Missing: ‘Illegal Alien’ Disappears from Network Vocabulary
Monday's Supreme Court ruling on Arizona law did little to settle the nation’s ongoing battles over illegal immigration. But it did show how ABC, CBS and NBC have eradicated “politically incorrect” language out of their coverage of the debate.
In a span of six years major networks stopped using the terms “illegal alien” and “illegals.” The liberal media’s agenda is clear, and the word "illegal" is now considered a racial slur. In 2006, major networks CBS and ABC used the terms “illegals” and “illegal aliens” in their stories (NBC did not). Today, those terms have all but disappeared from network immigration reporting.
The change is clear evidence that pressure from activist groups is succeeding in eroding and altering the terms of debate. Sadly, the most influential of those activist groups may be the Society of Professional Journalists – the professional body that proclaims its mission as “improving and protecting journalism.” In 2011 SPJ decided to encourage newsrooms to discontinue using the terms “illegal alien” and “illegal immigrant” because it is “offensive” to Hispanics and immigrants.
A look at how the networks covered immigration issues just six years ago shows conclusive evidence. One of the largest immigrant rights rallies occurred on April 10, 2006, and in reporting about it the networks still referred to illegal immigrants as “illegal aliens,” or just “illegals.” Out of 76 stories, the term “illegal aliens” was used eight times and “illegals” nine times.
On CBS Morning News on April 11, 2006 anchor Susan McGinnis said “The rallies happened as a CBS News poll finds 74 percent of Americans support giving illegal aliens to stay under certain conditions.”
On April 10, 2006 Elizabeth Vargas on ABC's World News Tonight reported, “Protestors are particularly opposed to a bill passed in the House. It would create a 700 mile wall along the Mexican border and make it a felony for anyone to help an illegal alien.”
Fast forward to 2012 and it’s a different story altogether. In a series of 25 reports after the Arizona ruling major networks had completely eliminated the word “illegal alien” from news reports. ABC reporters only used the word “illegal immigrant” once in stories, with no use of “illegals” or “illegal aliens.”
NBC opted to only use the term “illegal immigrants” in stories, while CBS reporters, who racked up the most uses in 2006, wielded “illegal alien” and “illegals” zero times. Usage of “illegal immigrants” was cut nearly in half, from 36 times to 17.
The networks, and many other media outlets, have adopted SPJ’s dishonest terminology and have in effect, chosen sides in a national debate. They’d be better served (as would SPJ itself) to adopt something else from SPJ: The part in its code of ethics that says, “Distinguish between advocacy and news reporting.”
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Comments
How about real aliens?
Submitted by alvin on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 2:32pm.
•Nearly 65% think Barack Obama would be better suited than Mitt Romney to handle an alien invasion.
Extraterrestrial beings could not be reached for comment
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-06-26/ufo-survey/55843742/1
Obama would try to buy the
Submitted by tcm14 on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 2:47pm.
Obama would try to buy the aliens off with free food, health care, and education and let them fraudulently vote in elections. Anyone who resisted the alien invasion would be declared a bigot.
LOL, UFO Alien government freebies
Submitted by CarlosS on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 3:07pm.
but never ever a path for illegal aliens (UFO or otherwise) to become full-fledged citizens..., Democrats never seem to have time for that, even when they have full control of the executive, senate, and congressional branches of government.
Right after
Submitted by misterbee241 on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 5:48pm.
he apologized.
Well
Submitted by NYCMiddle on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 3:59pm.
he IS a vulcan.
Yes, now they are 'dreamers'.
Submitted by ant on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 2:52pm.
Yes, now they are 'dreamers'. And although the term 'politician' should be changed to 'traitor', any 'citizen' that believes that or believes in the Constitution and rule of law is now a 'radical extremist'. And 'journalists'? They're just 'useless'.
ARose
Submitted by Lamdog on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 2:54pm.
A rose by any other name is still a rose.
It is similar to using progressives instead of liberal the words may change the definition remains the same.
Undocumented worker or illegal aliens still mean the same people who have broken the law to enter the country.
ARose
Submitted by Lamdog on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 2:54pm.
A rose by any other name is still a rose.
It is similar to using progressives instead of liberal the words may change the definition remains the same.
Undocumented worker or illegal aliens still mean the same people who have broken the law to enter the country.
How about "illegal residents"?
Submitted by Moonstone716 on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 2:58pm.
