Violent demonstrations in Hong Kong have entered their 12th week, but for any would-be protesters who have not yet taken to the streets, CNN recently published a handy how-to guide.
The CNN guide instructs budding protesters on exactly “what to wear” if they want to stay safe, just like the “seasoned pros” who have been pounding the pavements for weeks already.
https://twitter.com/CNN/status/1162994348184748032
CNN’s list of must-have protest gear includes goggles (“obscures identity from surveillance cameras”), black T-shirts (“makes it harder for authorities to identify an individual”), gas masks (also “obscures identity”) and gloves (to protect hands when “creating barriers against police”).
Why, then, is CNN so interested in helping protesters to obscure their identities?https://twitter.com/CarlZha/status/1165612268807081984
Hong Kong police fire shot in the air as protesters surrounded and attacked police https://t.co/sDowgy5KPi
— Carl Zha (@CarlZha) August 25, 2019
Here is neoliberal NY Times pundit Nicholas Kristof whitewashing the British colonial regime in Hong Kong.
He of course doesn’t mention the UK colonialists’ bloody massacre of protesters.
A 2017 memo leaked to Politico explains the phenomenon clearly. The US, the document says, should “emphasize”human rights in adversary countries (Russia, China, Iran, North Korea), but give friendly governments (like Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the Philippines) a pass, regardless of how repressive their policies are. Human rights, in other words, should only be a concern if it advances US global strategic interests.
The 2017 memo was striking in its candor, confirming that Washington should“use human rights as a weapon to beat up our adversaries while letting ourselves and our allies off the hook,” according to one former official who explained its contents to Politico.
Western coverage of Hong Kong is reminiscent of its coverage of the 2014 Euromaidan protests in Ukraine, where Washington supported a violent coup – and anti-government protests in Venezuela, where the Trump administration has also openly supported military coup plotters. In Syria, Al Qaeda-aligned jihadists morphed into “moderate rebels” in mainstream Western coverage.
All the while, anti-government protesters in countries allied to the United States are ignored, actively smeared as troublemakers by the media, eyed with suspicion and sometimes even maligned as working at the behest of foreign adversaries like Russia to “sow discord” or “divide” people.
CNN’s ‘how-to’ guide for Hong Kong’s protesters proves once again that Washington can sow whatever kind of violent discord it deems necessary abroad to advance its foreign policy agenda – and the media will be more than willing to lend a hand.