] (MTV) NEW YORK - Policemen standing near Madison Square
] Garden were stocked with bags of plastic handcuffs just
] in case demonstrators got unruly, as they did at
] Thursday's rally in Times Square when 21 people were
] arrested.
]
]
] In the end, their fears were justified. After the
] four-hour march from Times Square to Washington Square
] Park was over, hundreds of protesters refused to leave
] the park. They spilled into the streets, blocking traffic
] and causing riot police to take action. As of 6:45 p.m.,
] 47 protesters had been arrested and more than 11 police
] had been sprayed with mace, officials said.
]
]
] The agitators marred an otherwise peaceful and spirited
] demonstration that drew around 200,000 people who spanned
] 30 city blocks. The protesters were visibly appalled by
] the "shock & awe" campaign in Baghdad, but during the
] march they were there to be heard and seen, not to cause
] trouble.

Peaceful Protest By 200,000 In New York Marred At End

] The philosopher Immanuel Kant theorized that it is
] possible to make aesthetic judgments only if one
] completely ignores the influence of outside interests,
] including those of politics.
]
] But Immanuel Kant never voted in the Academy Awards.
]
] Throughout Oscar's 75 year history, political events in
] the outside world and in the behind-the-curtain world of
] Hollywood have crucially shaped the lists of prize
] winners and the conduct of the award ceremony itself.
] Indeed, with war waging in the Persian Gulf, the most
] compelling aspect of tonight's Oscar broadcast isn't who
] will win but how Hollywood stars will comport themselves
] on global TV at a time of war.
]
] Producers of tonight's Academy Awards show have chosen to
] be sensitive to world events by scaling back the more
] obviously gauche elements in the annual spectacle. Gone
] will be the lengthy red carpet queue of stars talking
] with Joan Rivers about their clothes and jewels and the
] horrible traffic on Hollywood Boulevard. Gone is Barbara
] Walters' annual Oscar night performance during which
] selected nominees excruciatingly reveal their pains and
] hopes. Post-ceremony parties have been scaled back and
] even canceled.
]
] And that's just outside the auditorium. Inside, similar
] cuts are being made; there's even talk that the thing
] might run shorter than four hours

Making Oscar political

] With the shortened red carpet in place and giant golden
] statues ready to stand outside the ceremony, preparations
] and security measures have been stepped up ahead of
] Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony.
]
] The have promised a more "sombre and dignified" affair
] than usual to avoid appearing insensitive as war is being
] waged in Iraq.
]
] But several thousand anti-war protesters are expected to
] gather outside the venue to use the world's assembled
] media to get their message across.

Oscars shaken by war protests

] SAO PAULO, Brazil - More than 2,000 anti-war protesters
] on Friday marched to the U.S. Consulate, where they
] burned American flags and tossed balloons filled with
] pink paint.
]
]
] The protesters also threw chocolate eclairs at the
] consulate, shouting "Let's bombard the consulate!" In
] Portuguese, chocolate eclairs are called "bombas de
] chocolate," which translates as "chocolate bombs."
]
] The consulate closed at 11 a.m., shortly before the
] protesters arrived and began their raucous demonstration.
] Some of the paint-filled balloons found their mark on a
] guard house outside the consulate, but none hit the
] building itself.

Brazilian protesters toss eclairs at American consulate

] PARIS, France (Reuters) -- U.S. citizens have turned on
] French fries and toast to vent their frustration at
] France's anti-war stance on Iraq. Now the French have
] joined in the food war -- with pretzels.
]
] A French Web site is urging people to send pretzels to
] U.S. President, who fainted and fell off a sofa in
] January 2002 after gagging on the salty snack.
]
] The Web site, www.bretzelforbush.com, says the pretzels
] will be stored at a secret location before being sent to
] the White House in a historic mass action.

French site to send Bush peace pretzels - Mar. 17, 2003

WITH THE 3rd INFANTRY DIVISION, Northeastern Kuwait, March 19 — When American soldiers and Marines finally make their move against Saddam Hussein's Iraq, the journalists riding with them will have unprecedented opportunities to report from the front line in real time.