They are residing here illegally -- how on earth can they dispute that??? People who have green cards are still called resident aliens. Seems consistent to me.
Politically Correct??
Submitted by Joe W. on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 3:07pm.
Well...I prefer the term "Wetback"...it's much more accurate....we even had a U.S. Immigration program called "Operation Wetback"...I do NOT care if I hurt the feelings of a group of people that are thumbing their noses at our sovereignty, stealing our financial, sociological and human resources, and refusing to acknowledge their culpability in their crimes.
Yes, let's use the term often applied to Obama: "undocumented."
Submitted by SickofLibs on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 3:14pm.
.
It's SOP, the word 'Democrat'
Submitted by ant on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 3:27pm.
It's SOP, the word 'Democrat' disappears whenever they're caught being naughty. And still, after 20 years, SUV's are still going around randomly killing pedestrians. When will it stop?
Liberals' Political Correctness
Submitted by needle on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 3:34pm.
Liberals' Political Correctness is constant demonstration that Liberals are anal retentive.
- Looking forward to the self-annihilation of the Manipulated Stories Machine.
the Society of Professional Journalists
Submitted by needle on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 7:09pm.
the Society of Professional Journalists – the professional body that proclaims its mission as “improving and protecting PROGRESSIVE journalism.”
FIFY.
- Looking forward to the self-annihilation of the Manipulated Stories Machine.
Illegal Alien--is only suppressed in the Liberal Press?
Submitted by Brittanicus on Wed, 06/27/2012 - 9:39pm.
The Obama Justice Department led by the notorious U.S. Attorney General Eric holder has been harassing the legal residents of Arizona, as some plaything? The Obama’s administration is playing with the lives of innocent citizens, being slaughtered on the highways of America, the criminals who have spilled into this sovereign nation, transporting their drugs across the border. Daily headlines in the rural press tell of murders, home invasion and assaults on women and children by illegal aliens. How many more citizens are going to live in fear of their lives throughout the border region? Which cattleman is going to be murdered on his land, have their home ransacked, fences cut or their property covered with narco-terrorist trails leaving piles of human trash.
Who will be the next U.S. border Patrol agent to die, through slip shod programs such as ‘fast and furious’ an unraveling mystery as yet to be revealed? Just look at the statistics of crimes on ‘THE DARK SIDE OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION’ website? But the mainstream Liberal press either denies this is happening or refuses to print the truth. Of course the Ultra Socialist editors in the mainstream media always corrupt the evidence, stating that Americans commit the same offenses. Obviously Americans do, but does that mean we should tolerate the heinous criminals from other nations and third world countries who shouldn’t be here in the first place. Both political parties in their own wretched way, have brought this epidemic on this land.
However, they refuse to recognize, that if the border was really secured or they could track the over stays, who use international flights as foreigners posing as tourists. All this mayhem brought about by years of what I think was intentional unconcern and ignorance by decades of previous governments. Seeing the Supreme Court’s ruling didn’t go exactly the Justice Department way, they are acting like a spoiled child by cutting of the 287(g) enforcement law for the Grand Canyon state. In light of yesterday's Supreme Court ruling, the Obama Administration has suspended the 287(g) program in Arizona and enforcements. Holder using their ultimate power to intimidate the desert state that is trying to survive the onslaught of illegal aliens. A Justice Department should be there to help protect the people, but instead they are using any manner of issues to undermine the Arizona state sovereignty.
The 287(g) program is an official partnership between local law enforcement agencies and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to aid in enforcing federal immigration laws at the local level. Federal officials said the program is no longer needed in Arizona now that the Court has upheld the section of the state's immigration-enforcement law requiring all police to check immigration status. What is next for the Obama regime and his Czar goons, to rescind the ‘Secure Communities’ so local police cannot fingerprint suspicious people who may be illegal aliens.
