NEILL: We're still working on the plan about how to roll all this out. But I will tell you that NOW chapters are energized and women are already gearing up to go after those stations.

BETWEEN THE LINES: Some people say Rush Limbaugh is a talk show host -- this kind of outrageous talk is par for the course and what listeners should expect, and he has a First Amendment right to say it.

TERRY O'NEILL: Rush Limbaugh does not have a First Amendment right to be on the radio. He has a First Amendment right not to be prosecuted by the government for what he says. He does not have a First Amendment right to be carried by Clear Channel. He doesn't have a First Amendment right to be supported by advertisers. Obviously, he has a right to free speech, but he does not have a right to defame Sandra Fluke. That's why we have defamation laws in this country. Libel and slander is something that's wrong, and there's no First Amendment right to commit libel and slander, which I believe is what he did. I don't know if he's going to be sued for it. But by the way, he's decided to go after me personally, for some of the remarks I made about Rush. He seems to believe it's to his benefit to keep this issue going, and as long as he decides it's to his benefit, he's going to be spewing vile statements and ugly comments wherever he thinks he can spew them, but from my point of view, he has crossed a line, and he needs to be off the air. It's just that simple.

To learn more about the National Organization for Women, visit www.now.org.