] The combination of satellite technology with the broad
] access the military is giving journalists in this war
] means that the reporters, photographers and camera crews
] "embedded" with the troops will %u2014 in theory, at
] least %u2014 be able to transmit portions of the war
] either live, as it's happening, or within minutes or a
] few hours of the action taking place.
]
] It should provide television viewers in the United States
] and around the world with an unprecedented view of the
] battlefield.
]
] "This is going to be historic. It really is," said Ross
] Simpson, an Associated Press radio correspondent embedded
] with the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Division

High-Tech War Reporting in Real Time

] Some of the biggest rallies this month have endorsed
] President Bush's strategy against Saddam Hussein, and the
] common thread linking most of them is Clear Channel
] Worldwide Inc., the nation's largest owner of radio
] stations.
]
] In a move that has raised eyebrows in some legal and
] journalistic circles, Clear Channel radio stations in
] Atlanta, Cleveland, San Antonio, Cincinnati and other
] cities have sponsored rallies attended by up to 20,000
] people. The events have served as a loud rebuttal to the
] more numerous but generally smaller anti-war rallies.
]
] The sponsorship of large rallies by Clear Channel
] stations is unique among major media companies, which
] have confined their activities in the war debate to
] reporting and occasionally commenting on the news. The
] San Antonio-based broadcaster owns more than 1,200
] stations in 50 states and the District of Columbia.
]
] While labor unions and special interest groups have
] organized and hosted rallies for decades, the involvement
] of a big publicly regulated broadcasting company breaks
] new ground in public demonstrations.
]
] "I think this is pretty extraordinary," said former
] Federal Communications Commissioner Glen Robinson, who
] teaches law at the University of Virginia. "I can't say
] that this violates any of a broadcaster's obligations,
] but it sounds like borderline manufacturing of the news."

Media Giant's Rally Sponsorship Raises Questions

] Ads Feature Young People Speaking Out Against War on Iraq
]
] MTV Refuses To Air Ads Nationally While Frequently
]
] Airing Military Recruitment Ads
]
] March 11, 2003, New York, NY %u2013 An advertisement
] produced in conjunction with the anti-war group Not In
] Our Name will begin airing regionally on MTV and BET as
] the first in a series of anti-war advertisements to be
] shown during programs such as 106 and Park, Total Request
] Live and Direct Effect, some of the network%u2019s most
] popular shows among 18-34 year olds. The ads will begin
] airing on Thursday and Friday March 13th and 14th.

Not in Our Name Anti-War PSA MTV Refused

] UNITED NATIONS - In the endgame of Iraq diplomacy,
] President Bush warned that the United Nations might be
] rendered irrelevant if the Security Council did not act
] against Saddam Hussein.
]
] But on the brink of war, Washington and its allies said
] something very different: The United Nations will play an
] essential, humanitarian role after the guns are silenced.
]
] Bush called the United Nations "a very important
] organization," and his joint statement with the leaders
] of Britain and Spain at a Sunday summit in the Azores
] Islands said they planned to work closely with the world
] body.
]
] In the event of war, the three countries said they will
] urgently seek approval of new Security Council
] resolutions "that would affirm Iraq's territorial
] integrity, ensure rapid delivery of humanitarian relief,
] and endorse an appropriate post-conflict administration
] for Iraq."

U.N. Will Play Humanitarian Role in Iraq

] France's staunch opposition to war may mean French fries
] have been wiped off the menu in some US restaurants, but
] President Jacques Chirac is not without fans on the other
] side of the Atlantic.
]
] The town of Carrboro in the southern state of North
] Carolina decided it was time someone fought in the French
] corner after a local Republican succeeded in
] rechristening French fries "freedom fries" and French
] toast "freedom toast" in House of Representatives
] restaurants.
]
] The town's council, or Board of Aldermen, have passed a
] resolution declaring April "French trade month", and will
] be encouraging residents to buy as many French products
] as they can all month in protest at the action.

'Freedom fries' lambasted in US