A COVERT AMNESTY HAS BEEN PASSED BECAUSE PRESIDENT OBAMA, HAS NOT ONLY DISMISSED LAWS PASSED BY THE CONGRESS, BUT NOW IS STATED THAT IT WILL NOT ENFORCE IMMIGRATION LAWS, SPECIFICALLY ON THE ONGOING INTIMIDATION OF ARIZONA. IN OTHER WORDS THIS PRESIDENT HAS METHODICALLY TORE UP THE EDICTS IN THE CONSTITUTION AND ALLOWING FOREIGN NATIONALS TO STAY BY EXECUTIVE FIAT. THIS MAN DOESN’T SEEM TO CARE THAT THIS COUNTRY IS BEING OVERWHELMED BY THE POVERTY FROM SOUTH OF THE BORDER, BUT ALSO A MAGNET TO MILLIONS OF PREGNANT WOMEN WHO ONCE ARRIVE HERE CAN STEAL THE WELFARE OF AMERICAN FAMILIES. ONCE SMUGGLED THROUGH THE BORDER 400.000 ILLEGAL ALIEN MOTHERS ANNUALLY CAN REAP THE REWARDS OF CRIMINALLY ENTERING THE UNITED STATES. WHAT SHOULD BE GOING TO OUR OWN CITIZENS, BEING BLED FROM STATE TREASURIES TO PAY FOR THE WELFARE THROUGH COURT UNFUNDED MANDATES.
We are looking at a President that has added trillions of dollars to the 16 trillion deficits. With Hillary Clinton going overseas and giving $2 billion of taxpayers’ money to some obscure organization in these administrations push for green energy. Not satisfied with this, the Democrats are selling Americas rights of the oceans; with ‘The Treaty of the Sea’.
We should not be looking from either the Obama Government or the Mitt Romney potential administration, but the TEA PARTY. IT is the Time of the PEOPLE’S PARTY. It is the time for the TEA PARTY, which is complimented by man/women; African, White, Hispanic, Asian and other Americans of different nationalities. The TEA PARTY is a wealth of different religions, faiths, gay and ordinary people of every walk of life. Remember a large Majority who votes for President Obama for a second term could be non citizens or American citizens who spend their days watching TV, selling drugs, collecting public assistance and living off the rest of us as parasites. The exception is the sick and true disabled human beings, so think of their dilemma who taxpayers should be assisting, instead of foreigners. If you are frustrated with feeding the rest of the world, unable to get a decent job then join the TEA PARTY. The controversial immigration debate and the problems it has brought; it is a theft of your taxes.
Obama’s new the rules and regulations have been forced on American with its so called ‘Political Correctness’ along with its growing taint of Socialism philosophies impregnating our young in the schools and universities. President Obama has placed obstacles to halt the extraction of valuable energy resources in our time of urgent need. This administration has squashed efforts to extract oil, natural gas and coal; that we could lower the costs from transportation, but sell residual amounts to friendly foreign countries. The progressive’s zealots in the environmentalist world have stopped the laying of oil pipelines from Canada to Texas, and in Utah the Prairie dog has more dominion over townsfolk people through the absolute fanatical ‘Endangered Species’ law. I wonder how long it will be before the Obama Administration taxes us even more, because we actually have a pulse.
Two of the most controversial issue, that we must be imposed at once, so no more foreign invaders are encouraged to break the immigration ‘Rule of Law’. ‘THE LEGAL WORKFORCE ACT’ (E-VERIFY) must be passed and advanced, so illegal aliens can no longer steal jobs from the millions of Americans unemployed. The ‘BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP ACT (H.R.140) must be compulsory so un born babies smuggled into America, so that parents cannot take benefit from welfare, once the child become an immediate citizen. Half a million pregnant women enter the United States looking for handouts annually, for their children.
This is the time when every American who believes in the ‘Rule of Law’ and steps forward to let their Senator or Congress person knows how you will vote. Tell the politician’s aide (screener) and that you want them to sponsor E-Verify and the Birthright Citizenship bills. Citizen voters should phone Congress at the central Switchboard at 202-224-3121. Insist YOUR CONGRESSMAN/WOMAN TO fulfill their obligation to the oath of office and stop pandering to the businesses that use cheap labor or the pro-illegal alien lawmakers that you are only voting for those who favor the TEA PARTY ideology. Use the power of your VOTE to demand they sponsor these to policies or we are destined to become like Europe, overwhelmed by the poverty of other nations.
In the NWO there will really
Submitted by RR GOP on Fri, 06/29/2012 - 8:16pm.
In the NWO there will really be no such thing as there will be no national borders, so looking at it that way, makes sense.
Wonder what they'll call those of us that will be sent to re-education camps?
"Under Capitalism, man exploits man. Under Communism it's just the opposite."
"All that Communism needs to make it successful is for someone to feed and clothe it."